Study finds ‘one in four’ started using CBD during COVID-19

A new study has found that almost a quarter of CBD consumers in the US began using the cannabinoid during the coronavirus pandemic.  

Newly released findings from a study of over 35,000 adults in the US highlights the age and gender divide in Covid-19’s impact on mental health. 

According to the survey, almost seven in ten women have felt isolated from family and friends compared to just roughly half of men who have experienced the same. 

Almost four in ten women also report feeling more depressed than usual compared to fewer than three in ten men. Sleep issues have also arisen at greater rates (32 percent) for women than for men (22 percent). 

Gen Z and Millennials appear hardest hit by the economic fallout during the survey period. On average, one in four Gen Z and Millennial respondents reported having lost a job or taken a reduction to hours or pay. 

However, most of the spending cutbacks are driven by older consumers, with respondents aged 40 years and over making up 65 percent of those who report reduced household spending due to Covid-19.

Market research company High Yield Insights ran the survey from September to October 2020, collecting data from over 35,000 adults aged 21 and over. 

Respondents addressed how the pandemic has stirred mental health concerns, upended shopping habits, and sparked interest in new wellness products. 

The study also delved deep into the use and interest in CBD as a source of relief for health issues associated with or exacerbated by the pandemic.

“Our findings capture an image of what some are rightly calling the mental health epidemic in America,” said Mike Luce, president of High Yield Insights and a 20-year veteran in consumer insights and market research. 

“Consumers are thinking about wellness holistically today to encompass both mental and physical health. For product categories like CBD, which can address a range of conditions, the pandemic is having a historic knock-on effect. The growing popularity of CBD is evidenced by the number of people who started using one or more CBD products last year. For example, we discovered almost one in four US CBD consumers started using CBD in the six months leading up to our survey.”

UK retailers have also reported a rise in demand for CBD products since the start of the pandemic.

Newcastle based companies, Naturally North CBD and Karma Coast both told Cannabis Health that the vast majority of their customers are now using CBD to target anxiety and stress-related issues.