Tag: CBD

Study Finds That CBD May Offset THC-Induced Anxiety

Written by Frank Schuler on October 29, 2022. Posted in Science.

The cannabis plant is one of the most versatile plants on earth, and quite possibly could be the most versatile plant on the planet. Although, that can prove to be a two-edged sword of sorts, in that when cannabis’ complexities interact with human biology it can yield some undesirable consequences.

To be clear, I am not stating that cannabis is harmful in the manner that cannabis prohibitionists describe. However, it is a fact that when some people consume cannabis, particularly if they consume an amount of cannabis that exceeds what they are usually comfortable consuming, it can contribute to the person experiencing some level of anxiety.

It is never fun to experience anxiety, whether it’s a little anxiety or a lot of anxiety. Typically, the effects of THC are responsible for the person experiencing an increased level of anxiety, and fortunately, another cannabinoid appears to be able to offset those effects to some degree according to a recent study out of The Netherlands. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Maastricht, The Netherlands: Subjects who consume cannabis containing equal amounts of THC and CBD report experiencing less anxiety than they do after consuming THC-dominant cannabis, according to trial data published in the journal Psychopharmacology.

Dutch investigators assessed perceived anxiety levels in a cohort of 26 subjects following single doses of vaporized cannabis. Subjects vaporized cannabis samples that were either high in THC (13.75 mgs), high in CBD (13.75 mgs), contained equal amounts of both CBD and THC, or that contained no cannabinoids.

Investigators reported that THC-dominant and THC/CBD equivalent samples significantly increased participants’ self-rated state of anxiety compared to placebo, but subjects reported less anxiety after consuming the latter. Specifically, they reported, “Combined treatment of THC and CBD delayed the onset of … anxiety, reduced its magnitude and shortened its duration compared to inhalation of THC alone.”

The study’s findings are consistent with those of prior studies documenting CBD’s anxiolytic effects, and determining that subjects who consume cannabis flowers containing equal ratios of THC and CBD are less likely to report experiencing adverse effects, such as feelings of paranoia.

Authors concluded: “The present study showed that cannabis containing equivalent concentrations of THC and CBD induces less self-rated … anxiety compared to THC-only cannabis in healthy volunteers. … The THC/CBD combination might be more favorable in clinical settings, and it may be a reasonable public health strategy to encourage cannabis breeds containing THC/CBD mixtures where recreational use of cannabis is now legal.”

Full text of the study, “Cannabis containing equivalent concentrations of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) induces less state anxiety than THC-dominant cannabis,” appears in Psychopharmacology.

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Israel Study Finds CBD Is “Highly Effective” In Adults With Refractory Epilepsy

Written by Frank Schuler on October 11, 2022. Posted in Science.

When it comes to medical cannabis, arguably the most effective way that cannabis can be used is in cannabidiol (CBD) form to treat refractory epilepsy. Cannabis can effectively treat a number of conditions, however, it seems to be particularly useful among epilepsy patients.

CBD’s ability to successfully treat refractory epilepsy among child patients has received a lot of media attention in recent years, and for good reason. When pharmaceutical medications fail parents turn to CBD which is non-toxic and does not induce intoxication, and in a vast majority of cases, it proves to be a tremendous form of treatment.

Cannabidiol is also effective at treating adult patients that suffer from refractory epilepsy according to a new study out of Israel. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Tel Aviv, Israel: Adults with treatment-resistant focal epilepsy (epilepsy characterized by seizures arising from a specific part of the brain) respond favorably to the adjunctive use of plant-derived CBD dominant cannabis extracts, according to data published in the journal Neurological Sciences.

A Colombian investigator assessed the efficacy of high CBD/low THC extracts in a cohort of epileptic patients. Of those who maintained a cannabis-treatment regimen for at least three months, 80 percent experienced a greater than 50 percent reduction in seizure frequency at 12 weeks. Only a minority of patients reported any side-effects.

“The reduction in seizures frequency is maintained over time.” the study’s author concluded. “The CBMF (cannabis-based magistral formulation) is a highly effective and safe therapy to treat adult patients with DRFE (drug resistant focal epilepsy).”

Israeli data published in June similarly reported that children with refractory forms of epilepsy experience significant reductions in seizure frequency following the long-term use of plant-derived CBD extracts.

In 2018, the US Food and Drug Administration granted market approval to Epidiolex, a prescription medicine containing a standardized formulation of plant-derived cannabidiol for the treatment of two rare forms of severe epilepsy: Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome. Shortly after approval, the US Drug Enforcement Administration reclassified Epidiolex to Schedule V of the US Controlled Substances Act — the lowest restriction classification available under federal law.

