Background: Marijuana is the most commonly used drug among women of reproductive age, persisting even during pregnancy and thereby becoming the predominant substance used during this period. However, marijuana poses risks to pregnancy by potentially impacting fetal development and increasing the likelihood of low birth weight. Given the recent legalization of marijuana in Ohio, there exists an imperative to comprehensively study its usage patterns among women. Therefore, this study aims to explore the prevalence of marijuana use and dependence among women of reproductive age in Ohio.

Methods: Data from a prospective cohort study of youth aged 15-24 at baseline were analyzed to examine marijuana dependence and usage patterns among women of reproductive age. The Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS) was used to measure marijuana dependence. Multivariable linear regression analysis was conducted, adjusting for demographic variables, to identify predictors of marijuana dependence specifically among women (n=584).

Results: At the 12-month follow-up, 47.19% of women who had used marijuana at baseline continued usage. Significant predictors of marijuana dependency at follow-up for all respondents included socioeconomic status, age, education (specifically, no high school degree vs. still in high school), and race (non-Hispanic Black vs. non-Hispanic White). Among women, the significant predictors were education and race, with no significant associations observed for other demographics.

Conclusions: Socioeconomic factors and age emerge as the primary predictors of marijuana use among all respondents. This finding holds significant implications for public health interventions, particularly in the context of mitigating adverse outcomes associated with marijuana use during pregnancy.