New Article Feature: Changes in Associations Between Cannabis Use and Mental Health From 2012 to 2022

A new study led by Dr. Jillian Halladay and co-authored by Dr. Kathy Georgiades examines changes in cross-sectional associations between cannabis use and anxiety, depression, and suicidality in Canadians from 2012 to 2022.

The authors used the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey’s Mental Health Component and the 2022 Mental Health and Access to Care Survey. Both are cross-sectional surveys are nationally representative of Canadians aged 15+.

Between 2012 and 2022, rates of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), major depressive episode (MDE), and cannabis use roughly doubled. Suicidality increased among youth. More frequent cannabis use was linked to higher rates of GAD, MDE, and suicidality in a dose-dependent manner with these relationships being stronger in 2022 compared to 2012. Additionally, the changes in associations between 2012 and 2022 between cannabis use and MDE or suicidality were stronger among youth aged 15-24, while the changes in associations over time between cannabis use and GAD was more pronounced among females.

Based on these findings, the authors recommend investment in integrated substance use and mental health prevention, early intervention, and treatment, given the increasingly strong overlap between cannabis use and internalizing disorders. They also suggest improving harm reduction and integrated care efforts by incorporating mental health considerations into Canada’s Lower-Risk Cannabis Use Guidelines.

Check out the original paper, entitled “Changes in Cross-Sectional Associations Between Cannabis Use and Anxiety, Depression, and Suicidality in a Nationally Representative Sample of Canadians From 2012 to 2022” authored by Drs. Jillian Halladay, Chris Ji, Kathy Georgiades, André McDonald, Matthew Sunderland, Tim Slade, Cath Chapman, and James MacKillop.

This article was published in The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry in February 2026.