A new University at Buffalo study suggests cannabis-infused drinks could help some adults drink less alcohol. Researchers say the emerging beverage market may offer a novel harm reduction tool, but caution that much more research is needed.
Swapping a beer or hard seltzer for a cannabis-infused drink might help some adults cut back on alcohol, according to a new study from University at Buffalo public health researchers.
In a survey of adults who use cannabis, people who drank cannabis beverages reported that they drank fewer alcoholic drinks per week and binged less often after they started using the cannabis drinks. Nearly two-thirds said they had reduced or stopped drinking alcohol as a result.
The findings, published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, point to cannabis beverages as a potential harm reduction tool for people who are not ready or willing to quit drinking entirely but want to drink less.
Alcohol is linked to at least seven types of cancer and nearly 200 health conditions and diseases. Heavy drinking also fuels injuries, violence and other social harms. Cannabis carries its own risks, but public health experts generally see it as less harmful than heavy alcohol use, especially when it comes to long-term physical health.
The new study is, to the authors’ knowledge, the first to focus specifically on cannabis beverages and their potential role in reducing alcohol-related harm.
First author Jessica Kruger, a clinical associate professor of community health and health behavior in UB’s School of Public Health and Health Professions, noted the work introduces a new twist on an established public health idea.
“In the first study of its kind, we introduce the concept of having cannabis as harm reduction for alcohol. Cannabis has been proposed as harm reduction for other drugs such as opioids but not talked about as often for legal substances such as alcohol,” Kruger said in a news release.
Harm reduction is a strategy that accepts that many people will continue to use substances such as alcohol, tobacco and cannabis, and focuses on lowering the risks rather than insisting on abstinence alone. Needle exchange programs and medications that reduce opioid overdose risk are well-known examples.
Cannabis beverages could become another option, especially as the market for these products grows. Market research firm Euromonitor projects that sales of cannabis drinks will top $4 billion in 2028. The products are often sold in cans and bottles that look and feel similar to beer, hard seltzers or ready-to-drink cocktails.
At the same time, many Americans are trying to drink less alcohol, not just during “dry January,” when people experiment with cutting back or quitting for a month, but throughout the year.
To explore whether cannabis drinks might fit into that shift, the UB team surveyed 438 anonymous adults who had used cannabis in the past year. Just over half said they also drank alcohol. About one-third reported using cannabis beverages, typically consuming one drink per session.
Most cannabis beverage users in the study said they chose products with 10 milligrams of cannabidiol (CBD) or less, though nearly half did not know the CBD content of their drinks. The survey did not focus on tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis, but these beverages are generally designed to produce cannabis effects similar to smoking or edibles, with a slower onset than alcohol.
When participants compared their alcohol use before and after they started drinking cannabis beverages, they reported a notable shift. On average, they said they went from about seven alcoholic drinks per week to just over three. They also reported binge drinking less often.
Overall, 62.6% of respondents who used cannabis beverages said they had either reduced or stopped drinking alcohol because of the drinks. A small minority, 3.3%, reported that their alcohol use had increased.
The study also found that people who used cannabis beverages were more likely than other cannabis users to say they substituted cannabis for alcohol. Among beverage users, 58.6% reported substituting cannabis for alcohol, compared with 47.2% of those who used other cannabis products but not drinks.
The pattern stands out, according to co-author Daniel Kruger, a research associate professor in UB’s School of Public Health and Health Professions.
“Several previous studies, including ours, have demonstrated that people have reduced their alcohol consumption by switching to cannabis,” he said in the news release.
“It’s remarkable that people who use cannabis beverages report an even greater reduction in alcohol use than those who use other types of cannabis products (but not beverages). We believe this may be because of the similarity in administration method and context of use — people at parties or bars will likely have a drink in their hand, in this case a cannabis beverage rather than an alcoholic one,” he added.
That similarity could make cannabis beverages especially appealing for people who enjoy the ritual and social aspects of drinking but want to avoid alcohol’s health risks, hangovers or potential for dependence.
Cannabis drinks are becoming more visible as states legalize cannabis for adult use. In New York, the first cannabis beverage was sold legally in January 2023, shortly after the state launched licensed sales of cannabis products.
The UB survey found that nearly 82% of cannabis beverage users bought their products from licensed medical or adult-use dispensaries, suggesting that regulated retail outlets are a key access point.
Still, the researchers stress that this is an early, exploratory look at a fast-changing landscape. The study relied on self-reported data from a relatively small group of adults who already use cannabis, and it cannot prove that cannabis beverages caused people to drink less. Other factors, such as changing health goals or social trends, could also play a role.
Kruger emphasized that cannabis beverages are new and not yet widely understood.
“I think we have a long way to go before this is seen as mainstream as cannabis beverages are a new modality of use,” she said.
The research team plans to follow up by tracking cannabis beverage use and alcohol consumption over time and by comparing different ways of using cannabis, such as edibles, vaping and smoking.
For now, the findings add to a growing conversation about how to reduce alcohol-related harm in realistic ways. For some adults, especially those who already use cannabis and live in states with legal, regulated products, a cannabis drink in place of a cocktail might be one more tool to help cut back.
Source: University at Buffalo