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Study: The increased purity of cannabis is leading to more and more people receiving medication

The latest research shows that the increased strength of cannabis effects is an important reason why more and more people are taking medication. Scientists at King's College London looked at Dutch data and found that when coffee shops sell high-strength cannabis, the number of visits to specialist treatment centres increases. Conversely, the number of consultations will decrease.

The study is the first to explore the link between the strength of marijuana consumed by smokers and changes in the number of people receiving medication. The study found that medical needs change only after 5 to 7 years of changing the strength of marijuana. Tom Freeman, an addiction scientist at King's College London, said: "The study is the first to link cannabis strength to its associated medical outcomes and provides evidence of this. ”

In recent years, more and more people have smoked marijuana instead of other illegal substances, and more and more people have been hospitalized for marijuana use. The demand for professional treatment from cannabis users is rising. First-time cannabis users in Europe soared by 53% from 2006 to 2014.


Hemp produces more than 100 cannabinol compounds. However, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), or D-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, is the main psychoactive substance in cannabis. Another compound is cannabidiol (CBD), which balances THC when people smoke large amounts of high-strength cannabis, reducing the impact on the mental health of smokers.

Over the past few decades, high-strength cannabis has appeared on the market in many countries. A major U.S. survey found that the amount of THC in illegal marijuana rose from 4% in 1995 to 12% in 2014. Researchers also found in 2017 that after the legalization of marijuana sales in Washington state, marijuana with nearly 70% THC accounted for one-fifth of the cannabis market. In 2008, high-strength cannabis with a THC content of 15% in the UK accounted for 80% of the cannabis market.

In a work funded by the Society for the Study of Addiction, Freeman and other researchers studied data collected by the Trimbos Institute. The institute is a not-for-profit mental health and addiction research organization based in the Netherlands. Every year, the association conducts random anonymous tests on Dutch coffee shops, focusing on cannabis sales.

In the journal Psychological Medicine, the researchers write that THC levels in cannabis increased sharply from 8.6 percent in 2000 to 20.4 percent in 2004 and then to 15.3 percent in 2015. When linked to its effect on the number of people in drug therapy, they found that from 2000 to 2010, the number of first-time marijuana users increased from 7 to 26 per 100,000 people, falling to less than 20 per 100,000 people in 2015. This means that for every 1% increase in THC, about 60 people are treated.

"Between 2000 and 2004, the THC content in cannabis slowly decreased and then increased dramatically," Freeman said. At the same time, the number of people receiving medication has shown the same trend. "This shows that the increase in the strength of cannabis is an important reason for people to take medication."

Val Curran, Professor of Psychotropic Drugs at University College London, said: "A growing body of research has shown that increasing THC levels in cannabis is associated with the incidence of mental health problems, such as addiction and insanity".

But she said high-strength marijuana isn't the only reason for the rise in demand for treatment. Other factors include a marked decline in cannabidiol levels in cannabis. Cannabidiol has been shown to combat some mental health problems posed by THC. ”

Ian Hamilton, a lecturer in mental health at the University of York in the United Kingdom, agrees that in addition to cannabis strength, other factors are important. "For marijuana users and healthcare providers, they can accept people seeking medical care because of marijuana use," he said. At the same time, cannabis treatment has been advancing, with a downward trend in referrals for opioid problems such as heroin. So while health care workers used to think of marijuana as "relatively benign," they are now more inclined to support its use. ”

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