What to know about cannabis-induced psychosis

Evidence is mounting that cannabis use can trigger first episode psychosis, particularly among young people. On this episode of the CMAJ Podcast, hosts Dr. Mojola Omole and Dr. Blair Bigham speak with researchers and a patient with lived experience about what the data show, who is most at risk, and how clinicians should respond.

Bailey Peterson, a 26-year-old student from Mississauga, Ontario, describes how her cannabis consumption progressed from casual use to daily, all-day use of high-potency products. She recounts her experience with psychosis, the challenges of her hospitalization, and what she wishes she and her clinicians had known earlier.

Sophie Li, a fourth-year medical student at the University of Ottawa and an author of the CMAJ article Cannabis and psychosis, explains how rates of schizophrenia associated with cannabis use disorder have risen sharply in recent years and notes that young men in their late teens and early 20s are most at risk. For women, the highest risk tends to occur later, in their late 20s and 30s. Dr. Marco Solmi, psychiatrist and medical director of On Track: The Champlain First Episode Psychosis Program, reviews the evidence supporting a causal link between cannabis and psychosis and discusses how clinicians can distinguish cannabis-induced psychosis from schizophrenia, as well as approaches to treatment and patient education.

For physicians, the takeaway is clear: cannabis use—particularly before age 25—carries worrisome psychiatric risks, and psychosis can occur even without very high levels of consumption. Detailed cannabis histories, psychoeducation, and early counseling should be part of routine care for patients at risk of psychosis.

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