Alcohol consumption moderates the link between cannabis use and cannabis dependence in an internet survey.

The link between cannabis use and cannabis dependence remains poorly understood. Some people use cannabis regularly without signs of dependence; others show dependence despite using less. This study examined alcohol consumption as a moderator of this association. A sample of 476 people (primarily Caucasian men) who used cannabis at least once per week reported their alcohol consumption, cannabis use, and cannabis dependence symptoms in an Internet survey. Regressions revealed significant interactions between measures of cannabis use and alcohol consumption when predicting cannabis dependence. Cannabis use covaried with cannabis dependence, particularly in people who consumed alcohol frequently or in large amounts per week. Despite limitations, these data suggest that alcohol may decrease the safety of cannabis consumption.

[1]  C. Reinarman,et al.  The limited relevance of drug policy: cannabis in Amsterdam and in San Francisco. , 2004, American journal of public health.

[2]  L. Degenhardt,et al.  Patterns of co-morbidity between alcohol use and other substance use in the Australian population. , 2003, Drug and alcohol review.

[3]  K I Bolla,et al.  Dose-related neurocognitive effects of marijuana use , 2002, Neurology.

[4]  Michael Höfler,et al.  What predicts incident use of cannabis and progression to abuse and dependence? A 4-year prospective examination of risk factors in a community sample of adolescents and young adults. , 2002, Drug and alcohol dependence.

[5]  E. Nunes,et al.  Rates of Psychiatric Comorbidity Among U.S. Residents with Lifetime Cannabis Dependence , 2002, The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse.

[6]  S. Lukas,et al.  Ethanol increases plasma Delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels and subjective effects after marihuana smoking in human volunteers. , 2001, Drug and alcohol dependence.

[7]  J. Kirchner,et al.  CORRELATES AND 6-MONTH OUTCOMES FOR CO-OCCURRING CANNABIS USE IN RURAL AND URBAN AT-RISK DRINKERS , 2001, Substance use & misuse.

[8]  Bruce D. Johnson,et al.  Response Reliability and the Study of Adolescent Substance Use Progression , 2000 .

[9]  B. Grant,et al.  The relationship between cannabis use and DSM-IV cannabis abuse and dependence: results from the National Longitudinal Alcohol Epidemiologic Survey. , 1998, Journal of substance abuse.

[10]  E. E. Simpson,et al.  Adult marijuana users seeking treatment. , 1993, Journal of consulting and clinical psychology.

[11]  R. Weiss,et al.  Psychopathology in Cocaine Abusers: Changing Trends , 1988, The Journal of nervous and mental disease.

[12]  J. Halikas,et al.  Objective Criteria for the Diagnosis of Marijuana Abuse , 1980, The Journal of nervous and mental disease.

[13]  J. Saunders.  Drug & Alcohol Review , 2004 .

[14]  M. Earleywine.  Understanding Marijuana: A New Look at the Scientific Evidence , 2002 .

[15]  P. Yarnold,et al.  Substance use disorder in hospitalized severely mentally ill psychiatric patients: prevalence, correlates, and subgroups. , 2000, Schizophrenia bulletin.

[16]  Dc Washington.  Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Ed. , 1994 .

[17]  S. West,et al.  Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions , 1991 .

[18]  E E Simpson,et al.  Treatment of marijuana dependence: preliminary results. , 1988, Journal of psychoactive drugs.

[19]  Halikas Ja,et al.  Alcoholism and alcohol abuse among regular marijuana users. , 1979 .

[20]  S. Peck,et al.  Currents in alcoholism , 1977 .