Cannabis in Reducing Opioid Use

The increasing number of countries and jurisdictions that have legalized marijuana for medical and recreational use has made this controversial drug a popular issue in recent years. Medical marijuana is being studied as a possible alternative to opioids for pain management as the opioid crisis continues to wreak havoc on communities. In this piece, we'll examine if and how the legalization of medicinal marijuana affects the rate at which opioid prescriptions are written and fatal opiate overdoses occur.

What Are Opioids?

Opioids are a group of medications that can either be extracted from the opium poppy plant or chemically produced to replicate their effects. Painkillers like morphine, oxycodone, hydrocodone, codeine, and fentanyl are frequently prescribed for moderate to severe pain. Pain is alleviated and happiness is generated because opioids bind to opioid receptors all across the brain and spinal cord.

What Makes Opioids Dangerous?

Opioids hold significant promise for alleviating pain, but their use is not without serious risks. The euphoric sensations these medications produce can lead to addiction, as individuals might start taking them to experience the high rather than to find relief from pain. As a result of long-term use, a person may develop a physical dependence on opioids, meaning their body requires the drugs for normal functioning.

Should someone abruptly stop taking opioids or substantially decrease their dose, they may experience withdrawal symptoms. These symptoms make it even more difficult for individuals to quit using the drugs.

Moreover, opioids can harm the central nervous system, leading to decreased respiration and heart rate. In severe cases, an opioid overdose can result in death, unconsciousness, or respiratory failure. The widespread use of prescription opioids has significantly contributed to a sharp rise in addiction rates, overdose-related fatalities, and the economic burden associated with the opioid crisis in the United States.

Can Opioid Use Be Decreased With Medical Marijuana?

Cannabinoids are the active ingredients of medical marijuana, also known as cannabis. Cannabidiol (CBD), which has therapeutic characteristics without the psychoactive effects of THC, and delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is responsible for the psychoactive effects or "high," are the two most well-known cannabinoids. Chronic pain, epilepsy, MS, and cancer-related symptoms are just some of the illnesses that have been helped by medical marijuana.

There is mounting evidence that medical marijuana can be used as an effective alternative to opioids in the treatment of chronic pain. Medical marijuana users report less need for opioids, and some have even stopped taking them altogether, according to a number of studies. In addition, cannabis has been demonstrated to reduce the severity of withdrawal symptoms from opioids, making it simpler to stop using.

What is the Impact of Medical Marijuana Legalization on Opioid Prescriptions?

As medical marijuana's legal status in the United States continues to expand, studies have looked into whether or not it affects the number of opioid prescriptions doctors write. The prevalence of medical marijuana rules in a given location may be related to reduced rates of opioid prescriptions, according to a growing body of studies.

Medicaid recipients in areas where medical marijuana is permitted were found to have 5.88% fewer opioid prescriptions than Medicaid beneficiaries in states where medical marijuana is not legal, according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine. Further, the same study found that states with legal recreational marijuana use also had lower rates of opioid prescriptions. These results suggest that a decrease in opioid prescriptions may follow from the legalization of medicinal marijuana, which in turn may lessen the risk of opioid addiction and overdose.

There is growing curiosity about medical marijuana's possible efficacy as a pain-relieving alternative. Recent studies show that opioid prescription rates are lower in states that have legalized medical or recreational marijuana, suggesting that marijuana could be a viable alternative to painkillers. The preliminary data is intriguing, but more study is needed to fully grasp the ramifications of these discoveries.

Does Legalizing Marijuana Decrease Fatal Opiate Overdoses?

Marijuana legalization and deadly opiate overdoses: preliminary research shows conflicting results. There may be a correlation between states that have legalized medical marijuana and a decrease in the number of people dying from opiate overdoses. Overdose deaths from opioids were reduced by 24.8% between 1999 and 2010 in states with medical marijuana regulations, according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine in 2014. These findings support medical marijuana's ability to reduce fatal opioid overdoses.

But other research has found no correlation between marijuana legalization and an increase in opioid overdose mortality. While states that legalized medical marijuana observed a decrease in opioid overdose deaths at first, that trend did not persist over time, according to a study published in PNAS in 2019. The authors acknowledged the complexities of the link between marijuana legalization and opioid overdose mortality, noting that other factors, such as access to addiction treatment and modifications to prescription drug monitoring systems, may moderate the observed association.

To further comprehend the connection between marijuana legalization and opioid overdose mortality, more study on this topic is necessary.

Bottom Line

There is some evidence that medicinal marijuana can serve as an alternate pain management medication, hence reducing opiate consumption and prescriptions. While there is inconsistency in the literature, several studies have found that states with medicinal marijuana laws have lower rates of fatal opioid overdoses.

Despite the complexities of the link between medical marijuana legalization and opioid abuse and addiction, there is reason to explore cannabis for its potential benefits as an alternative to opioids. As the global opioid crisis worsens, it is critical to investigate all potential solutions to this public health disaster. One such solution is medicinal marijuana's potential to reduce opiate usage and addiction.

If more studies show that medical marijuana can reduce opioid usage and overdose deaths, then policymakers should think about making it more widely available as part of a broader plan to combat the epidemic. To understand the long-term impacts of cannabis on opioid use and addiction, we may need to create medical marijuana programs, expand qualifying conditions for medical marijuana use, and increase investment in research.