BACKGROUND: Prior research has suggested that cannabis may serve as a safer alternative to alcohol, this study examined "marijuana" (THC-dominant cannabis) and cannabidiol (CBD) use as strategies to reduce alcohol consumption among adults who report harmful levels of drinking. METHOD: Online surveys were distributed to 451 Florida adults (≥18 years) who consumed ≥5 alcoholic drinks weekly and reported any lifetime cannabis use. Measures included comorbid health conditions, alcohol use severity (Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test AUDIT), depressive symptoms (PHQ-8), anxiety (GAD-7), post-traumatic stress symptoms (primary care post-traumatic stress disorder PC-PTSD), childhood trauma (Adverse Childhood Experience Questionnaire ACE-Q), and readiness to change (Readiness to Change Questionnaire RCQ-12). Chi-square and ANOVA examined differences across alcohol use risk groups; logistic regression identified factors associated with marijuana and CBD use for alcohol reduction. RESULTS: < 0.001). Marijuana (37.9%) and CBD (32.2%) were the most frequently reported alcohol-reduction strategies; higher alcohol use severity was linked to greater perceived effectiveness. Factors associated with marijuana use for alcohol reduction included higher PTSD scores (OR = 1.76), more comorbid conditions (OR = 1.17), action-stage readiness to change (OR = 1.47), and higher AUDIT scores (OR = 1.83). Factors associated with CBD use for alcohol reduction included higher ACE-Q scores (OR = 1.14), more comorbid conditions (OR = 1.18), action-stage readiness (OR = 1.50), and higher AUDIT scores (OR = 1.95). CONCLUSION: These findings identify key clinical and motivational correlates of cannabis use for alcohol harm reduction, informing future intervention development.
Attonito et al. (Thu,) studied this question.