Ep. 33 - Medical or Adult Use, It's All the Same Cannabis

Cannabis Nurse Truths

Medical or adult use? Which should you use? What are the differences? Are there differences? Currently in the United States, cannabis users have two legal options in states that have legalized either medical or adult-use cannabis. Although many of the differences between them are related to access, there are many other issues at hand when consumers make the decision to purchase at either a legal adult-use or medical dispensary.

In this episode of CNT, we highlight the differences between medical and adult-use cannabis, but keep in mind... it's all the same weed.

Episode Resources

French, M.T., Zukerberg, J., Lewandowski, T. E., Piccolo, K.B., & Mortensen, K. (2022). Societal Costs and Outcomes of Medical and Recreational Marijuana Policies in the United States: A Systematic Review. Medical Care Research and Review, 79(6), 743–771. https://doi.org/10.1177/10775587211067315 Gibson, L.P., Giordano, G.R., Bidwell, L.C., Hutchison, K.E., & Bryan, A.D. (2023). Acute Effects of Ad Libitum Use of Commercially Available Cannabis Products on the Subjective Experience of Aerobic Exercise: A Crossover Study. Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01980-4 Lin, L.A., Ilgen, M.A., Jannausch, M., & Bohnert, K.M. (2016). Comparing adults who use cannabis medically with those who use recreationally: Results from a national sample. Addictive Behaviors, 61, 99–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2016.05.015 Page, R.L., Allen, L.A., Kloner, R.A., Carriker, C.R., Martel, C., Morris, A.A., Piano, M.R., Rana, J.S., & Saucedo, J.F. (2020). Medical Marijuana, Recreational Cannabis, and Cardiovascular Health: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association. Circulation, 142(10), e131–e152. https://doi.org/10.1161/CIR.0000000000000883 Szejko, N., Becher, E., Heimann, F., Grotenhermen, F., & Müller-Vahl, K.R. (2024). Medicinal Use of Different Cannabis Strains: Results from a Large Prospective Survey in Germany. Pharmacopsychiatry, 57, 133–140. https://doi.org/10.1055/a-2261-2269 Turna, J., Balodis, I., Munn, C., Van Ameringen, M., Busse, J., & MacKillop, J. (2020). Overlapping patterns of recreational and medical cannabis use in a large community sample of cannabis users. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 102, 152188. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2020.152188