Coverage of medical cannabis by Canadian news media: Ethics, access, and policy

Gunning, Margot; Illes, Judy

doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103361

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…In agreement with this finding, one study noted that these effects were magnified by commercial web sites compared to other sources of online information (e.g., government, health portal, non-profit), indicating the biases associated with commercial interests [ 26 ]. Across other forms of media such as news outlets and online discussion forums, the quality and accuracy of cannabis-related health information, as well as reporting of risks, was also found to be poor [ 26 , 39 – 41 ]. It is worth mentioning that these aforementioned studies did not use the DISCERN instrument, which in addition to quality, assesses the reliability of consumer health information, as opposed to accuracy.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The quality of health information provided on web sites selling cannabis to consumers in Canada is poor

Tahir

Lum

2022

Harm Reduct J

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Background Cannabis is used by millions of people for both medical and recreational purposes, and this use is even greater in jurisdictions where it is legalized, such as Canada. Online cannabis vendors have gained popularity for purchasing cannabis due to easy access and convenience to consumers. The objective of this study was to evaluate the quality of health information provided by web sites of cannabis vendors selling products to Canadian consumers and to further identify trends in the information provided. Methods Six different searches were conducted on Google.ca, and the first 40 webpages of each search were screened for eligibility. A total of 33 unique web sites of cannabis vendors selling products to Canadian consumers were identified and included. The DISCERN instrument, which consists of 16 questions divided into three sections, was used to evaluate the quality of cannabis-related health information on these web sites. Results Across the 33 web sites, the average of the summed DISCERN scores was 36.83 (SD = 9.73) out of 75, and the mean score for the overall quality of the publication (DISCERN question 16) was 2.41 (SD = 0.71) out of 5. Many of these web sites failed to discuss uncertainties in research evidence on cannabis, the impact of cannabis use on quality of life, alternatives to cannabis use, risks associated with cannabis use, and lacked references to support claims on effects and benefits of use. Conclusion Our findings indicate that the quality of cannabis-related health information provided by online vendors is poor. Healthcare providers should be aware that patients may use these web sites as primary sources of information and appropriately caution patients while directing them to high-quality sources. Future research should serve to replicate this study in other jurisdictions and assess the accuracy of information provided by online cannabis vendors, as this was outside the scope of the DISCERN instrument.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The quality of health information provided on web sites selling cannabis to consumers in Canada is poor

Tahir

Lum

2022

Harm Reduct J

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“…However, our sub-analysis by website typology (reported in Table 1) identified a large variability, with side effects mentioned more frequently by health portals and non-profit organizations and much less frequently by commercial websites and news outlets, thus suggesting a bias associated with commercial interests and newsworthiness. Poor reporting on the risks associated with medical cannabis was also observed in studies on print news outlets in California (Halvorson et al, 2018) and in Canadian news media (Gunning & Illes, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

Online information on medical cannabis is not always aligned with scientific evidence and may raise unrealistic expectations

et al. 2022

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Background There is a growing literature on the potential medical uses of Cannabis sativa and cannabinoid compounds. Although these have only been approved by regulatory agencies for a few indications, there is a hype about their possible benefits in a variety of conditions and a large market in the wellness industry. As in many cases patients search for information on cannabis products online, we have analyzed the information on medical cannabis available on the Internet. Therefore, this study aims at assessing the quality of the information available online on medical cannabis. Methods We searched “medical cannabis” on June 2019 using google.com and downloaded the first 243 websites. After excluding dead links or websites with no information about cannabis, 176 websites were included. They were then classified for their typology (e.g., commercial, government, news outlets). As an indicator of trustworthiness, we used the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) score, which assesses the indication of date, author, ownership of the website, and the presence of references. We also considered if a website is certified by Health-On-the-Net (HON), an independent organization, by displaying a HONCode symbol. Subsequently, we performed a content analysis to assess both the medical cannabis indications mentioned by webpages and the completeness of the information provided (whether they mentioned potential side effects and legal/regulatory issues or not). Results Analyzing 176 webpages returned by a search engine, we found that 52% of them were news websites. Pain, epilepsy, and multiple sclerosis were the most frequently mentioned therapeutic areas (cited in 92, 84 and 80 webpages, respectively), which did not always match those for which there is regulatory approval. Information was also incomplete, with only 22% of the webpages mentioning potential side effects. Health portal websites provided the most complete information, with all of them (n = 7) reporting side effects. On average, 80% of webpages had a neutral stance on the potential benefits of medical cannabis, with commercial websites having more frequently a positive stance (67%). Conclusions We conclude that the information that can be found online is not always aligned in terms of the therapeutic areas for which science-based evidence is often still weak.

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“…In Canada and England, any legalization effects may have been diminished by public/media discussions in the period leading up to legalization. For example, in 2017, there was wide-spread media coverage of a campaign in England to prescribe medical cannabis for a child with epilepsy ( Deacon, 2019 ) and the federal bill to legalize cannabis in Canada was also widely reported on when it was first passed ( Gunning and Illes, 2021 ); this publicity may have decreased perceptions of cannabis risks. Further, despite medical legalization of cannabis in England, access is heavily restricted and very few people have received a prescription ( Dowden, 2021 ) and so legalization may not have made any noticeable difference to perceptions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceptions of cannabis use risk to mental health among youth in Canada, England and the United States from 2017 to 2021

Lemos

Taylor

Wadsworth

et al. 2023

Drug and Alcohol Dependence

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Coverage of medical cannabis by Canadian news media: Ethics, access, and policy

Cited by 6 publications

References 44 publications

The quality of health information provided on web sites selling cannabis to consumers in Canada is poor

The quality of health information provided on web sites selling cannabis to consumers in Canada is poor

Online information on medical cannabis is not always aligned with scientific evidence and may raise unrealistic expectations

Perceptions of cannabis use risk to mental health among youth in Canada, England and the United States from 2017 to 2021

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