Record number of California senior citizens are showing up in ERs for cannabis-related issues

Seniors are showing up In California emergency rooms for cannabis-related issues in unprecedented numbers, according to a new study.

UC San Diego researchers found that just 366 Californians over the age of 65 visited ERs in 2005 for cannabis-related issues. But by 2019, that figure shot up to 12,167, NBC San Diego reports.

"While a law was passed by the state way back in '96 approving the use of medical marijuana, a second law was passed in 2003 clarifying the legislation prior to its use becoming more widespread," NBC San Diego's report stated. "Recreational use of marijuana was approved by state voters in 2016. It's worth noting that the study shows that while ER visits spiked between 2013-17, they plateaued in 2017, the year weed became legally available for recreational use, so legalization does not appear to be connected to an increase in ER visits by seniors for cannabis-related issues."

Dr. Benjamin Han, a geriatrician who authored the study, said that people sometimes underestimate the effects of cannabis because they don't view it as seriously as they would a prescription drug.

“I do see a lot of older adults who are overly confident, saying they know how to handle it — yet as they have gotten older, their bodies are more sensitive, and the concentrations are very different from what they may have tried when they were younger," Han said.

Researchers say more and more older adults are experimenting with cannabis "to help alleviate chronic symptoms," which is likely partly responsible for the heightened ER visits.

Read the full report over at NBC San Diego.