States with legal marijuana have less opioid overdoses

[Chris0nllyn]

Results:

Three states (California, Oregon, and Washington) had medical cannabis laws effective prior to 1999. Ten states (Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Rhode Island, and Vermont) enacted medical cannabis laws between 1999 and 2010. States with medical cannabis laws had a 24.8% lower mean annual opioid overdose mortality rate compared with states without medical cannabis laws.

The researchers here analyzed data for all 50 states from 1999 through 2010 (opioid overdose deaths nearly doubled during this time). In the 13 states with medical marijuana laws, they saw a less pronounced upward trend. "...such laws were associated with a lower rate of overdose mortality that generally strengthened over time." On average, they saw about a 20% reduction in the first year and rising to 33% after 6 years.

In 2010 alone, the authors calculate, that difference translated into 1,729 fewer deaths than would otherwise have been expected.

They concluded:

"Although the exact mechanism is unclear, our results suggest a link between medical cannabis laws and lower opioid analgesic overdose mortality."

Some of their explanations?

Patients with chronic noncancer pain who would have otherwise initiated opioid analgesics may choose medical cannabis instead....In addition, patients already receiving opioid analgesics who start medical cannabis treatment may experience improved analgesia and decrease their opioid dose, thus potentially decreasing their dose-dependent risk of overdose. Finally, if medical cannabis laws lead to decreases in polypharmacy—particularly with benzodiazepines—in people taking opioid analgesics, overdose risk would be decreased.

They also found that things like policies aimed at preventing nonmedical use of opioids, such as prescription monitoring programs, were not associated with lower overdose rates.

"If the relationship between medical cannabis laws and opioid analgesic overdose mortality is substantiated in further work, enactment of laws to allow for use of medical cannabis may be advocated as part of a comprehensive package of policies to reduce the population risk of opioid analgesics."

http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1898878

Here's a commentary of the study written by University of Maine psychologist Marie J. Hayes.

http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1898872

In states with a medical marijuana law, overdose deaths from opioids like morphine, oxycodone and heroin decreased by an average of 20 percent after one year, 25 percent by two years and up to 33 percent by years five and six compared to what would have been expected, according to results in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Meanwhile, opioid overdose deaths across the country increased dramatically, from 4,030 in 1999 to 16,651 in 2010, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Three of every four of those deaths involved prescription pain medications.

Of those who die from prescription opioid overdoses, 60 percent have a legitimate prescription from a single doctor, the CDC also reports.

Medical marijuana, where legal, is most often approved for treating pain conditions, making it an option in addition to or instead of prescription painkillers, Bachhuber and his coauthors wrote.

In Colorado, where recreational growth, possession and consumption of pot has been legal since 2012 and a buzzing industry for the first half of 2014, use among teens seems not to have increased (see Reuters story of July 29, 2014 here: http://reut.rs/1o040NI).

Medical marijuana laws seem to be linked with higher rates of marijuana use among adults, Bachhuber said, but results are mixed for teens.

“Generally healthcare providers feel very strongly that medical marijuana may not be the way to go,” she told Reuters Health. “There is the risk of smoke, the worry about whether that is carcinogenic but people so far haven’t been able to prove that.”

There may be a risk that legal medical marijuana will make the drug more accessible for kids and smoking may impair driving or carry other risks, she said.

“But we’re already developing Oxycontin and Vicodin and teens are getting their hands on it,” she said.

Adults consuming marijuana don’t show up in the emergency room with an overdose, she said. “But,” she added, “we don’t put it in Rite Aid because we’re confused by it as a society.”

http://news.yahoo.com/prescription-...-202837041.html;_ylt=AwrSyCVEnftTmR0AoaDQtDMD

 

[libertytyranny]

I have a close family memeber who has been an opiod addict for many years. He has said in his few bursts of sobriety that if he could smoke some weed he could maintain. When hes smoking (illegal) rather than methadone dosing (legal via methadone clinic), he is way more even keeled.

 

[LibertyBeacon]

Right. If you take one too many opiate drugs, you might die. If you take one too many marijuanas, you might eat a bag of Cheetos and then fall asleep.

 

[Lurk]

Right. If you take one too many opiate drugs, you might die. If you take one too many marijuanas, you might eat a bag of Cheetos and then fall asleep.

Or you might die. http://nationalreport.net/marijuana...nabis-claims-first-victim-in-california-town/

 

[Chris0nllyn]

Right. If you take one too many opiate drugs, you might die. If you take one too many marijuanas, you might eat a bag of Cheetos and then fall asleep.

In the words of Katt Williams:

You ain't never heard of a mother***er overdose on Marijuana. Aspirin is perfectly legal, but if you take 13 of them motherf***ers, it'll be your last headache.

View attachment 104381

 

[Chris0nllyn]

Or you might die. http://nationalreport.net/marijuana...nabis-claims-first-victim-in-california-town/

 

[LibertyBeacon]

Or you might die. http://nationalreport.net/marijuana...nabis-claims-first-victim-in-california-town/

ssst: You do know that's satire I hope.

