Shock Report Finds Spike in Cannabis Poisoning Among Older Adults After Legalization in Canada

The report found there were increased rates of emergency room visits of people aged 65 and older suffering from cannabis poisoning after the recreational marijuana was legalized in October 2018.

“These are not people getting too high, being giddy and laughing,” Dr. Nathan Stall, a geriatric specialist at Sinai Health in Toronto and lead author of the report, said in a statement, according to the Canadian Press.

“These are people very sick to the point where health-care practitioners, without knowing that they’ve consumed cannabis, consider other serious health conditions, like stroke, serious infection (and) serious metabolic abnormalities.”

“Overall, this study shows the health outcomes of cannabis legalization and commercialization for older adults and highlights the consequences associated with edible cannabis,” Dr. Stall’s team wrote.

Marijuana Can Help Counter Some of the Side Effects of Treatment, but be Cautious

Study authors obtained their data by looking into Ontario Ministry of Health administrative data for emergency room visits for cannabis poisoning in older adults between the following policy periods:

• Pre-legalization which took place between January 2015 and September 2018
• Legalization period 1, which only allowed for dried cannabis flowers to be sold between October 2018 and December 2019
• Legalization period 2, which permitted the sale of edible cannabis between January 2020 and December 2022

According to the study, the pre-legalization rate of ER visits among older adults more than doubled from 5.8 per 100,000 to 15.4 per 100,000 during the first legalization phase, and ultimately went up to 21.1 per 100,000 when edibles were legalized.

“There’s a bit of an age-related bias that many health care practitioners, and frankly society, hold that older adults are not using drugs. And that’s not true,” Dr. Stall said states, as per CNN.

“We found that the largest increases in emergency department visits for cannabis poisoning among seniors occurred after edible cannabis became legal for retail sale in January 2020.”

According to CNN, Dr. Stall also noted, “Cannabis today is very different than cannabis was as recently as the early ’90s and mid ’80s.

“Today’s cannabis extracts contain as much as 30 times more THC. … Older adults who may not have used cannabis in decades and are now trying again in this post-legalization era may not be aware.”

He suggests products should have specific guidelines for older adults, saying it should help them in “recognizing that the amount of drug they may need is a lot less than younger populations.”

“In geriatric medicine, we have a mantra: Start low and go slow. That same mantra applies here,” he concluded.

Cannabis to Treat Chronic Pain

While the data about people ingesting too much cannabis is alarming, there is some research that indicates that — when used correctly — cannabis can help with several health issues, including pain management.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes cannabis, otherwise known as marijuana, as the dried flowers, leaves, stems, and seeds of the cannabis plant.

“The cannabis plant contains more than 100 compounds (or cannabinoids). These compounds include tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is impairing or mind-altering, as well as other active compounds, such as cannabidiol (CBD). CBD — by itself — is not impairing, meaning it does not cause a ‘high,'” the CDC explains.

Cannabis is most commonly used by either smoking, vaping, mixing or infusing it into foods and drinks, or even inhaling oil concentrates and extracts from the plant.

As for cannabis’ affects on a person, the CDC says it depends on the following:

• Concentration of THC used
• Frequency of cannabis use
• Use of cannabis with other substances (e.g., alcohol or other drugs), which could increase risk of harm
• Mode of cannabis use (e.g., consuming edibles or products with high THC concentration can have delayed or unpredictable effects and increases the risk of overdose or poisoning)
• Previous experience with cannabis or other drugs
• Biology (e.g., genes, DNA)

People choose to use cannabis for various reasons — including managing symptoms and side effects associated with cancer and treatment.

Understanding How Medical Marijuana Alleviates Pain

“When you take plant-based cannabis, marijuana, you’re decreasing inflammation, and you’re relieving pain at the same time,” integrative cannabis physician Dr. Junella Chin told SurvivorNet in an earlier interview.

But how can pot do this, and why? Dr. Chin explains that humans have a natural cannabis system, or an endocannabinoid system, that our bodies create. When a person is in chronic pain though, these natural pain relievers aren’t enough.

“So when we utilize phytocannabinoids from the cannabis plant, we are actually replenishing our body’s own cannabinoid system. By doing so, it helps us deal with pain and inflammation much more effectively.”

Dr. Chin also pointed out that you can use the cannabis plant and remove the THC (the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana), and still provide pain relief and nausea-relief.

“You can take the cannabis plant without the THC, and still have the benefits of the CBD, which is also anti-pain, it’s also anti-nausea and it also boosts your appetite,” Dr. Chin says. Although marijuana is still labeled as a schedule 1 drug, which means it has no medicinal value, Dr. Chin said she hopes that with more clinical trials and research about its benefits, the FDA will change that label.

And just this month, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), issued a proposed rule on May 16, 2024 to change marijuana from its classification as a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug, minimizing federal DEA rules.

Currently, the U.S. has 38 states which allow marijuana to be used medically, recreationally, or both.

Who Has Access to Medical Marijuana in the U.S.?

What Are the Risks of Smoking Cannabis?

A recent study found that people who smoke cannabis tend to have higher amounts of toxic metals such as lead and cadmium in their blood and urine. These metals impact the brain and cause kidney and heart problems. Cadmium is also known to cause cancer.

Furthermore, lung cancer experts say smoking cannabis can be linked to lung cancer, and its smoke may contain the same carcinogens as cigarettes. Despite these risks, some cancer patients continue using cannabis to deal with symptoms or side effects associated with chemotherapy, which may include nausea and pain.

Are There Risks Associated With Marijuana?

About 40% of breast cancer patients use cannabis, according to a 2021 study, and most patients who use the drug report doing so to relieve symptoms associated with treatment, such as pain, anxiety, insomnia, and nausea/vomiting.

A more recent study that evaluated more than 7,000 people between 2005 and 2018 measured levels of five metals in their blood and 16 in their urine. They found that people who used marijuana had “significantly higher lead and cadmium levels in blood and urine than people who didn’t use [cannabis].” These toxic metals are also found in some cigarettes.

Despite the claims cannabis may benefit some cancer patients, many experts we spoke to urged against it, including Dr. Raja Flores, who is the Chairman of the Department of Thoracic Surgery for Mount Sinai Health System.

“As someone on the front lines, who sees this every day, I’ve seen lung cancer caused by marijuana that is incredibly aggressive,” Dr. Flores tells SurvivorNet.

“There is no real good population-based study that looks at marijuana smoking, and that has had enough time elapsed to show it’s associated with lung cancer, [but] I’ve seen it. I’ve seen multiple multiple cases of it. I see it every day,” Dr. Flores says.

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

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