Data seems to indicate, older marijuana users are more productive. Research conducted in states where marijuana is legal found that users aged 51 and older experienced a significant reduction of pain and an increase in their work productivity.
The study, conducted by the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Temple University, looked into the effects of marijuana legalization in labor and work environments. The research had a particular focus on older adults, a sector that is often ignored in most medical marijuana studies and who could theoretically reap the majority of benefits of medical marijuana treatments.
The survey was conducted in over 100,000 patients over the age of 51 who qualified for medical marijuana programs. Subjects reported a 4.8 percent decrease in pain and a 6.6 percent increase in “excellent health.” Researchers concluded that medical marijuana in legal states increases productivity in full time jobs, with the positives outweighing the negative side effects of legalization.
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“Three principle findings emerge from our analysis: First, active state medical marijuana laws lead to lower pain and better self-assessed health among older adults. Second, state medical marijuana laws lead to increases in older adult labor supply … Third, the effects of medical marijuana laws are largest among older adults with a health condition that would qualify for legal medical marijuana use under current state laws,” reveals the study.
These results are promising for marijuana legalization, especially now that people are expected to work more and that retirement age is being pushed back significantly. According to a survey conducted by the AARP, financial stress is at an all time high, with half of respondents having trouble sleeping at night because of their debts and worries. 11 percent of them believe that they’ll have to continue to work well past their 80s. Yay, legal marijuana?
