How is marijuana use linked to obesity? This is what a recent study published in Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research hopes to address as Dr. Ray Merrill, who is a Professor in the Department of Health Science at Brigham Young University, investigated a connection between marijuana use and body mass index (BMI) throughout the common United States population. This study holds the potential to help researchers, medical professionals, and the public better understand the short- and long-term health benefits of marijuana use.
For the study, Dr. Merrill conducted a telephone survey between 2016 and 2022 involving 735,921 U.S. adults aged 18 years and older, who were asked about their overall health, risk behaviors, and marijuana use, the last of which was broken down into at least once within the last 30 days and at least 20 of the last 30 days.
While the study noted increased marijuana use over the six-year period (7.48 percent to 14.91 percent), they attributed this to the increased number of states that have legalized both medical and recreational use. The findings also suggest that marijuana use among obese individuals was 35 percent lower than non-obese individuals, meaning a lower BMI correlated with higher marijuana use.
“Marijuana use is correlated with lower BMI,” the study notes in its conclusion. “As legalization and prevalence of the drug in the U.S. increases, the prevalence of obesity may decline. However, clinicians should view this outcome along with the known health risks associated with marijuana use.”
This study comes as legalization of recreational marijuana use for 21 years of age or older is now in 24 states as of April 2024 with medical marijuana being legal in 13 states.
What new connections between marijuana use and obesity 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: Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research, Marijuana Moment, CBS News