Is Marijuana Addictive?

Marijuana use can result in the development of a marijuana use disorder, which can progress to addiction in severe situations. According to recent studies, 30% of marijuana users may have a marijuana use disorder. ¹⁸ People who start smoking marijuana before the age of 18 are four to seven times more likely than adults to have a marijuana use disorder. ¹⁹ 

Marijuana use disorders are frequently related with dependency, which occurs when a person has withdrawal symptoms when not using the drug. Marijuana users commonly report irritation, mood and sleep troubles, poor appetite, cravings, restlessness, and/or different forms of physical symptoms that peak within the first week of quitting and persist up to two weeks. ^20,21 Marijuana dependence develops when the brain adjusts to high doses of the drug by decreasing production and tolerance to its own endocannabinoid neurotransmitters. ^22,23

Marijuana use disorder progresses to addiction when a person is unable to stop using the drug despite the fact that it interferes with many elements of his or her life. Estimates of the number of marijuana addicts are debatable, partly because epidemiological studies of substance use sometimes utilize dependency as a proxy for addiction, despite the fact that it is possible to be dependent without being addicted. According to these research, 9% of persons who use marijuana become dependent on it, ^24,25 rising to roughly 17% among those who begin using in their teens. ^26,27

In the United States in 2015, around 4.0 million persons fulfilled the clinical criteria for a marijuana use disorder;3 138,000 people voluntarily sought professional help for their marijuana usage. ²⁸