Q: Dear Dr. Greg,

I’m having a hard time sleeping, and I wonder if cannabis might help. It takes me a while to fall asleep, and I wake up too often at night. During my playing years (I’m a former pro baseball player), coach stressed the importance of sleep. Now that I’m retired from sports, I want to protect my health and straighten out my rest. What’s your advice?

Jeff | Retired MLB

A: Dear Jeff,

I’m thrilled that you want to improve your sleep. Along with proper diet and exercise, high-quality sleep is essential to keep your body strong and mind sharp. We have some interesting new information about cannabis and sleep.

Like most cannabis research, we need to take the results with a grain of salt. Due to our restrictive drug laws, it’s tough to get studies approved and funded. These restrictions are a massive missed opportunity. Let me share what we know now.

Cannabis appears to benefit sleep in the short run. Users tend to fall asleep faster and rate the quality of their sleep higher. Interestingly, cannabis might even help people with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and nightmares.

However, long-term users with chronic pain often experience greater difficulty falling asleep and more nighttime awakenings. It may be that regular users develop tolerance to the sleep benefits of cannabis. Some people struggle with disturbed sleep if they withdraw from cannabis.

Overall, I suspect that cannabis is safe and probably effective in improving sleep in the short term. Over the long run, you’ll want to work with an experienced medical cannabis practitioner for guidance about dosage, proper CBD to THC ratios, and drug holidays. It may take some monitored experimentation to figure out the appropriate formulation for your needs.

Dr. Greg