 

[Lurk]

ssst: You do know that's satire I hope.

Oh, hell no. http://www.cuinjuryresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Li-et-al-AAP-2013.pdf

 

[Lurk]

In the words of Katt Williams:


View attachment 104381

Katt is miserably wrong as well. High-dose aspirin therapy has been a mainstay of treatment of inflammatory arthritis for years. "Course, if Katt insists on taking all those aspirins with Courvoiser, I'm sure he'll not be feeling it in the mornin'

 

[libertytyranny]

"The heightened crash risk, however, appears to be
dependent on the type of drugs used, with depressants conferring
the highest risk, followed by stimulants, narcotics, and marijuana.
The risk of fatal crash involvement is especially high when drugs
are used in combination with alcohol."


marijuana being long acting and much more widely used than the others..leads me to believe that risk is pretty low. Common denominator in all of these..is alcohol. A perfectly LEGAL substance.

 

[Chris0nllyn]

Katt is miserably wrong as well. High-dose aspirin therapy has been a mainstay of treatment of inflammatory arthritis for years. "Course, if Katt insists on taking all those aspirins with Courvoiser, I'm sure he'll not be feeling it in the mornin'

Bayer is 325mg. 13 of them is 4,225mg.

Based on the table in the link below, 300–500 mg/kg of aspirin is toxic and deadly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspirin_poisoning

While people may be taking "high doses" for treatment, I doubt people are taking 13 Bayers at a time. But besides all that, it's obvious Katt Williams was doing it for the comedic effect.

 

[LibertyBeacon]

Oh, hell no. http://www.cuinjuryresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Li-et-al-AAP-2013.pdf

fatal motor vehicle crashes

Fail.

Third time's a charm? Or three strikes you're out?

 

[CrashTest]

Right. If you take one too many opiate drugs, you might die. If you take one too many marijuanas, you might eat a bag of Cheetos and then fall asleep.

How about doing none of the above and get a job instead.

 

[Lurk]

Bayer is 325mg. 13 of them is 4,225mg.

Based on the table in the link below, 300–500 mg/kg of aspirin is toxic and deadly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspirin_poisoning

While people may be taking "high doses" for treatment, I doubt people are taking 13 Bayers at a time. But besides all that, it's obvious Katt Williams was doing it for the comedic effect.

Up to 20 full-strength 5 grain aspirin in a day divided into three doses, routinely prescribed. But this dose isn't a starting dose. Daily quantity increased in stages. Blood levels monitored carefully and side-effects surveillance.

For 150 mg/Kg moderate toxicity (from the Wikipedia page) A 325 mg/tablet x 20 per day gives 6.5 Gm ASA per day. For the typical 70 Kg male (normal estimate used in most adult medical examples) to reach 150 mg/Kg that's 10.5 Gm ASA per day. So 20 tablets in a day is not excessive.

Katt's example of 13 aspirin x 325 mg/tablet gives 4.2 Grams of aspirin in a single dose. Not even near the 150 mg/Kg threshold for mild toxicity.

Suicide attempts by aspirin usually involved 50-100 full-strength aspirin.

 

[Lurk]

Fail.

Third time's a charm? Or three strikes you're out?

Thank you for caring but you have failed in this example. Use of Marijuana (with or without alcohol) has an increased odds ratio of nearly 2 for a fatal automobile accident. That's not even taking into account non-fatal accidents which is not the parameters of the discussion.

 

[Larry Gude]

Thank you for caring but you have failed in this example. Use of Marijuana (with or without alcohol) has an increased odds ratio of nearly 2 for a fatal automobile accident. That's not even taking into account non-fatal accidents which is not the parameters of the discussion.

What does that have to do with the, seemingly, clear reduction in opioid deaths?
Do we now look at alcohol impact on driving? As far as I know, no one is pushing for it to be legal to get high and drive.

 

[LibertyBeacon]

Thank you for caring but you have failed in this example. Use of Marijuana (with or without alcohol) has an increased odds ratio of nearly 2 for a fatal automobile accident. That's not even taking into account non-fatal accidents which is not the parameters of the discussion.

I'm going with the three strikes and you're out option. Do you even logic, bro?

 

[SamSpade]

I can't find data on the trend for opioid deaths, historically, for the non-medical marijuana states. It's hard to make a clear comparison - I don't know for instance, if there has always or usually been a gulf of difference between them.

I also can't see data on long-term trends for deaths - just because there's a big drop in a few short years doesn't mean it hasn't been trending downward for a long time.

Causation and all that.

I can do similar statistical tricks with automobile deaths and violent crime rates - but they've both been declining for decades.

I'll withhold judgment until I see more data.

 

[Lurk]

I'm going with the three strikes and you're out option. Do you even logic, bro?

And you would have failed twice in a row. Does it ever hurt enough for you to quit the stupidity?

 

[LibertyBeacon]

And you would have failed twice in a row. Does it ever hurt enough for you to quit the stupidity?

You haven't made your case. STFU, Kleetus.