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The association between cannabis use and subjective memory complaints in older adults in the United States

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 February 2023

Kyler Mulhauser*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, 2101 Commonwealth Blvd, Ann Arbor, MI, 48105, USA
Benjamin M. Hampstead
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, 2101 Commonwealth Blvd, Ann Arbor, MI, 48105, USA Department of Veterans Affairs, Center for Clinical Management Research (CCMR), Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor Healthcare System, 2800 Plymouth Rd., Bldg. 16, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2800, USA
Lara N. Coughlin
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Addiction Center, University of Michigan, 2800 Plymouth Rd., Bldg. 16, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2800, USA
Mark A. Ilgen
Affiliation:
Department of Veterans Affairs, Center for Clinical Management Research (CCMR), Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor Healthcare System, 2800 Plymouth Rd., Bldg. 16, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2800, USA Department of Psychiatry and Addiction Center, University of Michigan, 2800 Plymouth Rd., Bldg. 16, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2800, USA
*
Corresponding author: Kyler Mulhauser, email: mulhause@med.umich.edu
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Abstract

Objective:

The U.S. population is aging and increasing numbers of older adults are using cannabis. Cognitive decline is common in older age and subjective memory complaints (SMC) have been associated with increased risk for dementia. While residual cognitive effects of cannabis use at younger ages are well understood, the links between cannabis use and cognition in older adults is less clear. The present study represents the first population-level analysis of cannabis use and SMC in older adults in the U.S.

Method:

We used the National Survey of Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) dataset to evaluate SMC in respondents over age 50 (N = 26,399) according to past-year cannabis use.

Results:

Results revealed that 13.2% (95%CI: 11.5%−15.0%) of those who reported cannabis use also reported SMC, compared to 6.4% (95%CI: 6.1%–6.8%) among individuals with no cannabis use. Logistic regression revealed a two-fold increase (OR = 2.21, 95%CI: 1.88–2.60) of reporting SMC in respondents who had used cannabis in the past year, which was attenuated (OR = 1.38, 95%CI: 1.10–1.72) when controlling for additional factors. Other covariates, including physical health conditions, misuse of other substances, and mental illness also significantly contributed to SMC outcomes.

Conclusions:

Cannabis use represents a modifiable lifestyle factor that has potential for both risk and protective properties that may impact the trajectory of cognitive decline in older age. These hypothesis generating results are important for characterizing and contextualizing population-level trends related to cannabis use and SMC in older adults.

Information

Type
Research Article
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © INS. Published by Cambridge University Press, 2023
Figure 0

Table 1. Respondent demographics and clinical characteristics in adults aged 50+.

Figure 1

Table 2. Cannabis use in the past year and past month according to report of subjective memory complaints (SMC) in adults aged 50+.

Figure 2

Table 3. Logistic regression of past-year cannabis use on subjective memory complaints (SMC) in adults aged 50+.

Figure 3

Table 4. Logistic regression of past-month cannabis use on subjective memory complaints (SMC) in adults aged 50+.

Supplementary material: File

Mulhauser et al. supplementary material

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