Change in cannabis use in the general population: a longitudinal study on the impact on psychotic experiences

To prospectively assess the relationship between cannabis use and psychotic experiences over time.

In a longitudinal design, young adults aged 18-27years (N=705) gave online information on cannabis use and completed the Community Assessment of Psychic Experiences (CAPE). These measures were repeated after an interval ranging from six months to five years.

A decrease in cannabis use was associated with a decrease in total psychotic experiences (β=-0.096, p=0.01) after adjustment for a range of potential confounders. An increase in cannabis use was associated with increased positive symptoms at follow-up (β=0.07, p=0.02), but was not significantly associated with increases in Negative and Depression symptom scores, nor with the total number of psychotic experiences.

In the first study to the association of change in cannabis use and psychotic experiences over time in the general population, we found an association between changes in cannabis use and changes in the frequency of psychotic experiences. While this does not prove a causal relationship between cannabis use and psychosis, our findings are consistent with studies suggesting that cessation of cannabis use may be beneficial in terms of reducing psychotic experiences.