Associations between cannabis use and same-day health and substance use behaviors

Irene De La Torre; Emily T Hébert; Krista M Kezbers; Danielle Walters; Zachary C Pope; Bingjing Mao; Lizbeth Benson; Dingjing Shi; Nadia Stanley; Michael S Businelle

doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2024.108239

Associations between cannabis use and same-day health and substance use behaviors

Addict Behav. 2024 Dec 31:163:108239. doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2024.108239. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, College of Arts and Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States.
² TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States; Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas Health School of Public Health, Austin, TX, United States; Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States.
³ TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States.
⁴ TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States; Department of Psychology, College of Arts and Sciences, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, United States.
⁵ TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States; Department of Health Promotion Sciences, Hudson College of Public Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States.
⁶ TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States; Community Health Science & Policy, School of Public Health, Louisiana State University Health Science Center - New Orleans, New Orleans, LA, United States.
⁷ Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States.
⁸ Department of Psychology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, United States; School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States.
⁹ TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States; Department of Psychology and Special Education, Texas A&M-Commerce, Commerce, TX, United States.
¹⁰ TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States; Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, Oklahoma City, OK, United States. Electronic address: [email protected].

PMID: 39756126
DOI: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2024.108239

Abstract

Objective: Cannabis use has increased in the United States as states have legalized/decriminalized recreational and/or medicinal use. The primary aim of this study was to examine daily associations between cannabis use and health (physical activity [PA]) and substance use (alcohol consumption, cigarette use) behaviors.

Method: Data from a 28-day nationwide study that prompted daily ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) were used to assess daily cannabis use, moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA), alcohol containing drinks consumed, and cigarettes smoked. Only participants who reported cannabis use on at least one day during the study period were included in the analysis (N = 98). Generalized linear mixed models were used to examine associations between cannabis use and same-day health and substance use behaviors while adjusting for race, biological sex, and age.

Results: Daily cannabis use was positively associated with daily PA (p = 0.04, 3.31-minute higher PA duration on use vs. non-use days), number of alcohol containing drinks consumed (p = 0.01, 0.45 more drinks on use vs. non-use days), and number of cigarettes smoked (p = 0.01, 0.63 more cigarettes on use vs. non-use days).

Conclusions: This study was among the first to use EMAs to examine associations between daily cannabis use and same-day PA, alcohol consumption, and cigarette use. Overall, findings indicated that daily cannabis use is associated with higher engagement in these daily health and substance use behaviors. Further research is needed to understand mechanisms linking cannabis use with these and other behaviors.

Keywords: Alcohol; Cannabis; Ecological Momentary Assessment; Marijuana; Physical Activity; Tobacco.