Can cannabis-infused drinks help serve as substitutes for alcohol? This is what a recent study published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs hopes to address as a team of researchers investigated the growing trend of cannabis beverages in society and whether they could serve as viable substitutes for alcohol beverages. This study has the potential to help scientists, medical professionals, legislators, and the public better understand the health benefits of cannabis beverages and the steps that be taken to expand their reach.
For the study, the researchers surveyed 438 anonymous adults who reported past year cannabis use with all survey questions being derived from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). The goal of the study was the ascertain whether cannabis beverages could serve as a suitable substitute for alcohol. In the end, the researchers found that 33.6 percent of individuals surveyed reported consuming at least one cannabis beverage when drinking. Additionally, the researchers found that 58.6 percent of cannabis beverage users had higher chances of recommending cannabis beverages compared to 47.2 percent of non-cannabis beverage drinkers.
“In the first study of its kind, we introduce the concept of having cannabis as harm reduction for alcohol," said Dr. Jessica Kruger, who is a clinical associate professor of community health and health behavior at the University of Buffalo and lead author of the study. "Cannabis has been proposed as harm reduction for other drugs such as opioids but not talked about as often for legal substances such as alcohol. I think we have a long way to go before this is seen as mainstream as cannabis beverages are a new modality of use.”
What new insight into cannabis beverages will researchers make in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!
As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!
Sources: Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, Marijuana Moment, University of Buffalo