Full text of the study, “Cannabis based magistral formulation is highly effective as an adjuvant treatment in drug-resistant focal epilepsy in adult patients: An open-label prospective cohort study,” appears in Neurological Sciences. Additional information on cannabis and epilepsy is available from NORML.

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Artisanal CBD Extracts Display Long-Term Efficacy In Kids With Epilepsy

Written by Frank Schuler on September 26, 2022. Posted in Science.

The World Health Organization estimates that as many as 50 million people worldwide suffer from some level of epilepsy, from mild cases to severe. Nearly four out of every five patients diagnosed with epilepsy live in developing countries.

Epilepsy is a chronic, noncommunicable disease within the brain that affects people of all ages. Unfortunately, many cases go undiagnosed, especially cases involving child patients. Undiagnosed cases make it extremely difficult to provide proper care for the suffering patient.

Fortunately, cannabidiol (CBD) has been found to be effective at treating epilepsy. It’s likely the only form of medicine that can be cultivated and processed all over the globe via the hemp plant. Yet another study has found CBD to be effective at treating kids with epilepsy, this time out of Israel. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Tel Aviv, Israel: Children with refractory epilepsy respond favorably to long-term treatment with plant-derived CBD extracts, according to data published in Pediatric Neurology.

Israeli researchers assessed the safety and efficacy of artisanal CBD-rich extracts in a cohort of adolescents with treatment-resistant forms of epilepsy. Among patients administered extracts for a period of at least one year, 51 percent experienced a significant decline in seizure frequency. Patients reported only nominal side-effects associated with CBD treatment.

Authors concluded, “Artisanal cannabidiol-enriched cannabis may be an effective and safe long-term treatment for refractory epilepsy.”

Full text of the study, “The long-term effectiveness and safety of cannabidiol-enriched oil in children with drug-resistant epilepsy,” appears in Pediatric Neurology. Additional information on cannabis and epilepsy is available from NORML.

Hong Kong Taking First Steps To Crack Down On CBD

Written by Frank Schuler on August 15, 2022. Posted in Business, Policy.

Earlier this summer government officials in Hong Kong announced that they are pursuing a plan to prohibit CBD entirely. The announcement came after it was determined that as many as one-third of CBD products in Hong Kong contain trace amounts of THC.

Hong Kong is home to a number of CBD companies and not just ones that infuse CBD into such products as drinks and foods. The City’s first CBD cafe opened in 2020 and since that time a number of other similar businesses have popped up in Hong Kong.

With a CBD ban winding up, businesses in Hong Kong that have built their models on the popular cannabinoid will likely have to close. Per Bangkok Post:

An unregulated market in goods containing the cannabis-derived compound has flourished since the city’s first CBD cafe, Found, opened in July 2020. The Asian financial hub now has dozens of cafes and shops selling CBD, but a government proposal to ban the substance before the end of the year puts those enterprises in jeopardy.

“With a full ban for CBD in Hong Kong, we would be forced to probably shelve the Found brand as it exists today,” said Fiachra Mullen, chief marketing officer at Altum International Ltd, which owns Found brand as it exists today,” said Fiachra Mullen, chief marketing officer at Altum International Ltd, which owns Found and supplies CBD products to other businesses in the city.

Several peer-reviewed studies have found that CBD is effective at treating a number of conditions and is safe for human consumption. For that matter, studies have also determined the same to be true for THC.

Hong Kong should be embracing the CBD industry, not seeking to destroy it. CBD is legal in a growing list of other countries, and the CBD market is worth billions of dollars at the international level. It’s a shame that reefer madness is ruining it in Hong Kong.

CBD Is Safe And Effective For People With Treatment-Resistant Anxiety Disorders Per Clinical Trial

Written by Frank Schuler on August 15, 2022. Posted in Science.

It is estimated that roughly 4% of the world’s population suffers from some level of anxiety, although, no one really knows the actual number. The condition often goes undiagnosed for various reasons, so it’s quite possible that the rate is much higher.

Anxiety involves intense, excessive, and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Physical symptoms can include a fast heart rate, rapid breathing, sweating, and fatigue.

Many of the pharmaceutical medications that are commonly prescribed for anxiety involve a laundry list of terrible side effects. Some cases of anxiety are so bad that pharmaceutical treatments don’t even work.

Fortunately, CBD may be able to help in those cases. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Melbourne, Australia: The adjunctive use of CBD safely and effectively reduces severe anxiety in young people, according to clinical data published in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Australian researchers assessed the daily administration of CBD in a cohort of 31 young people (ages 12 to 25) with refractory anxiety. Participants self-titrated their daily doses of CBD (between 400 mgs and 800 mgs) over a 12-week period.

