Cannabis is used as a substitute for prescription drugs according to a large survey

According to an online survey with 2774 participants, who reported having used cannabis at least once in the previous 90 days about a half said that they used cannabis as a substitute for prescription drugs. This is the result of research by scientists of the Center for Medical Cannabis Education in Del Mar, Bastyr University Research Institute in Kenmore and the Department of Medical Research, Center for the Study of Cannabis and Social Policy in Seattle, USA.

A total of 1,248 (46%) respondents reported using cannabis as a substitute for prescription drugs. The most common classes of drugs substituted were narcotics/opioids (35.8%), anxiolytics/benzodiazepines (13.6%) and antidepressants (12.7%). A total of 2,473 substitutions were reported or approximately two drug substitutions per substituting respondent. Authors wrote that “these patient-reported outcomes support prior research that individuals are using cannabis as a substitute for prescription drugs, particularly, narcotics/opioids, and independent of whether they identify themselves as medical or non-medical users.”

Source: IACM Bulletin