Lab study, 2019
Does stress and cannabis use change across the menstrual cycle?
In women who regularly use cannabis, both stress levels and the amount of cannabis used were higher during the premenstrual phase compared to other cycle phases. This suggests women may use more cannabis premenstrually to manage higher stress.
What they did
Pilot study with 14 women cannabis users. For 32 days (covering about two menstrual cycles), participants recorded their daily stress levels using the General Stress Scale and the amount of cannabis they used each day.
What they found
Stress levels were higher in the premenstrual phase compared to the ovulatory phase. Cannabis quantity used was higher premenstrually versus both the follicular and ovulatory phases. These findings support the idea that women increase cannabis use in response to heightened premenstrual stress.
What it means for you
This is a small pilot study based on daily self-reported records from only 14 women, so results need confirmation in larger studies. The findings suggest a connection between premenstrual stress and increased cannabis use in women who already use cannabis regularly. Women experiencing premenstrual stress might benefit from learning non-substance-based coping strategies.
14
women in study
32
days of daily tracking
29.3
average age in years
About the study
- Original title
- A Pilot Daily Diary Study of Changes in Stress and Cannabis Use Quantity Across the Menstrual Cycle
- Authors
- Nacera Hanzal, Kayla M. Joyce, Philip G. Tibbo et al.
- Journal
- Cannabis
- Year
- 2019
- Study design
- Lab study
- What was tested
- None (observational daily diary study)
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.26828/cannabis.2019.02.002
Topics
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