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The findings of one study that some Canadians found particularly interesting were just released in September 2018. Conducted by Kadence International, a global research company that covers multiple locations and sectors, the study aimed to understand U.S. cannabis users over the age of 21 and the role cannabis plays in today’s society, as well as the way cannabis is becoming more common in overall wellness regimens.

People of all ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds were surveyed, and almost a third were self-identified daily cannabis users.

Researchers were able to garner an incredible amount of information that may come in handy to medical clinics.

For example, how many people use cannabis (18 percent say they do); how they ingest it (55 percent smoke it); and why they use it (48 percent do it to relieve anxiety, 40 percent do it to help them sleep and a fifth use it as a substitute for prescription meds).

Respondents were also asked how their views have changed on topics associated with cannabis, including alcohol use (47 percent say they don’t drink as much as they used to; 50 percent believe cannabis is less dangerous than alcohol).

For those interested in stats and data related to cannabis use, this research—and research like it—is fascinating and sometimes even eye-opening. The thing is, a lot of these studies are conducted in other countries (the U.S., mostly), which begs the question: How does this relate to Canada, and what does it mean, if anything, for Canadians?

Michelle Arbus is the vice-president of research and insights at Strainprint Technologies Ltd., a Toronto-based cannabis data and analytics company that supports cannabis research about users north of the border. Arbus pours over Strainprint’s mine of 800,000-plus records from tens of thousands of people who use medical cannabis and enter data into the company’s free app.