Cannabis regulation: the need to develop guidelines on use

A regulated cannabis market could be a good thing. Potential benefits range from breaking the dominance of drug cartels and redistributing law enforcement budgets to taxation, consumer choice, quality control, and reducing criminalisation of mostly young and otherwise law abiding citizens. But we mustn’t end up with a net public health loss.

Any attempt at regulation must protect young people from early initiation into use and minimise the risk of a collateral increase in tobacco consumption. Cannabis is a gateway to tobacco use. In most countries, more than 80% of cannabis smokers mix cannabis with tobacco; this has synergistic health harms and makes it harder to quit. A regulated market should encourage the production of cannabis with lower levels of tetrahydrocannabinol balanced by cannabidiol to reduce the frequency of unwanted effects, such as memory impairment and paranoia.

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