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Older military veterans reported higher rates of marijuana use and consumed it more frequently than nonveterans of similar ages, according to a study involving more than 900,000 U.S. adults.
The study, published August 11 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, examined data collected through the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System between 2016 and 2023.
Researchers analyzed responses from 907,136 adults ages 18 to 80, including 114,193 veterans. Participants were asked whether they had used marijuana during the previous 30 days, how many days they had consumed it and whether they used inhaled or noninhaled products.
Overall marijuana use was lower among veterans, at 9.9%, compared with 13% among nonveterans. However, the pattern changed substantially when participants were separated by age.
Among adults ages 50 to 64, 12.6% of veterans reported past-month marijuana use, compared with 9.2% of nonveterans. The researchers calculated that veterans in this age group were 43% more likely to report current use.
Among those ages 65 to 80, 5.2% of veterans reported using marijuana, compared with 4.3% of nonveterans, representing a 22% higher unadjusted likelihood.
Veterans who used marijuana in these older age groups also consumed it more frequently. Veterans ages 50 to 64 reported marijuana use on an average of 18.4 days during the previous month, compared with 15.8 days among nonveteran consumers.
Veteran consumers ages 65 to 80 reported using marijuana on 17.3 days, compared with 14.5 days among nonveterans.
The researchers noted that demographic adjustments changed part of the prevalence comparison. After accounting for sex, race and ethnicity, marital status and education, veterans had lower adjusted odds of marijuana use in every age group except those ages 50 to 64. That included the oldest group, despite its higher unadjusted prevalence and greater frequency of consumption.
Younger veterans were substantially less likely to report marijuana use. Among adults ages 18 to 24, 11.8% of veterans reported current use, compared with 23.6% of nonveterans. Rates were 17.4% and 20.6%, respectively, among those ages 25 to 34.
The authors said lower use among younger veterans could partly reflect continued service in military reserve units, where federally prohibited marijuana use remains banned. They suggested that more frequent use among older veterans could reflect different patterns of consumption or use for conditions such as chronic pain, insomnia or post-traumatic stress disorder, although the survey did not ask participants why they used marijuana.
Veterans were also more likely to inhale marijuana. Among consumers surveyed in 2022 and 2023, 90% of veterans reported smoking, vaping or dabbing, compared with 83.7% of nonveterans.
“Older Veterans represent a subgroup with distinct patterns of cannabis use that may warrant greater attention in routine care,” researchers said.
The study was cross-sectional and relied on self-reported information, preventing researchers from establishing how individual consumption patterns changed over time. It also did not distinguish between medical and recreational use or account directly for differences in state marijuana laws.
The researchers reported receiving no dedicated funding for the study and declared no competing interests.
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