CBD dosing was associated with a “statistically significant reduction in anxiety severity,” as measured on the Overall Anxiety Severity and Impairment Scale (OASIS). CBD dosing also “demonstrated an acceptable safety profile, with no serious adverse events reported and no clinically significant deviations to blood cell counts.”

Investigators reported, “Approximately 40 percent of all participants experienced a 50 percent reduction in OASIS score, and two-thirds experienced a 33 percent reduction.” They added, “By the end of treatment, the number of participants rated as markedly or severely ill had decreased from 17 (56.7 percent) to 5 (16.7 percent).”

Authors acknowledged that CBD’s greatest efficacy was observed during the final four weeks of treatment, indicating that a longer treatment regimen may potentially lead “to even greater improvements.”

They concluded: “Given that the patients included in our trial were some of the most severe and treatment resistant and had significant functional impairment and multiple failed treatment attempts, the reduction in anxiety severity observed here suggests that CBD has clinically meaningful anxiolytic effects. … The findings of this trial suggest that further investigation of CBD for anxiety in conjunction with usual care is warranted.”

Other human trials evaluating the use of CBD for anxiety have yielded inconsistent results. A 2019 placebo-controlled trial reported that daily CBD intake reduces symptoms of social anxiety disorder in teens, whereas a 2022 study determined oral doses of CBD to be ineffective at reducing symptoms of moderate-to-severe testing anxiety in college students. A 2018 Brazilian study reported that the consumption of 300mg of CBD significantly reduced anxiety due to public speaking, but that higher (600mg) and lower (150mg) had no effect.

Full text of the study, “Cannabidiol for treatment-resistant anxiety disorders in young people: An open-label trial,” appears in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

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Hemp Increases Cow Health – and Reduces Bovine Stress

Written by Marguerite Arnold on August 1, 2022. Posted in Science.

A federally funded study published in Scientific Reports suggests that hemp has similar effects on humans and cows

A US Department of Agriculture-funded study of hemp-based cattle feed, which has been underway since 2020 has begun to deliver intriguing results. Cows can completely digest all parts of the hemp plant, including stems, stalks, and other “waste” parts not used for other purposes.

Giving industrial hemp to cows appears to help them feel less stressed and may even be good for their overall health. The effects of the plant, in other words, may be similar in both humans and cattle. Furthermore, this is a very efficient use of parts of the hemp plant that are not normally used – creating a highly efficient end-use product.

This study examined 16 Holstein steers, split into two groups. One group was fed nothing more than their normal feed for a period of two weeks. The other group consumed their feed, mixed with hemp that gave each cow a daily dose of 5.5 mg of cannabidiolic acid per kilo of body weight. Blood samples were taken from all cows to understand how hemp affected each study participant.

The cows that ate CBD began to show lower cortisol and prostaglandin levels in their blood. Both of these chemicals are common markers of stress. They also spent more time lying down than the control group.

Cows who suffer elevated levels of stress, either from early weaning or cramped quarters, are more prone to developing respiratory infections or other diseases.

Despite these encouraging results, American farmers are still not allowed, by mandate of the USDA, to feed hemp to any livestock bound for human consumption. The reason is that the US government is still concerned that minute amounts of THC might linger in meat or milk from cows who have consumed the hemp plant. This latest study shows that these concerns are not valid.

Animals and Hemp

While still in its early stages, feeding animals hemp and hemp products is clearly a growth industry. Multiple studies have been conducted on dogs, with good effect. Beyond domestic animals, however, farm animals also are positively affected. A recent Thai study has found that chickens who are fed hemp-based food also need fewer antibiotics to stay healthy.

As more conclusive studies are conducted, it is becoming apparent that cannabis is not just a wonder plant for people, but for all kinds of animals as well.

CBD Use Associated With Reduced Tobacco Intake

Written by Frank Schuler on July 26, 2022. Posted in Science.

A question has perplexed cannabis advocates since the dawn of cannabis prohibition – why is tobacco legal and cannabis illegal given how much more harmful tobacco is compared to cannabis?

Worldwide, tobacco use is responsible for killing over 7 million people every year. However, cannabinoids alone have never killed anyone in humanity’s entire recorded history.

This is not to villanize people that consume tobacco. Many tobacco users are victims of deceptive marketing practices and historically loose tobacco industry regulations. It’s also a personal choice as long as second-hand smoke exposure is mitigated.

With that being said, given how many people die annually from tobacco use and that the same cannot be said about cannabis, the findings of a new study demonstrating that CBD may be able to help reduce tobacco intake is a great thing. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Paris, France: Vaporizing a liquid formulation of CBD is associated with reduced cannabis/tobacco intake, according to data published in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry.

