Trying to understand marijuana’s impact can feel confusing. With changing laws, evolving research, and a variety of opinions, it can be difficult to get clear answers. This guide offers an evidence-based, practical overview of marijuana’s known benefits and risks.
Potential benefits of marijuana
Access to more regulated products
More regulated marijuana means availability. Regulated products offer assurance through:
- Clear sourcing: Legal markets often have testing and labeling rules. This means more product information than unregulated sources offer, helping you know what you’re using.
- Reduced risk of unknown additives: Regulated products are less likely to contain unexpected or harmful substances sometimes found in unregulated markets.
Potential medicinal support
The increased availability of marijuana offers potential medicinal support for managing health concerns. Potential medicinal benefits include:
- Chronic pain relief: Reviews suggest medical cannabis offers small to modest benefits for chronic pain¹, potentially helping manage ongoing discomfort.
- Muscle stiffness reduction: Medical cannabis may help reduce muscle spasticity¹, which can be helpful in conditions like multiple sclerosis.
- Nausea and vomiting control: Medical cannabis can help manage nausea and vomiting, particularly from chemotherapy², offering relief during treatment.
- Epilepsy management: CBD, a component of cannabis, shows benefits for hard-to-treat epilepsy¹, helping reduce seizures in some cases.
- Appetite stimulation: In specific conditions like HIV/AIDS wasting syndrome, medical cannabis may help stimulate appetite², which can be important for maintaining weight and health.
- Tic reduction: Some evidence suggests potential benefits for tics in Tourette syndrome, though findings vary², possibly helping manage involuntary movements.
Potential risks and challenges of marijuana use
Considering marijuana’s potential risks and challenges is vital. Like any substance, it affects your body and your mind. Some of the potential risks of cannabis use include:
Dependency
Regular cannabis use can lead to cannabis use disorder (CUD) for some people³.
Risk and severity vary based on use frequency, age at initiation, and individual factors³.
A meta-analysis suggests CUD risk is about one in five among everyday users and about one in three among weekly users⁴. Dependency can manifest as:
- Routine development: Some people rely on cannabis for relaxation, sleep, or daily life, making stopping difficult. This can feel like a loss of control over your use.
- Withdrawal symptoms: Stopping regular cannabis use can cause temporary physical/mental withdrawal³.
Effects on perception and coordination
Cannabis changes how you see the world and affects movement and reaction. These changes impact daily safety. Impacts on perception and coordination include:
- Impaired function: Acute cannabis intoxication impairs thinking and body control². Studies document effects on memory, attention, movement, and problem-solving⁶. This impacts skills needed for tasks like driving or operating machinery.
- Impaired driving ability: Using cannabis makes driving or operating machinery unsafe. It greatly affects judgment, focus, and motor skills⁶. Studies show a higher risk of car accidents after cannabis use, especially with higher amounts of THC⁶. For your safety and others, you must not drive or use machines after using cannabis.
- Changes in sensory experience: You may see, hear, or feel things differently. This can feel strange or make tasks that require clear senses² more difficult.
The link between cannabis use and other substance use
Cannabis use is often part of a broader pattern of poly-substance use³. Poly-drug use means cannabis users may also misuse alcohol, tobacco, or prescription drugs.
Although shared risk factors like genetics, environment, and social networks often influence substance use patterns more than the drug itself³. While cannabis isn’t a guaranteed “gateway drug,” it’s important to monitor overlapping behaviors and risks.
Possible effects on brain function and mental well-being
Cannabis affects the brain. Knowing about these possible effects is important for long-term well-being. Effects vary based on age and use frequency. Effects on brain function and mental well-being include:
- Cognition: Studies suggest a strong link between cannabis use and poorer thinking skills⁷. This impacts memory, attention, and learning, which can affect daily tasks.
- Brain development: The brain develops until the early twenties. Substance introduction then could interfere⁸. The brain’s endocannabinoid system is vital; Cannabis can interfere⁸, potentially changing the development path. This is a concern for younger users whose brains are still developing.
- Mental health links: Regular cannabis use links to higher risk/worse symptoms for some with certain mental health conditions⁹ (psychotic disorders, depression/bipolar disorder⁹). Acute intoxication can cause irritability/anxiety; high doses, paranoia/hallucinations².
Impact on physical health
Cannabis use also affects your physical health:
- Heart health: After using cannabis, heart rate can increase, sometimes a lot². This stresses your heart. This could be a concern, especially for older people or those with heart problems. Studies suggest a possible link between cannabis use and a higher risk of certain heart events, especially with recent use¹⁰.
- Lung health: Breathing cannabis smoke puts harmful substances into the lungs, like tobacco smoke²,¹¹. This can irritate airways, causing chronic cough and wheezing¹¹.
Making informed personal choices
Whether you’re exploring cannabis for relief or recreation, it’s essential to:
- Know your source: Choose regulated, lab-tested products.
- Start low, go slow: Especially important with edibles or high-THC strains.
- Be honest with healthcare providers: They can help you assess risks and monitor side effects.
- Check-in with your mental health: If you notice changes in mood, focus, or motivation, it may be time to reevaluate your use.
If you’re concerned about dependency or mental health, seek support from a professional. Reaching out isn’t a weakness — it’s a smart step forward.
Get personalized support for your mental health today
SEND US A MESSAGE
"*" indicates required fields
Sources
1. Huestis, M. A., et al. (2024). Cannabis, cannabinoids and health: a review of evidence on risks and medical benefits. PubMed. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39299947/
2. National Center for Biotechnology Information. (2024). StatPearls: Marijuana. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430801/
3. National Center for Biotechnology Information. (2024). StatPearls: Cannabis Use Disorder. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538131/
4. European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. (2024). Cannabis use and cannabis use disorders and their treatment in the Europe. PMC. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11910426/
5. Bonar, E. E., et al. (2022). Clinical management of cannabis withdrawal. PMC – PubMed Central. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9110555/
6. McCartney, D., et al. (2022). Cannabis and Driving Ability. PMC. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC81066555/
7. Vásconez-González, P., et al. (2023). The Neurocognitive Effects of Cannabis Across the Lifespan. PMC – PubMed Central. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9377647/
8. Madras, B. K. (2013). Cannabis use during adolescent development: Susceptibility to psychiatric illness. Frontiers. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2013.00131/full (Note: While older, this source discusses the endocannabinoid system’s role in development and vulnerability as referenced. Ideally, a recent review on this specific mechanism would be preferred.)
9. Hjorthøj, C., & Nordentoft, M. (2023). Cannabis Use Disorder and Subsequent Risk of Psychotic and Nonpsychotic Unipolar Depression and Bipolar Disorder. JAMA Psychiatry, 80(7), 705–714. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37223912/
10. Chandy, M., et al. (2025). The relationship between cannabis and cardiovascular disease: clearing the haze. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39849111/
11. Bando, J. M., Tashkin, D. P., & Barjaktarevic, I. Z. (2024). Impact of Marijuana Use on Lung Health. Semin Respir Crit Care Med, 45(5), 548–559. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38968961/