Generational Divide In Medical Marijuana: Which Age Group Prefers Edibles & Which Like Flower?

Veriheal, a health care tech. company and one of the biggest facilitators of medical marijuana cards in the U.S. published its latest medical cannabis report Tuesday revealing generational product preferences. In its yearly analysis, the company explored the health goals and preferences of U.S. medical marijuana (MMJ) patients using segmented survey data.

To create the report, Veriheal teamed up with members of NORML, the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy and the University of California, LA, which gathered information from 200,000 anonymized adult patients who signed up for an appointment with an MMJ doctor using Veriheal's platform in 2022. Upon registering patients answered assorted questions regarding their medical needs and cannabis use.

"Veriheal is committed to helping the medical cannabis industry better serve all patients with the aid of data-driven intelligence," stated Anthony Dutcher, Veriheal CMO.

Key Takeaways

• Baby boomers and Generation X prefer edibles (63%), slightly more than cannabis flower (61%);
• Millennials and Generation Z, strongly prefer cannabis flower (79%) and have more interest in concentrates than the older generations;
• In short, the younger generations favor quicker-onset products, while the elderly choose longer-lasting products, such as edibles.
• Most common marijuana use among older patients is for the purpose of treating chronic pain (58%), while the younger generations tend to use it to improve sleep (64%);
• Older generations tend to pick products that allow normal social functioning, and that are more easily dosed, like edibles.
• The younger generations’ preference for flower and concentrates reveal they don’t worry as much about the stigma surrounding cannabis use, and this may also come from their need for nausea relief, desire for faster effect, or due to the exposure of digital marketing.

The study also examined whether state cannabis legalization status matters in patient product preferences, concluding there are no major differences between states with differing weed laws. Additional research points to product availability and advertising practices as factors in patient preferences.

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