A team of French investigators assessed the impact of vaporized CBD on daily cannabis consumption patterns in a cohort of 20 daily consumers. Nearly all of the subjects in the study smoked cannabis mixed with tobacco in joints. Prior studies have previously demonstrated that CBD administration mitigates smoker’s desire for tobacco cigarettes.

Of the nine patients who completed the 12-week trial, six of them reduced their daily consumption of cannabis/tobacco joints by 50 percent.

Authors concluded: “This research provides evidence in favor of the use of CBD in CUD [patients with cannabis use disorder] … and illustrates the interest of proposing an addictological intervention targeting at the same time tobacco and cannabis dependence in users who are co-consumers. … A double-blind, randomized, multi-center, placebo-controlled clinical trial is still needed to assess the efficacy of inhaled CBD in CUD.”

CBD consumption has previously been associated with reductions in alcohol intake as well as reductions in cue-induced cravings and anxiety in subjects with a history of heroin use.

Full text of the study, “Efficacy of inhaled cannabidiol in cannabis use disorder: the pilot study Cannavap,” appears in Frontiers in Psychiatry.

CBD-Rich Cannabis Extracts Are Safe For Pediatric Autism Patients According To Brazilian Study

Written by Frank Schuler on June 15, 2022. Posted in Science.

Cannabidiol (CBD) is the subject of a growing number of studies as researchers and medical professionals continue to work to unlock the healing properties of the cannabinoid.

One condition that researchers seem to be focusing on more and more is autism. CBD is thought to be able to effectively treat autism, including among younger patients.

Researchers in Brazil recently conducted a study that looked specifically at CBD’s safety as it pertains to pediatric patients with autism spectrum disorder. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

João Pessoa, Brazil: The administration of CBD-rich cannabis extracts is safe and effective in mitigating symptoms in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial data published in the journal Trends in Psychiatry and Psychotherapy.

Brazilian researchers evaluated the use of CBD extracts versus placebo in 60 children (ages 5 to 11) with ASD over a 12-week period.

Compared to the placebo group, subjects receiving CBD extracts experienced significant improvements in their ability to engage in social interactions. They also experienced reduced anxiety and agitation. Only a minority of subjects administered CBD exhibited adverse events, namely dizziness and insomnia.

The study’s findings are consistent with those of other trials similarly reporting improvements in patients’ ASD symptoms following their use of cannabinoid products. Survey data published in October by the publication Autism Parenting Magazine reported that 22 percent of US caregivers or parents have provided CBD to an autistic child. Survey data from the United Kingdom recently reported that autistic adults were nearly four times as likely as controls to report having used CBD within the past year.

Full text of the study, “Evaluation of the efficacy and safety of cannabidiol-rich cannabis extract in children with autism spectrum disorder: Randomized, double-blind and controlled placebo clinical trial,” appears inTrends in Psychiatry and Psychotherapy. Additional information on cannabis and ASD is available from NORML.

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Study: CBD Does Not Impact Cognitive Function, Simulated Driving Performance

Written by Frank Schuler on June 13, 2022. Posted in Science.

Every responsible cannabis consumer on the planet recognizes that operating a motor vehicle on a public roadway while being intoxicated by any substance, cannabis included, is not safe.

With that being said, just because someone has cannabis in their system does not automatically mean that they are too impaired to safely operate a motor vehicle.

That is demonstrated in the results of a recent study conducted in Australia. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Sydney, Australia: The oral administration of up to 1500 mg of CBD does not induce feelings of intoxication and is not associated with changes in simulated driving performance, according to data published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology.

A team of Australian researchers assessed the impact of varying dosages of CBD (ranging from 15 mg to 1500) versus placebo in 17 subjects. Study participants engaged in a series of simulated driving tests at approximately one hour and four hours after dosing. Investigators separately assessed subjects’ cognitive performance via their completion of a variety of computerized tasks. Participants were also asked whether they felt either “stoned” or “sedated” at any time during the trial.

Consistent with prior research, authors reported that CBD administration was not associated with either weaving or any other significant changes in simulated driving performance. Participants also failed to show any significant differences in either cognitive function or in their subjective feelings of well-being following CBD dosing.

Authors concluded: “The results of this study suggest that acute, oral CBD treatment at doses up to 1500 mg does not induce feelings of intoxication and is unlikely to impair cognitive function or driving performance. However, further research is required to confirm no effect of CBD on safety-sensitive tasks in the hours immediately post-treatment and with chronic administration.”

Full text of the study, “Effects of cannabidiol on simulated driving and cognitive performance: A dose-ranging randomized controlled trial,” appears in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. Additional information is available from NORML’s fact sheet, ‘Marijuana and Psychomotor Performance.’