Cannabis Cuts Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease in Patients With Alcohol Use Disorder

TUESDAY, Nov. 25, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Cannabis use is associated with a lower risk for alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) in patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD), according to a study published online Oct. 21 in Liver International.

Butros Fakhoury, M.D., from the Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, and colleagues evaluated the association between cannabis use and ALD risk among patients with AUD. The analysis included 33,114 matched patients with cannabis use disorder (CUD) or nonusers.

The researchers found that compared with noncannabis use, CUD was associated with a lower risk for ALD (hazard ratio [HR], 0.60), hepatic decompensation (HR, 0.83), and all-cause mortality (HR, 0.86) among individuals with AUD. For cannabis users without cannabis abuse or dependence, there was an association with lower risks for ALD, but risks for hepatic decompensation and all-cause mortality were similar to those of noncannabis users with AUD.

“Cannabis may have protective properties, but we still don”t know exactly how much, what form or what dose might be safe or effective,” Fakhoury said in a statement. “The goal isn”t to promote cannabis use, but to understand which parts of it might hold promise as medicine.”

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