A recent study of young adults has concluded that more than 1 out of 5 use cannabis or alcohol to help fall asleep – a practice that can “backfire,” researchers are cautioning.
A team of University of Michigan researchers found, after they looked at data from U-M’s annual Monitoring the Future Panel Study, that 22% of nearly 1,500 U.S. adults between the ages of 19 and 30 use one or both substances to fall asleep.
Cannabis use was far more common than alcohol: 18% compared with 7%. Among the young adults who had used cannabis in the past year, 41% said they did so specifically to help them sleep.
The researchers’ advice for these young adults: Talk with your health care provider, because “long-term, regular use of these substances” can interfere with your sleep quality and increase your risk for substance use disorder.
“There is a misconception that substance use can be helpful for sleep problems, but it can make things worse,” said Megan Patrick, a research professor at U-M and principal investigator of the panel study.
The study was published in JAMA Pediatrics.
