# Cannabis Users Slept More Fitfully by Sensor, Not by Self-Report

_Evidence Level: Preliminary · Vu TT et al., JAMA network open, DOI 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.38303_

*Recent and Cumulative Cannabis Use and Sleep in Middle-Aged Adults.*

- **Evidence Level**: Preliminary
- **Why this grade**: A cohort with 35 years of exposure data, but sleep was measured once over one week and use was self-reported, so the order of events is unknown.
- **Facts**: Duration: 35 years · Funding: National Institutes of Health; Swiss National Science Foundation (per author…
- **Publication Types**: Journal Article
- **Journal**: JAMA network open
- **Sample Size**: 1,266 middle-aged US adults
- **Authors**: Vu TT, Knutson KL, Auer R, Jakob J, Lloyd-Jones DM, Carnethon MR
- **Graded and published**: 2026-10-01
- **Last edited**: 2026-10-12
- **Topics**: Sleep, Brain Health
- **DOI**: https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.38303
- **Free full text**: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13653285/
- **Original Source**: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42853566/

## Summary

Cannabis is often promoted as a sleep aid, yet in people around 60, wrist sensors recorded more restless sleep among users. The data come from a US cohort study that followed more than 1,200 people from young adulthood for 35 years. The more cannabis-years someone had accumulated, the more often they lay awake for long stretches after falling asleep and slept in fragments. People who had used in the past month also more often slept over eight hours. A sleep quality questionnaire, however, showed no link with cannabis use. Which came first is unclear, because sleep was measured during a single week.

## Practical Takeaway

Long-term cannabis use was linked to measurably more disrupted sleep but not to worse self-rated sleep quality.

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_Canonical: https://longevity-germany.com/en/research/cannabis-users-slept-more-fitfully-by-sensor-not-by-self-report · Part of Longevity Cities · Updated 2026-10-12_