If cannabis gets you in the mood, you’re not alone — science says so. A study whose findings were recently released by the University of Connecticut and Georgia State University found that in states where medical marijuana was legalized, the rate of sexual activity went up.
The study’s co-author, University of Connecticut assistant professor David Simon, told Yahoo News that he wasn’t ready to comment on whether this finding was a good or bad thing but, “Regardless, we believe it should be something society/policy makers consider as part of the conversation on legalization.”
But wait, there’s more! In those same states with medical cannabis regulation, there was an uptick in birth rates by a mean of two percent, and a drop in the use of contraceptives while having sex.
Also — attention, please! — medical marijuana legalization may be associated with a year one uptick in a state’s gonorrhea rates.
Does Legal Bud Lead to Babies?
The states that were studied had regulated medicinal cannabis between 2005 and 2014, and the study specifically analyzed the sexual and reproductive behavior of people in their 20s and 30s.
The increase in babies being born was enough to counteract what has sometimes been identified as a negative correlation between cannabis usage and the ability for couples to get pregnant and have a healthy neonatal period.
The study’s co-author, University of Connecticut assistant professor David Simon, told Yahoo News that the surge in baby-making could be due to weed’s positive effects on people’s lives. The academic said that cannabis “treats chronic pain, improves life satisfaction, and decreases opioid abuse, it could result in heightened libidos/improved sex life.”
These findings would point to cannabis influencing birth rates