1/3 of people with chronic pain choose cannabis

January 9, 2023

1/3 of people with chronic pain choose cannabis – Cannabis | weed | marijuana

Despite some recent headlines that cannabis pain relief is a placebo, a new study has found that 1/3 of people with chronic pain choose cannabis for relief.

The study, published in the JAMA Network Open, surveyed over 1,700 adults. Over half said cannabis allowed them to reduce their use of prescription opioids and other pain relievers.

In addition to pain relief, the adults surveyed also indicated that cannabis helps them with mental health issues that usually accompany chronic pain.

One of the lead authors, Mark Bicket of the Michigan Opioid Prescribing Engagement Network, said the survey results underscore the need for more research.

1/3 of people with chronic pain who prefer cannabis to opioids shouldn’t come as a surprise. Anyone familiar with Neil Magnuson and the Cannabis Substitution Project knows that cannabis is a safe and non-toxic alternative.

A recent study showed that using cannabis for pain leads to a higher risk of opioid addiction. But this JAMA study found that less than 1 percent of adults who choose cannabis for chronic pain end up using more opioids than average.

In fact, over half of the adults surveyed said they used less opioids and over-the-counter pain relievers when they had access to cannabis.

This underscores the need to liberalize the cannabis economy. Even the poorest of the poor should be able to afford high-quality pain-relieving strains.

But as much as we like the results of this study, we have to be honest. This study “1/3 of people with chronic pain choose cannabis” tells us nothing objective about the world.

The limits of observational research

1/3 of people with chronic pain choose cannabis

1/3 of people with chronic pain are choosing cannabis over opioids, great news. But is it true? This study was a cross-sectional study, a type of observational study used to observe and describe a population at a given point in time.

This case involved collecting data from a sample of cannabis users with chronic pain. The researchers then analyzed the data to draw conclusions.

One advantage of cross-sectional studies is that researchers can carry them out relatively quickly and cheaply. However, as Thomas Sowell famously says, there are no solutions, only compromises. Although cross-sectional studies have their uses, they have many limitations.

Cause-effect relationships cannot be established. Because data is collected at a single point in time, it is impossible to determine whether one variable is causing the other, or whether other factors are involved.
Subject to selection bias. If the sample of people being studied is not representative of the general population, the results may not apply to the larger population.
Limited ability to examine changes over time. Because researchers only collect data at a single point in time, it is impossible to track changes in the variables studied or how they may change over time.
It can be influenced by confounding variables. If researchers don’t control for other variables in the study, they can affect the results and make it difficult to interpret the results accurately.
Limited to a single point in time. This means that trends or patterns that may emerge over time cannot be examined using cross-sectional data.
Less reliability than other study designs. Because of the limitations listed above, cross-sectional studies are less reliable than other types of studies, such as B. Randomized controlled trials.