For many years, cannabis-based research was either outright prohibited in many parts of the world, or at the very least greatly hindered. Meanwhile, a false narrative was pushed by mainstream media and cannabis opponents that cannabis was ‘bad for the human brain in every instance, no exceptions.’
Of course, the truth is that as researchers continue to explore and unlock the wellness benefits of cannabinoids, we are learning that the cannabis plant can be effective at providing relief to suffering patients for a wide array of conditions, including mental health conditions.
A team of researchers recently conducted a clinical trial in the United Kingdom that explored the relationship between cannabidiol (CBD) and symptoms in patients with a high risk of psychosis. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:
London, United Kingdom: The daily use of cannabidiol reduces symptom severity in patients at clinically high risk of suffering from psychosis, according to placebo-controlled clinical trial data published in the journal World Psychiatry.
Thirty-one patients completed the study. Subjects received 600 mg of CBD or a placebo daily for three weeks. None of the participants received any prescription medications during the trial. Patients were assessed at baseline, at seven days, and at 21 days.
Compared to the placebo group, those who received CBD had lower total CAARMS (Comprehensive Assessment of At‐Risk Mental States) scores following treatment. CBD dosing was associated with a “reduction in the severity of CHR [clinically high risk] symptoms and the distress associated with psychotic experiences,” investigators reported.
The study’s authors concluded: “Short‐term treatment with CBD can ameliorate the symptoms of CHR state for psychosis and is well tolerated. These results highlight the potential of CBD as a novel treatment for psychosis, and the need for large‐scale efficacy studies to further evaluate its clinical utility.”
Separate studies have demonstrated that the use of CBD reduces psychotic symptoms and the use of antipsychotic medications in patients with schizophrenia.
Full text of the study, “Effects of cannabidiol on symptoms in people at clinical; high risk of psychosis,” appears in World Psychiatry.
This article first appeared on Internationalcbc.com and is syndicated here with special permission.
Photo by Daniel Reche
