Philadelphia, PA: Patients authorized to use state-licensed medical cannabis products report sustained improvements in their sleep quality, according to longitudinal data published in the Journal of Cannabis Research.
Researchers at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine assessed year-long changes in self-reported sleep quality in 137 patients. Study participants were newly enrolled in the state’s medical cannabis access program. Patients’ sleep quality was measured at baseline and at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months via the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire.
Consistent with prior research, results “indicated significant improvements in global sleep quality scores following MC [medical cannabis] initiation, with the most substantial changes (i.e., a 30.1 percent decrease) observed between baseline and the three-month assessment. … The observed improvements in global sleep quality scores were consistent across all seven PSQI subdomains, including sleep latency, duration, and disturbances. … These improvements were sustained across the remainder of the study period, with no significant differences between follow-up intervals.”
The study’s authors concluded, “[These] findings contribute to the growing body of literature supporting the potential medicinal benefits of MC for sleep quality, particularly among individuals with chronic health conditions.”
Consumers frequently acknowledge using cannabis products to mitigate sleep disorders, including insomnia, and the enactment of adult-use marijuana legalization laws is associated with reduced sales of over-the-counter sleep aids.
Full text of the study, “Changes in sleep quality during the 12 months following medical cannabis initiation,” appears in the Journal of Cannabis Research. Additional information on the use of cannabis for insomnia is available from NORML’s publication, Clinical Applications for Cannabis and Cannabinoids.