Kulak Jessica A, Homish D Lynn, Kozlowski Lynn T, Homish Gregory G
Department of Community Health and Health Behavior, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA.
Cannabis. 2023 Jul 5;6(2):104-112. doi: 10.26828/cannabis/2023/000150. eCollection 2023.
Research indicates separation from the military may result in increased risk of alcohol use. However, there is little data on cannabis use among military service members, particularly when examining the period after separation from military service. This research examines cannabis-related perceptions and use among U.S. Army Reserve/National Guard (USAR/NG) current and former soldiers.
Data come from Operation: SAFETY (Soldiers And Families Excelling Through the Years), an ongoing study examining health among male and female USAR/NG soldiers. The current sample was comprised of 401 current and former USAR/NG soldiers. Logistic regression models examined the associations between past-year cannabis use, military status (i.e., current versus former), attitudes towards recreational cannabis, perceived ease of access, and perceived risk of cannabis use, while controlling for age, problematic alcohol use, and current cigarette smoking.
Overall, 7.4% of current and 20.3% of former military service members used cannabis in the past year. Favorable attitudes towards cannabis use and perceived ease of accessing cannabis were associated with increased odds of use among all soldiers. In adjusted models, former military members had greater odds (AOR = 5.28, 95% CI = 2.16, 12.87) of past-year cannabis use compared to current service members.
Findings indicate that separation from the military may be an important risk factor to consider when assessing cannabis use in the military. Additional research is needed to examine socioenvironmental factors (e.g., access to post-deployment support services and healthcare, state legalization laws, other behavioral health conditions) that contribute to former service members' cannabis use.
研究表明，脱离军队可能会增加饮酒风险。然而，关于军人使用大麻的数据很少，尤其是在研究脱离军队服务后的时期。本研究调查了美国陆军后备役/国民警卫队（USAR/NG）现役和退役军人中与大麻相关的认知和使用情况。
数据来自“安全行动”（多年来士兵和家庭表现卓越），这是一项正在进行的研究，调查美国陆军后备役/国民警卫队男女士兵的健康状况。当前样本由401名现役和退役军人组成。逻辑回归模型研究了过去一年大麻使用、军事状态（即现役与退役军人）、对娱乐性大麻的态度、感知的获取便利性以及感知的大麻使用风险之间的关联，同时控制年龄、问题饮酒和当前吸烟情况。
总体而言，在过去一年中，7.4%的现役军人和20.3%的退役军人使用过大麻。对大麻使用的积极态度和感知的获取大麻的便利性与所有士兵中使用大麻的几率增加有关。在调整后的模型中，与现役军人相比，退役军人过去一年使用大麻的几率更高（调整后比值比 = 5.28，95%置信区间 = 2.16，12.87）。
研究结果表明，在评估军队中的大麻使用情况时，脱离军队可能是一个需要考虑的重要风险因素。需要进一步研究社会环境因素（例如，获得部署后支持服务和医疗保健的机会、州合法化法律、其他行为健康状况）对退役军人使用大麻的影响。
