Minneapolis St. Paul Mental Health Blog

Mental Health Update | Young adults who started using cannabis regularly before age 18 were more likely to report later sleep troubles, according to a study published online in Sleep.

“People tend to think that cannabis helps with sleep, but if you look closely at the studies, continued or excessive use is also associated with a lot of sleep deficits,” said study lead author Evan Winiger, a graduate student in the Institute for Behavioral Genetics at the University of Colorado-Boulder. “Our study adds to that literature, showing for the first time that early use is associated with increased rates of insomnia later on.”

Insomnia may also be associated with increased risk of suicidal ideation, inflammation, heart disease, breathing problems, hypertension, and chronic pain.

Sleep difficulties can both cause and result from psychiatric disorders, and clinicians must be sure to treat the conditions simultaneously, Psych Congress co-chair Charles L. Raison, MD, said at the Psych Congress Regionals meetings.

From the Journal of BMC Psychiatry; Having Insomnia carries a positive relationship that doubles the risk of Depression

…According to a meta-analysis of more than 2 dozen recent studies.

Overall, 26 of the 34 studies suggested a positive relationship between insomnia and depression.