Taking one’s own life, is an incredibly egregious thing, and for some, tragically, it is a decision made after a long (and in their eyes) unwinnable battle with a psycho-emotional or physical foe that has gained such overwhelming dominance, that an end is sought – it may not be death (a permanent ‘solution’ to an often-impermanent issue) but an out?
Profoundly sad and heart-breaking, but perhaps understandable in a perceived relentlessly hopeless and oppressive context.
Yet, more and more suicides are not the result of this long battle, rather the outcome of a misadventure, or worse a self-induced internal chaos that only drug use can precipitate.
Cannabis is a leading contender in the drug involved suicide stakes.
The pro-pot propagandist, like most such lobbyists, work tirelessly to polish the ‘metal’ of what they believe are their ‘shining’ arguments for position of liberality, but you will not hear them wax philosophically about this ghastly outcome. However, what they can do is attempt to divert and deflect, and a no more consistently used tactic is the causation verses correlation one.
“Cannabis does not lead to suicide; at worst it just appears as a correlate in it!”
Semantics and convoluted nomenclature are all part of the inevitable drug user’s denial repertoire. Yet to play games with such a shocking outcome and work tirelessly to deny, deflect, or divert attention away for Cannabis clear implication in suicide is outrageous.
Whether it be directly, through mental health induction; use evoked delusional states; or THC fuelled misadventure, the link is both correlate and causal. Ah, but the addiction for profit industry must downplay all negative impacts of their product and the ‘spliff’ toking spin doctors bring their spurious speculations to the marketplace, attempting to lead you away from this utterly unacceptable product outcome.
The addicted don’t care! The dabbler doesn’t want to know! The non-cannabis using family member is grieved and distressed, because only they can see past the toxic smokescreen.
So, what does the evidence tell us? What is the mounting research on Cannabis involvement in suicide and all the attending mental health issues reveal?
Mental Health Harms and Suicide – a connection?
As research has begun to intensify around this burgeoning addiction for profit industry, one would think the pro-pot lobby, as with the tobacco lobby, would be employing researchers to craft not only positive projections on potentials, (still waiting for any predictions of life-changing benefits to emerge), but data sets and evidence that will, if not disprove, then cast serious doubt on the mounting evidence of the harms of this product, not least in the mental health and the suicide context.
Certainly, some have tried, with one 2018 longitudinal study of a specific male military cohort seemingly to conclude that cannabis use had little direct impact on suicide completion, though it was strongly associated with suicide,
Although there was a strong association between cannabis use and suicide, this was explained by markers of psychological and behavioural problems. These results suggest that cannabis use is unlikely to have a strong effect on risk of completed suicide, either directly or as a consequence of mental health problems secondary to its use.
Cannabis and suicide: longitudinal study | The British Journal of Psychiatry
Whilst this study confirmed correlation, it could be argued from this snapshot, that cannabis use does not lead to suicide completion.
This study was echoing (in part) a previous longitudinal study published 5 years earlier in the Journal of Health Economics Volume 32, examining a ‘from birth’ cohort concluded that cannabis use does lead to suicide ideation, but not the reverse, which is interesting in and of itself.
Our empirical analysis is based on a 30-year longitudinal study of a birth cohort. We find that intensive cannabis use – at least several times per week – leads to a higher transition rate into suicidal ideation for males. We find no evidence that suicidal ideation leads to cannabis use for either males or females.
So, we have clear and consistent evidence of correlation with ideation, but not yet on suicide completion.
Chicken or Egg?
The idea that cannabis causes mental health issues was in flux some 10 years ago, with some evidence suggesting that people with a pre-existing condition may be pre-disposed to seek out cannabis, and once engaged, the ‘trigger’ so to speak on cannabis induced psychosis was pulled.
However, this once held position that only those with a pre-disposition for mental health risks were the ones who could experience psychosis has been put to rest. Some robust research published JAMA Psychiatry in 2018 revealed the following,
Cannabis use directly increases the risk for psychosis in teens, new research suggests. A large prospective study of teens shows that "in adolescents, cannabis use is harmful" with respect to psychosis risk, study author Patricia J. Conrod, PhD, professor of psychiatry, University of Montreal, Canada, told Medscape Medical News. The effect was observed for the entire cohort. This finding, said Conrod, means that all young cannabis users face psychosis risk, not just those with a family history of schizophrenia or a biological factor that increases their susceptibility to the effects of cannabis. "The whole population is prone to have this risk," she said.
Psychosis, whether a temporary outcome of a cannabis use episode, or more permanent state due to ongoing use of the substance, is a clear driving factor in many, if not most cannabis involved suicide attempts and completions – again, at the very least correlation is proven.
Of course, the wealth of literature on the link of Cannabis use with poor mental health outcomes is staggering, so the reality of these harms are clear.
Yet there is growing research on cannabis use with suicide in direct impact on suicidality in all its stages.
Cannabis has been touted as a possible aid for managing PTSD. This has proven not only incorrect, but counterproductive. Yet, such is the power of pot-propaganda, and the incessant use of many who have bought this error, that they continue to self-medicate that condition with a proven propellant of even greater mental health issues.
