Cannabidiol Use Among Older Adults: Associations with Cannabis Use, Physical and Mental Health, and Other Substance Use.

OBJECTIVES

To examine older adults' cannabidiol (CBD) use and its associations with cannabis use and physical/mental health and other substance use problems.

METHODS

Using the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health ( = 10,516 respondents age 50+), we fitted generalized linear models (GLM) with Poisson and log link using CBD as the dependent variable in the 50-64 and the 65+ age groups.

RESULTS

In the 50-64 age group, 18.3% and 18.0% reported past-year CBD and cannabis, respectively, use. In the 65+ age group, the percentages were 14.3% and 8.0%. GLM results showed significant positive associations with both medical and non-medical cannabis use in both age groups. CBD use was positively associated with physical/mental health and illicit drug use problems in the 50-64 age group and with disordered psychotherapeutic drug use in the 65+ age group. Minoritized older adults had a lower likelihood of CBD use.

CONCLUSIONS

CBD use is common, more so than cannabis especially in the 65+ age group and positively correlated with both medical and nonmedical cannabis use.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

Research is needed to examine therapeutic benefits and negative effects of CBD use in late life. Public health education is needed for growing numbers of older-adult CBD users.