Associations of Cannabis Use across Adolescence and Early Adulthood With Health and Psychosocial Adjustment in Early Adulthood and Midadulthood in Men

Abstract

Background: Associations between men’s prior cannabis use and their physical and psychosocial adjustment were examined using prospective data across adolescence (ages 13-20 years), early adulthood (ages 20-30 years), and midadulthood (ages 30-38 years). The theoretical framework was based in developmental-contextual and lifespan approaches. Method: Models were tested using men in the Oregon Youth Study who had been studied since ages 9 to 10 years and who, in childhood, lived in neighborhoods with higher than average rates of delinquency. Cannabis use in adolescence was used to predict early adult outcomes (and early adult use to midadult outcomes). In addition, a set of covariates was added to the models, including childhood risk factors assessed at age 9 years (ie, family socioeconomic status; externalizing behaviors; and if available, the childhood proxy for the outcome [eg, age 9 intelligence scale]) and alcohol use in adolescence (or early adulthood). physical health outcomes included accidental injuries, problems resulting from a prior injury, body mass index, self-report health, and also pain and cardiovascular risk (blood pressure and pulse rate) in midadulthood. Psychosocial outcomes included income, housing insecurity, intelligence, depressive symptoms, psychosis symptoms, hostility/aggression, social problems, and attention problems. Results: Whereas there was almost no prediction from prior cannabis use to the physical health outcomes, there were comprehensive associations of cannabis use from the prior developmental period and psychosocial outcomes in both early adulthood and midadulthood. Conclusion: Cannabis use in prior developmental periods was associated with a broad range of types of poor psychosocial adjustment in adulthood.

The Co-Occurrence of Conduct Problems and Depressive Symptoms From Childhood to Adulthood for Men: Stability Over Time and Prediction to Substance Use

“…Thus, also addressing adolescent boys' depressive symptoms may provide better leverage on their conduct problems and on later substance use via this route, as well as preventing other threats to adult health and adjustment associated with early depressive symptoms. 37 In a recent study with the OYS men of long-term risks of adolescent substance use, 38 it was found that cannabis use across adolescence and early adulthood was associated comprehensively with more detrimental psychosocial adjustment in early adulthood and midadulthood, respectively, in models that controlled for a number of early risk factors, including prior levels of the outcome variable where appropriate. Along with the findings of the present study, this indicates a high priority for public health should involve early prevention and treatment-at least for at-risk boys-that focuses on adolescents' conduct problems and substance use, including cannabis use.…”

Adolescent Cannabis Misuse Scale: Longitudinal Associations with Substance Use, Mental Health, and Social Determinants of Health in Early Adulthood

“…Cannabis use has been linked in cross-sectional and longitudinal studies to a range of academic outcomes including lower probability of high school graduation (Lorenzetti et al, 2020;Lynskey & Hall, 2000). Finally, adolescent cannabis use is associated with a range of factors commonly described as social determinants of health as well as individual, family, and peer progenitors of those conditional states (Capaldi et al, 2022;Hyshka, 2013).…”