Cannabis-Related Diagnoses Among Pregnant Women Rose 24% After Canada Legalized Non-Medical Use
In Quebec, diagnosed cannabis-related disorders among pregnant women increased 24% following Canada's Cannabis Act, while alcohol- and other drug-related diagnoses remained stable.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
After the Cannabis Act took effect in October 2018, there was a significant 24% increase (95% CI: 1-53%) in cannabis-related diagnosed disorders among pregnant women aged 15-49.
Key Numbers
24% increase post-legalization (95% CI: 1-53%); 0.5% monthly increase pre-legalization; study period: Jan 2010 to July 2022
How They Did This
Quasi-experimental interrupted time-series analysis using administrative health data from Quebec, covering pregnant women aged 15-49 from January 2010 to July 2022.
Why This Research Matters
This is among the first studies to track how cannabis legalization affected diagnosed cannabis disorders specifically among pregnant women using population-level data.
The Bigger Picture
Whether this increase reflects more cannabis use or more clinical detection remains an open question.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Cannot distinguish increased use from increased detection. Administrative data rely on clinician coding. Quebec-specific. COVID-19 overlapped.
Questions This Raises
- ?Is the increase driven by more use or more disclosure?
- ?Did prenatal outcomes change alongside the increase?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- 24% increase in cannabis-related diagnoses among pregnant women post-legalization
- Evidence Grade:
- Population-level time-series analysis but cannot distinguish use from detection.
- Study Age:
- Published in 2024 with data through July 2022.
- Original Title:
- Changes in prenatal cannabis-related diagnosed disorders after the Cannabis Act and the COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec, Canada.
- Published In:
- Addiction (Abingdon, England), 119(10), 1784-1791 (2024)
- Authors:
- Nazif-Munoz, José Ignacio(3), Martínez, Pablo(2), Huỳnh, Christophe(3), Massamba, Victoria, Zefania, Isaora, Rochette, Louis, Vasiliadis, Helen-Maria
- Database ID:
- RTHC-05589
Evidence Hierarchy
Looks back at existing records to find patterns.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
Did more pregnant women start using cannabis after legalization?
The study found more diagnoses but cannot determine whether this reflects more use or more detection.
Did other substance diagnoses increase?
No. Alcohol and other drug diagnoses remained stable.
Read More on RethinkTHC
Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-05589APA
Nazif-Munoz, José Ignacio; Martínez, Pablo; Huỳnh, Christophe; Massamba, Victoria; Zefania, Isaora; Rochette, Louis; Vasiliadis, Helen-Maria. (2024). Changes in prenatal cannabis-related diagnosed disorders after the Cannabis Act and the COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec, Canada.. Addiction (Abingdon, England), 119(10), 1784-1791. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.16564
MLA
Nazif-Munoz, José Ignacio, et al. "Changes in prenatal cannabis-related diagnosed disorders after the Cannabis Act and the COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec, Canada.." Addiction (Abingdon, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.16564
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Changes in prenatal cannabis-related diagnosed disorders aft..." RTHC-05589. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/nazif-munoz-2024-changes-in-prenatal-cannabisrelated
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.