BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The ageing United States (US) population is providing an unprecedented population of older adults who use recreational drugs. We aimed to estimate the trends in the prevalence of past-year use of cannabis, describe the patterns and attitudes, and determine correlates of cannabis use by adults age 50 and older.
DESIGN: Secondary analysis of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health survey from 2006 to 2013, a cross-sectional survey given to a nationally representative probability sample of populations living in US households.
SETTING: USA.
PARTICIPANTS: 47,140 survey respondents age >/=50.
MEASURES: Estimates and trends of past-year use of cannabis.
FINDINGS: The prevalence of past-year cannabis use among adults age >/=50 significantly increased from 2006/2007 through 2012/2013, with a 57.8% relative increase for adults ages 50-64 (linear trend p < 0.001), and a 250% relative increase for those >/=65 (linear trend p = 0.002). When combining data from 2006 to 2013, 6.9% of older cannabis users met criteria for cannabis abuse or dependence, and the majority of the sample reported perceiving no risk or slight risk associated with monthly cannabis use (85.3%) or weekly use (79%). Past-year users were more likely to be younger, male, non-Hispanic, not have multiple chronic conditions, and use tobacco, alcohol, or other drugs compared with non-past-year cannabis users.
CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of cannabis use has increased significantly in recent years among US adults >/=50 years of age.
Demographic trends among older cannabis users in the United States, 2006-2013
Addiction, 112 (3), 516-525. doi: 10.1111/add.13670. PMCID: PMC5300687.