24/01/2026
What Happened After 5 Years of Cannabis Legalization in Canada (BEFORE & AFTER) Statistics Of Nationwide Mental Health Outcomes.
Statistics National evidence and the global shift toward science based cannabis policy
Canada remains one of the largest and most informative national test cases for cannabis legalization providing critical long term evidence on public health and societal outcomes.
✔️ Study Overview
• Source The Lancet Regional Health Americas 2026
• Data International Cannabis Policy Study
• Design National repeat cross sectional surveys
• Sample 92,843 Canadians aged 16 to 65
• Period 2018 to 2023 one year before and five years after legalization
✔️ Key Findings Daily Cannabis Use
• Increased only among people without mental health conditions
• No significant increase in daily use among any mental health condition group
• No evidence of disproportionate escalation among vulnerable psychiatric populations
✔️ What Did Not Change
• No pre versus post legalization increase among people with
• Bipolar disorder
• PTSD
• Schizophrenia
• Challenges assumptions that legalization broadly worsens mental health
✔️ Interpretation
• Cannabis legalization was not associated with large increases in use among people with mental health conditions
• Increases were more pronounced in the general population
• Long term data suggest population level stability rather than harm
✔️ Why This Research Matters
• Cannabis legalization raised concerns about mental health risks
• Long term population level evidence was limited
• This study provides five year post legalization outcomes at national scale
✔️ Mental Health Conditions Examined
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Bipolar disorder
• Post traumatic stress disorder PTSD
• Schizophrenia
• Compared with people reporting no mental health condition
✔️ Key Findings Past 12 Month Cannabis Use
• Increased after legalization among people with anxiety
• Increased after legalization among people with depression
• Increased among people with no reported mental health condition
• Higher use among anxiety and depression groups persisted through 2023
• No significant changes among bipolar PTSD or schizophrenia groups
✔️ Canada and the Global Cannabis Policy Shift
• Canada became the first G7 nation to legalize adult use cannabis nationwide in 2018
• The Cannabis Act emphasized public health regulated access quality control and harm reduction
• Five years of data now allow evidence based policy evaluation
✔️ Countries That Have Legalized Adult Use Cannabis Going Against The WAR on DRUGS
• Canada
• Uruguay
• United States selected states
• Germany
• Malta
• Luxembourg
• Mexico legal framework approved implementation ongoing
• South Africa private adult use
• Thailand decriminalized with regulated medical and commercial pathways
✔️ Countries With National Medical Cannabis Programs
• Germany
• United Kingdom
• Australia
• New Zealand
• Israel
• Italy
• Portugal
• Netherlands
• Colombia
• Brazil limited medical access
• Thailand
✔️ Thailand A Regional Turning Point
• Once known for one of the world’s Harshest and outright Brutal WAR on DRUGS policies
• First Asian country to legalize medical cannabis and decriminalize the plant
• Shift driven by science traditional medicine harm reduction and economic opportunity
• Signals a broader move away from punitive drug policy and death sentences in Asia
✔️ The Bigger Picture
• Cannabis policy globally is shifting from criminal justice to public health and science
• Long term data from countries like Canada now guide regulation
• The g***a science revolution is reshaping drug policy and plant based medicine
✔️ Bottom Line
• Evidence not fear should guide cannabis legislation
• Canada’s five year data show no disproportionate mental health harm
• Science based regulation is replacing the war on drugs narrative
• Science based research continues to show that responsibly returning to beneficial botanicals can support public health across large sectors of society
• Reduced stigma paired with education regulation and quality control improves health outcomes
• These principles apply to many traditionally used plants when proper care dosage individual variability and evidence based guidance are respected
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Green Culture Labs co., Ltd
Green Culture Labs co., Ltd
Research and Development Center
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January 19, 2025
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