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I haven't read the scientific study on JAMA, but I would venture to speculate that there could be several reasons for such sharp drops in mortality due to opioi

I haven't read the scientific study on JAMA, but I would venture to speculate that there could be several reasons for such sharp drops in mortality due to opioid overdoses: - fewer people resort to opioids for recreational purposes, due to higher availability of marijuana - alcohol + opioids is a deadly combination. People who are high on marijuana tend to drink less, because alcohol doesn't go well with marijuana either. Marijuana, however, can be combined with many drugs and tends to enhance the experience, requiring less of the drug. - Marijuana makes people more cautious and health-conscious due to it's capacity to induce temporary paranoia and anxiety at larger doses. A quick google search for 'marijuana combined with heroin' led me to a forum where people are reporting full-blown panic attacks when combining the two, with users generally reporting that the two drugs tend to enhance one another. Such panic attacks are powerful experiences and can be life-changing in a positive way. Several countries have eased on marijuana prohibition due to the opiod addiction problem getting out of control (Switzerland, Portugal, Spain and probably other countries) and as a consequence saw decreases in overdoses and HIV infections so this study just corraborates what has been observed in other places around the world.

raverbashing 12y ago
"generally reporting that the two drugs tend to enhance one another" Considering they're both CNS depressants this makes sense
jsonne 12y ago
Marijuana and Alcohol are considered economic compliments actually. The more you smoke the more likely you are to drink and vice versa.
- kahirsch 12y ago
  It looks like the research on this is mixed. See The Legalization of Recreational Marijuana: How Likely is the Worst-Case Scenario?, with Daniel Rees. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management 33 (2014) 221-232.[1] and Williams, Jenny, Rosalie Pacula, Frank Chaloupka, and Henry Wechsler. 2004. “Alcohol and Marijuana Use among College Students: Economic Complements or Substitutes?” Health Economics 13: 825-843.[2] It seems that the research based on natural experiments is intrinsically better than the price-related studies, and so far, that indicates that marijuana legalization reduces alcohol consumption. Anderson's research also indicates that medical marijuna legalization resulted in a significant decrease in traffic fatalities, which is a huge win.[3] [1]http://dmarkanderson.com/Point_Counterpoint_07_31_13_v5.pdf http://dmarkanderson.com/Point_Counterpoint_07_31_13_v5.pdf [2]http://www.uic.edu/orgs/impacteen/generalarea_PDFs/HCAS_Alc_pot_06-26-01.pdf http://www.uic.edu/orgs/impacteen/generalarea_PDFs/HCAS_Alc_... [3]http://www.dmarkanderson.com/Medical_Marijuana__Accidents_and_Alcohol_7-8-13_v1.pdf http://www.dmarkanderson.com/Medical_Marijuana__Accidents_an... PDFs may differ from published versions.

raverbashing 12y ago

"generally reporting that the two drugs tend to enhance one another" Considering they're both CNS depressants this makes sense

jsonne 12y ago

Marijuana and Alcohol are considered economic compliments actually. The more you smoke the more likely you are to drink and vice versa.

kahirsch 12y ago
It looks like the research on this is mixed. See The Legalization of Recreational Marijuana: How Likely is the Worst-Case Scenario?, with Daniel Rees. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management 33 (2014) 221-232.[1] and Williams, Jenny, Rosalie Pacula, Frank Chaloupka, and Henry Wechsler. 2004. “Alcohol and Marijuana Use among College Students: Economic Complements or Substitutes?” Health Economics 13: 825-843.[2] It seems that the research based on natural experiments is intrinsically better than the price-related studies, and so far, that indicates that marijuana legalization reduces alcohol consumption. Anderson's research also indicates that medical marijuna legalization resulted in a significant decrease in traffic fatalities, which is a huge win.[3] [1]http://dmarkanderson.com/Point_Counterpoint_07_31_13_v5.pdf http://dmarkanderson.com/Point_Counterpoint_07_31_13_v5.pdf [2]http://www.uic.edu/orgs/impacteen/generalarea_PDFs/HCAS_Alc_pot_06-26-01.pdf http://www.uic.edu/orgs/impacteen/generalarea_PDFs/HCAS_Alc_... [3]http://www.dmarkanderson.com/Medical_Marijuana__Accidents_and_Alcohol_7-8-13_v1.pdf http://www.dmarkanderson.com/Medical_Marijuana__Accidents_an... PDFs may differ from published versions.