As marijuana stigma fades, 1 in 4 older Michiganders say they use pot

• More than 1 in 4 Michiganders used cannabis this past year — higher than the national average, according to new survey
• Users say they’re seeking relief from pain or trying to improve their mood
• They’re taking risks, too: Michiganders report signs of addiction at higher rates. And 1 in 5 might be driving under the influence

Walled Lake —Whether it’s to “feel good,” fall asleep or curb pain, Michiganders who are 50 and older are turning to weed more often than the rest of America — smoking it, eating it, drinking it or applying it to their skin.

That’s according to the newest survey by researchers as part of the ongoing University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging. The poll, which surveys Americans 50 and older, most recently focused on the use of cannabis products that contain the psychoactive compound THC.

(CBD-only products do not contain active amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.)

Among the researchers’ findings, specific to Michigan:

• More than 1 in 4 Michiganders 50 and older (27%) used a cannabis product in the past year. Nationally, 21% of respondents in that age group reported using in the past year.
• Nearly 1 in 10 Michiganders 50 or older (9%) use cannabis daily, compared to just 5% for the rest of the country.
• Michigan respondents said they used pot to relax (84%), to help them sleep (70%), to help them feel good (65%), to address pain (66%), or to improve mental health (54%), and as part of a social gathering (43%) or to celebrate (27%).
• More than half of Michigan respondents (56%) had discussed their use with a doctor, compared to 42% nationally.
• About 1 in 5 Michigan respondents (21%) said they had driven a vehicle within two hours of using cannabis within the past year.

“Older people now are more comfortable with it,” said Jerry Millen, owner of Greenhouse, a cannabis shop in Walled Lake. “It’s our job to normalize it.” 

Millen hosted an educational event for retirees interested in cannabis Tuesday and said he has had more older customers come in his shop than ever before. 

Alcohol takes a toll on the aging body, and people realize that they can take a few gummies, smoke a joint or drink a cannabis drink and feel better the next morning, he added. 

Millen said seniors enjoy all cannabis products but most seek creams to help alleviate arthritis pain and gummies to help them sleep and relax.

“Gummies seem to be the go-to because there are more of them than anything, but believe me they love all the products,” Millen said. “Seniors still smoke weed.” 

Easy access

More than half of Americans now live in states that have legalized marijuana for both recreational and medical uses, including Ohio, which legalized its recreational use last year. And nearly three in four Americans live in the 38 states where cannabis is legal in some form, according to the Pew Research Center. 

Related:

• Michigan cannabis shops could make more money when weed is reclassified
• Ohio helps make Michigan No. 1 in weed sales — but perhaps not for long
• Marijuana edibles, vape pens in Michigan schools prompt calls for reform
• Michigan local governments getting $87 million from marijuana sales
• Doobie Tuesday and pizza deals: Marijuana biz turns to old-school promos

But Michiganders have had more legal access to marijuana for much longer than residents in most other states. Voters here approved medical use in 2008 and recreational use in 2018. According to Pew research, Michigan is among the top five states with the most dispensaries.

Michigan retailers notched $3.2 billion in cannabis sales for the year ending in May.  That was tops among neighboring states, and the Michigan market has at times even surpassed California, a state with four times the population and a longer history of legal marijuana use. 

Weed’s legal status and access in Michigan likely fuels its higher-than-average usage rates among residents age 50 and older, said Erin Bonar, a U-M addiction psychologist and a professor in U-M’s Medical School Department of Psychiatry. 

Bonar advised the research team, which polled 1,079 Michigan older adults and 3,012 non-Michigan adults in February and March. 

Two of every three Michigan users said they do so to treat a medical condition. 

“Generally speaking, people want to feel good,” Bonar said. “They are using it (cannabis) in an attempt to try to treat the pain or mental health condition. They're using it in an attempt to relax or to socialize with others, for example.”

And while some may be using products for the first time in their later years, respondents also may have used weed when they were younger and now — with more time as well as aches, pains, and easy access — are returning to its use for the first time in years, she said.

Richard Brown, 36, of Detroit, stopped in Greenhouse Wednesday afternoon for cannabis to smoke, which he said relaxes him and makes him feel more calm. 

“The stigma is not what it used to be,” he said. 

Brown said when he began smoking, it was for fun but now it has become therapeutic. 

“If it makes you feel better, it shouldn’t be a bad thing,” he said. 

Risky behavior

What worries Bonar is the risky behavior that some respondents acknowledged, including driving within two hours of use — possibly while under the influence of pot’s intoxicating effects. 

Michiganders were more likely to inform doctors about their weed use than older Americans in other states. But those who don’t discuss use with a medical professional could miss discussions about interactions between the cannabis and drugs used for diseases and chronic conditions, she said.

Perhaps most worrisome, Bonar added, is that Michiganders who use cannabis at least monthly were more likely than their peers nationwide to report at least one potential sign of dependence or addiction.

Specifically, older Michiganders were more likely to:

• Need cannabis more often than before to feel its effects — 35% of Michiganders, compared to 22% nationally
• Increase the frequency or amount of use — 20%, compared to 11% nationally
• Say that the same amount of cannabis had less effect on them than before — 22% compared to 14% nationally

As someone with chronic pain herself, Bonar says she understands why some reach for weed. (She does not use it, she’s quick to note. It’s illegal as a researcher at U-M.)

Not everyone is going to get addicted, and users don’t die of marijuana overdoses as they do with opioids, for example, Bonar noted.

But 83% of Michigan respondents said weed is stronger today than it was 20 or 30 years ago.

Even so, there’s a lack of information about the downside of weed, especially compared to the countless billboards, signs and other messaging promoting cannabis products, Bonar said.

“Cannabis dependence gets in the way of your life and your relationship, your social role, how you feel day-to-day and what you can do,” she said. “I want people to feel well and enjoy their lives.”