The Role of Cannabis in Reducing Opioid Use Among People Who Inject Drugs: A Qualitative Study

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A recently published qualitative study (1) found that cannabis can help with reducing opioid use with people who inject drugs (PWID). Opioid overdose deaths have increased significantly in the past decade, and access to cannabis has as well, yet there is limited clinical evidence on cannabis use in populations of people who use opioids and inject drugs. This study, which was funded by National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), aimed to contextualize the existing data on the factors related to cannabis co-use with opioids.

To gain more perspectives into this intersection, researchers examined data from interviews conducted individually with 30 participants in two community sites in Los Angeles, California. As noted in the study, California is the state with the longest history of legal cannabis. During the in-person interviews, participants were asked about their cannabis use and opioid use.

After the responses were collected, the role of cannabis in reducing opioid use was described in three overarching themes (1):

1. For post opioid-cessation to remain in "maintenance"
2. To manage symptoms of opioid withdrawal
3. To decrease opioid use due to cannabis low barrier accessibility

Additionally, 70% of participants reported an income of less than $2100 in the past 30 days, and 56.7% reported being homeless in the past three months.

“These findings support the extant literature on cannabis and opioid co-use for pattern changes among vulnerable populations,” the researchers concluded. “Nonetheless, carefully controlled studies that examine these connections between cannabis use, intentions, and utilization patterns are needed to establish the value of cannabis to opioid-using PWID. Our data provide an initial exploration for future studies examining these connections among PWID experiencing inequities such as housing insecurity and material deprivation.”

Reference

1. Ganesh, SS., Gould, EE., Conner, BT., Huh, J., Ceasar, RCC., Bluthenthal, RN. “Smoking weed it gets you over the hump”: Cannabis co-use as a facilitator of decreased opioid use among people who inject drugs in Los Angeles, California. Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports. 2024, DOI: 10.1016/j.dadr.2024.100257.