What topics does this cannabis study cover?

This study covers research on: Mental Health, Addiction.

Loneliness, neighborhoods, and cannabis use intersect for women with HIV

Q: What did this research study find?

**Loneliness at baseline and increases in loneliness over time were associated with several adverse outcomes**, including depressive symptoms, non-prescription substance use, past-year cannabis use, and poorer quality of life among women living with HIV.

Q: Where was this research published?

Published in medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences on July 16, 2026.

Associations of Trajectories of Loneliness and Neighborhood Stability with Depression, Alcohol and Substance Use, and Quality of Life among Women Living with HIV.

medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences • July 16, 2026 • Moderately Relevant

🤖

AI Summary

This longitudinal study examined 1,394 women living with HIV enrolled between 2014 and 2019, focusing on how loneliness and neighborhood stability related to mental health, substance use, alcohol consumption, and quality of life. Higher loneliness at the beginning of the study—and increases in loneliness over time—were associated with depressive symptoms, non-prescription substance use, past-year cannabis use, and poorer quality-of-life measures. The study found associations, not proof that loneliness or neighborhood conditions caused these outcomes.

Neighborhood stability at baseline was also associated with past-year cannabis use, depressive symptoms, and self-reported overall health, while changes in neighborhood stability over time were not linked to the outcomes studied. For cannabis users, the findings suggest that cannabis use may occur within a broader context of social isolation, mental health challenges, and community conditions. The abstract does not show whether cannabis helped or worsened loneliness, depression, or quality of life, so it should not be interpreted as evidence for cannabis as a treatment or as a cause of these problems.

💡 Key Findings

Loneliness at baseline and increases in loneliness over time were associated with several adverse outcomes, including depressive symptoms, non-prescription substance use, past-year cannabis use, and poorer quality of life among women living with HIV.

Good

75%

Baseline neighborhood stability was associated with past-year cannabis use, depressive symptoms, and overall self-reported health; changes in neighborhood stability were not associated with the outcomes examined.

Good

70%

Neighborhood stability moderated the association between changes in loneliness and perceptions of general health, suggesting that community context may shape how loneliness relates to well-being.

Good

65%

The study reports associations rather than causation and does not establish whether cannabis use improved or worsened loneliness, depression, or quality of life.

High

90%

📄 Original Abstract

Social relationships are an important social determinant of health. Loneliness, the perceived gap between one's actual and desired relationships, has emerged as an important mechanism through which social relationships impact health. Like other intrapersonal-level factors associated with health, loneliness is influenced by broader social and structural factors, including characteristics of one's neighborhood social environment. Although neighborhood-level protective and risk factors for loneliness and for mental health have been identified, prior studies have often focused solely on self-reported perceptions of the neighborhood environment. Further, few have considered aspects of the neighborhood social environments, such as neighborhood stability (i.e., stability of the community with long or short-term residents), independent of neighborhood socioeconomic conditions. In the current analysis, we explored longitudinal patterns of loneliness in conjunction with neighborhood stability among women with HIV (WWH) enrolled into the MACS/WIHS Combined Cohort Study (MWCCS) from 2014-2019 ( N 2019 =1,394) to examine whether trajectories of loneliness and neighborhood stability were associated with depressive symptoms, non-prescription substance use, past-year cannabis use, number of alcoholic drinks per week, and several domains of quality of life. Loneliness at baseline (Betas = 0.24 - 0.54) and changes in loneliness over time (Betas = 0.11 - 0.26) were associated with each outcome, except for the association between changes in loneliness over time and drinks per week (Beta=0.13, p = 4.14×10 -2 ), which did not persist after correcting for multiple comparisons. Neighborhood stability at baseline was associated with past year cannabis use (Beta=0.26, p = 1.00×10 -2 ), depressive symptoms (Beta=-0.12, p = 1.54×10 -3 ), and overall self-reported health (Beta=-0.08, p = 2.05×10 -2 ). Changes in neighborhood stability across time were not associated with any outcome. Neighborhood stability moderated the association between changes in loneliness and general health perceptions. Our results demonstrate both overall loneliness and changes in loneliness over time have implications for current mental health in WWH, while changes in neighborhood stability did not.