Modes of cannabis use among Canadian youth in the COMPASS study; using LCA to examine patterns of smoking, vaping, and eating/drinking cannabis

Abstract

Research has indicated that cannabis consumption through alternative modes of use such as eating/drinking or vaping may be increasing in areas where cannabis has been legalized. However, there is little research that examines these different modes of cannabis use in a Canadian youth context. The purpose of this study was to identify pre-legalization modes of cannabis use (smoking, eating/drinking, vaping) among a sample of 45,677 secondary school students who participated in year 6 (2017/18) of the COMPASS study. Within our sample, 24.9% reported cannabis use within the last 12 months; among those, 38.7% reported occasional use, and 61.3% reported current use. Multi-mode patterns of use were common; more than half of those reporting current cannabis use indicated a use pattern other than exclusively smoking, and over 20% reported use via all three modes. Findings from a latent class analysis identified three distinct groups and suggested that eating/drinking cannabis and vaping cannabis may more often be an addition to smoking rather than a replacement. Continued monitoring of these patterns is important for public health and necessary to evaluate any changes resulting from cannabis legalization.