Just last year the Journal of Affective Disorders published research on Cannabis impact on suicidality in US Veteran Population
Cannabis use and CUD are associated with substantial psychiatric and suicide-related burden among veterans, highlighting the need for screening, education, and treatment to mitigate potential cannabis-related harm. These veterans were also more likely to report suicidal ideation and attempt.
Suicide ideation attempts and completions that are driven by mental health disorders are well established, and this is where the pro-pot ideologues seek to muddy the water of research. As mentioned earlier, pro-pot researchers (taking from the Big Tobacco play book) might even concede correlation, but work tirelessly to extinguish notions of causation.
Yet, as this public health nightmare grows, both evidence and research are beginning to follow.
A 2017 study published in Medscape concluded there was a…
"Robust" Link. By contrast, both early and frequent cannabis use were "robustly associated" with MDD [Major Depressive Disorders] as well as suicidal thoughts and behaviours, with adjusted ORs ranging from 1.28 to 2.38, after adjustment for covariates.
These significant associations persisted, even when the researchers excluded lifetime never-users of cannabis from the analysis. Frequent users were twice as likely to report suicidal ideation and attempt than were lifetime but less-frequent users.
In February 2019 Medical Xpress News publish findings from a Canadian Study on Cannabis use in teens and the subsequent risk of depression and suicidality in that later younger adult cohort. This research
They found that cannabis use among adolescents is associated with a significant increased risk of depression and suicidality in adulthood (not anxiety). While the individual-level risk was found to be modest, the widespread use of the drug by young people makes the scale of the risk much more serious.
The researchers went on to say that this new evidence ‘filled a gap’ in research and was vital in developing better understanding and better public health strategies.
Dr. Gabriella Gobbi, Professor, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University and a scientist at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, states: 'While the link between cannabis and mood regulation has been largely studied in preclinical studies, there was still a gap in clinical studies regarding the systematic evaluation of the link between adolescent cannabis consumption and the risk of depression and suicidal behaviour in young adulthood. This study aimed to fill this gap, helping mental health professionals and parents to better address this problem.'
Professor Andrea Cipriani, NIHR Research Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford, said: ‘We looked at the effects of cannabis because its use among young people is so common, but the long-term effects are still poorly understood. We carefully selected the best studies carried out since 1993 and included only the methodologically sound ones to rule out important confounding factors, such as premorbid depression.
‘Our findings about depression and suicidality are very relevant for clinical practice and public health. Although the size of the negative effects of cannabis can vary between individual adolescents and it is not possible to predict the exact risk for each teenager, the widespread use of cannabis among the young generations makes it an important public health issue.
‘Regular use during adolescence is associated with lower achievement at school, addiction, psychosis and neuropsychological decline, increased risk of motor vehicle crashes, as well as the respiratory problems that are associated with smoking.’
Again, the research points unequivocally to correlation and is also starting to intractably link cannabis induced depression, suicidal ideation, and attempt.
Suicide, Cannabis & Colorado
With the US State of Colorado being ‘ground zero’ for full legalisation of cannabis it is important to look at the data emerging from that jurisdiction on suicide.
Colorado has tracked suicides before and after legalisation, and policy makers should be alarmed by the results.
The numbers show an increasing number of suicides by year and by age group. The youngest group (10 – 14 yo) have increased nearly 270% from 2005-08 to 2013-16. The next age group (15 – 19 years) increased by 133% over the same period. The 20-24 years group increased by 128% over the same time period. All of these jumps are very significant.
On the Colorado Centre for Health & Environment website: Suicides in Colorado data page, you will see that Marijuana is the number one substance found in suicide completions in Colorado youth between 15-19 years old.
Yes, correlation confirmed again, but is cannabis, not alcohol or other drugs that is party to this shocking outcome. Many conclusions can be drawn from this, including the fact that self-medicating distress with weed does not help prevent escalation to suicidal ideation, but adds to it, confirming previous research.
Self-harm and other preludes to suicide attempts and completions, particularly among young males, has also been affirmed by recent research published in JAMA earlier this year. The research also review by Stanford Medicine, found that aggressive permission models of use, including ‘commercialisation’ of the product for recreational use are clear contributors to self-harm and the harm of others.
Conclusion
The metaphorical ice upon which cannabis harm deniers skate, is thawing with the growing research of cannabis direct link to all phases of suicide. Tragically the unwillingness of both civil and medical governing agencies to act, at the very least, cautiously on greater cannabis use liberalization is disturbing.
Young male cohorts seem most vulnerable to this burgeoning mental and public health crisis.
For more information on this cannabis connection to suicide go to Impact of Marijuana on Adolescent Suicide.
Also see Associations of Suicidality Trends With Cannabis Use as a Function of Sex and Depression Status
If you are struggling with thoughts of self-harm or suicide, please contact your local mental health care professional, addiction specialist/counsellor or call your local community ‘Help-Line’
Research Team – Dalgarno Institute
