Connect with us

States With Legal Cannabis Have 24.8 Percent Less Opioid Mortalities Than Non-Cannabis-Friendly States

There’s now yet another reason to love the
green, leafy goodness that is cannabis—not only can it act in place of
painkillers to provide relief, it can also stop dependence on them altogether.

Published

on

 

pills

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap radius”]T[/dropcap]here’s now yet another reason to love the green, leafy goodness that is cannabis—not only can it act in place of painkillers to provide relief, it can also stop dependence on them altogether.

A recent study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine, showed that states with legal or medical cannabis have lower opiate overdose rates. The study explicitly reports that, “States with medical cannabis laws had a 24.8 percent lower mean annual opioid overdose mortality rate compared with states without medical cannabis laws.”

The study also specifically revealed that these numbers dropped after cannabis became legal, so it was not just a case of coincidence or similar circumstances. Five years after state implemented legal cannabis, deaths were down by 33 percent.“[O]ur results suggest a link between medical cannabis laws and lower opioid analgesic overdose mortality,” the study also states.

Additionally, another study conducted by the National Bureau of Economic Research echoes this research. The study concludes that, “Medical cannabis laws are associated with significantly lower state-level opioid overdose mortality rates. Further investigation is required to determine how medical cannabis laws may interact with policies aimed at preventing opioid analgesic overdose.”

As more states decide to legalize cannabis, data shows we just may see an even sharper decline in deaths related to opiates and other prescription drugs.

 

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *