Cannabis for Seniors: A Growing Trend with Important Safety Considerations and Potential Health Benefits
Older adults are increasingly turning to cannabis to alleviate pain, get help with sleep, improve mental health or cope with other medical conditions, with one in 5 people ages 50-plus saying they used some form of cannabis at least once in the last year. That’s up from 1 in 8 (12 percent) in 2021, representing a significant shift in how seniors approach alternative wellness options.
Why Seniors Are Turning to Cannabis
University of California San Diego School of Medicine researchers report that older adults use cannabis primarily for medical purposes to treat a variety of common health conditions, including pain, sleep disturbances and psychiatric conditions like anxiety and depression. Sixty-eight percent of poll respondents who used cannabis products did so for help with sleep, with many also citing pain relief (63 percent), mental health and mood (53 percent) and relaxation (81 percent) as reasons for using cannabis.
Cannabis use among the elderly is growing, as there is more public acceptance and reduced stigma, with medical cannabis increasingly viewed as an effective option for managing insomnia and chronic pain. One marker for the decrease in stigma is the recent statement by the 38-million-member AARP, in which they declared their support for the medical use of marijuana for older adults in states that have legalized it.
Potential Health Benefits
Older adults may benefit from cannabis treatment for various symptoms such as chronic pain, sleep difficulties, and others, that are not adequately controlled with evidence-based therapies. Patients reported that cannabis was helping to address these issues, especially with insomnia and pain.
Half (53%) reported using cannabis regularly on a daily or weekly basis, and reported using cannabidiol (CBD)-only products (46%), with the majority (78%) using cannabis for medical purposes only with the most common targeted conditions/symptoms being pain/arthritis (73%), sleep disturbance (29%), anxiety (24%) and depression (17%).
For seniors in Long Island areas like Coram who are considering cannabis as a wellness option, services like flower delivery coram provide convenient access to quality products with proper guidance.
Important Safety Considerations
For those over 65, there are certain physical and mental risks to regular cannabis use, including increased risk of heart disease and certain cancers, as well as the possibility of addiction and exacerbation of age-related cognitive issues. Cannabis can also interfere with certain medications.
Recent research has shown that cannabis use is linked to heart disease, with THC causing blood vessel inflammation in animal models, and studies finding that regular cannabis use is correlated with a 29% increase in heart attacks and a 20% increase in stroke.
There’s limited research when it comes to interactions between cannabis and prescription medications, but cannabis may interact with certain medications that older adults are more likely to take, and older people are more likely to take multiple medications for chronic conditions.
Best Practices for Senior Cannabis Use
Most of the adverse effects associated with cannabis usage are dose-related, so it is important to know the strength of the marijuana you are taking and to “start low and go slow”: start with the lowest effective dose and take your time working your way up to a dose that alleviates your symptoms with a minimum of side effects.
Slow titration and frequent monitoring are the cornerstones of cannabis treatment for older adults. Once MC treatment is initiated and the therapeutic dose is achieved, we recommend at least monthly follow-up at first to assess adverse events and treatment efficacy.
The Importance of Medical Consultation
While many older adults are turning to cannabis to help with health issues, 44 percent of people who use cannabis regularly have not discussed their use with a health care provider, which health experts say is key. Even if your doctor, nurse practitioner or pharmacist doesn’t ask if you’re using cannabis products, it’s important to offer this information, no matter whether you’re using it to address a physical or mental health concern or simply for pleasure.
The findings demonstrate the need for the clinical workforce to become aware of cannabis use by seniors and to gain awareness of both the benefits and risks of cannabis use in their patient population, and it may be important to incorporate evidence-backed information about cannabis use into medical school and use screening questions about cannabis as a regular part of clinic visits.
Looking Forward
For older adults, generally, the available evidence suggests cannabis use may be associated with greater frequencies of mental health issues, substance use, and acute healthcare use, and the benefit-to-risk ratio is unclear, with studies with a balanced assessment of benefits and harms needed to guide appropriate public health messaging.
Future studies are imperative to better understanding the efficacy and safety of different formulations of cannabis in treating common conditions in older adults, both to maximize benefit and minimize harm, as there seems to be potential with cannabis, but we need more evidence-based research.
As the cannabis landscape continues to evolve, seniors considering this option should prioritize open communication with healthcare providers, careful product selection, and gradual introduction to find what works best for their individual needs while minimizing potential risks.