A new study has found that cannabis is nearly as common as prescription medication among people seeking help to stop smoking cigarettes.
Researchers from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, New York University, the San Francisco VA Health Care System, and the University of California examined survey responses from 2,804 adults who either used nicotine e-cigarettes, smoked cigarettes, or did both.
Among participants trying to stop smoking, 9% reported they had turned to marijuana as a quitting aid. By comparison, 9.4% relied on prescription medications designed to help people stop smoking. Most of the marijuana products used for this purpose contained THC.
The pattern was similar among people attempting to stop vaping. Marijuana ranked as the third most commonly reported strategy, behind stopping nicotine use without assistance and switching to other recreational nicotine products.
The researchers noted that marijuana was used more often than several established approaches. It was more common than behavioral health programs and nonprescription nicotine replacement products.
The findings have raised concerns, however, because some cannabis users reported more pronounced symptoms related to nicotine withdrawal.
Respondents who used products containing THC while attempting to quit smoking described greater difficulties with symptoms such as irritability, food-related thoughts, disrupted sleep, problems concentrating, and restlessness. Those who used cannabis while trying to stop vaping were also more likely to report difficulty concentrating.
The study does not establish that marijuana caused those symptoms, but the researchers said the results warrant closer examination, particularly because THC appears to be gaining ground despite the availability of treatments supported by stronger evidence.
The findings come as marijuana use continues to grow in the U.S. while cigarette consumption declines. Recent Gallup polling found that the share of American adults who report smoking cannabis has reached a record level, while cigarette use has fallen to a historic low.
Federal survey data have also indicated that marijuana use has overtaken cigarette smoking among Americans, reflecting changing attitudes toward the risks associated with the two. More recent figures suggest cannabis is now used almost daily by more Americans than alcohol or cigarettes.
Other research has explored cannabis as a possible substitute for alcohol. One recent study reported that people consuming THC-infused beverages drank less alcohol.
In separate research published by the AMA, a single psilocybin dose paired with therapy was associated with greater long-term success in quitting cigarettes compared with nicotine patches.
As more studies are conducted to clarify the role that marijuana can play in helping people to quit smoking cigarettes, cannabis firms like Green Thumb Industries Inc. (CSE: GTII) (OTCQX: GTBIF) will continue to let qualifying adults access their products and advise them on how best to leverage marijuana in dealing with the symptoms that they face.
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