Weed light: An exploratory study of Delta-8 THC conversations on Reddit

Abstract

Delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is a newly popular cannabinoid that can be purchased easily at gas stations, vape shops, and online retailers in most regions of the United States. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has expressed the need for novel data sources to understand the use of products like Delta-8 and rapidly detect potential safety issues. Using social media platform Reddit, we examined users’ reported experiences with Delta-8. We collected publicly available Reddit posts of Delta-8 from January 2020 through April 2021 using Brandwatch, a commercially available social media listening platform. We identified the names of popular subreddits, trends in post volume, and frequent topic phrases for Delta-8. Approximately 57,913 Reddit posts were collected from 11,333 unique users across 708 subreddits. Most frequently, discussions were about available products, locations for purchase, overall safety and legality, reactions to the product, and general experiences. Given the lack of regulation and testing, questionable legality, and the product’s wide availability at retail and online locations, Delta-8 products should be a concern for health officials. Monitoring social media platforms like Reddit can help FDA achieve its regulatory and consumer protection goals for emerging cannabis products.