Can Cannabis Help Relieve Menopause Symptoms?

“We know that cannabis use is becoming more common with normalization and with legalization in adults over the age of 50, and women are the fastest-growing population for those who use cannabis,” said Carolyn Gibson, PhD, an associate professor of psychiatry and a health services researcher at the University of California in San Francisco.

But “most studies have focused on men and young adults — not many studies have looked precisely at women in midlife, so there’s a gap in what we know.” Below, learn more about what anecdotal evidence and medical research says about the potential ways cannabis may ease menopause symptoms.

Some Women Use Cannabis Daily for Chronic Pain and Stress

Middle-aged women appear to use cannabis for many of the same reasons as the general population — anxiety, sleep, and stress — but also menopause symptoms, says Dr. Gibson. “But we still do not know if use is actually helping for those symptoms, or if it may be contributing to other challenges,” she adds.

Anecdotally, Cannabis May Help With Menopause-Related Sleep Issues

Karen Adams, MD, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology and the director of the menopause and healthy aging program at Stanford Health Care in California, says that her patients report turning to CBD- or THC-containing marijuana to help them sleep.

“My menopausal patients tell me they are incredibly bothered by their sleep difficulties. They used to be good sleepers, and if they got up at 2 a.m. to go to the bathroom, they could still fall back to sleep pretty quickly. But after menopause, once they were up, they were up for hours — so much so that the next day they experienced brain fog and fuzziness,” says Dr. Adams.

Adams has observed that taking these products before bed has been a game changer for many of her patients, helping them fall and stay asleep. “Anecdotally, it seems to work. However, we need more science investigating the risks, side effects, and long-term outcomes in women using cannabis for sleep issues in menopause,” says Adams.

Potential Risks of Cannabis for Menopause Relief

No matter your reason for using cannabis, there are potential risks. “Obviously, when we think about smoking anything, it brings up concern for cardiovascular health and respiratory health, especially if people are smoking on a daily basis,” Gibson says. Smoking marijuana has been linked to chronic bronchitis and negative impacts on the body’s immune system, according to the American Lung Association.

Consuming cannabis via edibles (gummies, candies, baked goods) may be safer, but there are concerns about products that have a really high potency, have impurities, or aren’t labeled accurately (typical in states where it may not be legal or regulated). In that case, potency isn’t known at all, Gibson says.

“Higher potency brings risks for increased tolerance, which brings risks for dependence, and also acute risks such as acute anxiety, fall risk, maybe psychosis, the things that send people to the emergency room,” Gibson says.

More Research Is Needed to Explore the Benefits and Risks

Gibson says, given the “relatively common use” of marijuana, more research is needed to evaluate how cannabis may benefit or harm women during the menopause transition and beyond. Historically, that’s been difficult given that cannabis is illegal at the federal level, but there’s been some progress.

Talk to Your Provider Before Using Cannabis for Menopause

“It’s unclear why women are turning to cannabis, a product not thoroughly evaluated as it relates to efficacy and safety, and if they are also talking to their healthcare practitioners about these symptoms,” says Juliana (Jewel) Kling, MD, MPH, a professor of medicine, the chair of women’s health internal medicine, and the dean of the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine in Scottsdale, Arizona.

If menopause symptoms are negatively impacting your quality of life, talk to your doctor. “There are many products available to treat menopause symptoms, but it may be that women aren’t aware of them, aren’t offered them, or are not associating their symptoms with menopause,” Dr. Kling says. Other menopause treatments, like hormone therapy, have more substantial evidence, says Gibson.

Practitioners should also ask patients about cannabis given that it is widely used, says Kling. Gibson agrees: “We need to normalize talking about cannabis in the healthcare setting.”