A new federally funded study examining the associations between cannabis use and other health-related behaviors finds that adults are more physically active on days they used marijuana—evidence that contradicts the “lazy stoner” stereotype—although they also drank alcohol more heavily and smoked more cigarettes.
The study, which featured researchers from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences, University of Texas School of Public Health, University of Michigan, University of Oklahoma, Texas A&M-Commerce, Louisiana State University Health Science Center, Georgia Institute of Technology and University of Colorado Boulder, studied people who reported marijuana use on at least one of the 28 days were included but not every day of that period. They studied their physical activity and pain levels when consuming cannabis vs. not consuming cannabis.
Their findings supported earlier research that found cannabis consumers were more active. “The observed positive between- and within-person associations between cannabis use and MVPA aligned with our hypothesis and prior cross-sectional observations that people who use cannabis (vs. non-users) tend to report more minutes of weekly [physical activity, or PA] and have higher accelerometer-measured light PA and MVPA,” they wrote.
Daily cannabis use was positively associated with daily physical activity, with the main reason from the participants in the study saying they feel better when exercising after cannabis use and also know that they are likely to have an increased appetite after smoking.
