Each month our editorial team sifts through hundreds of papers and curates notable findings—for practitioners and informed readers who want to stay current with the evidence. Subscribe to the monthly Research Digest for expert analysis and concise summaries of key papers.
This systematic review looked at human studies of cannabidiol (CBD) for anxiety up to June 2019. Eight studies were included (6 small randomized controlled trials, 1 case series, and 1 case report). The studies tested CBD for anxiety in healthy volunteers, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, and PTSD-related anxiety.…
The researchers surveyed 1,738 students about ADHD, cannabis use, and thinking skills. People with ADHD who had used cannabis said it gave them short-term benefits for many ADHD symptoms (for example, hyperactivity and impulsivity) and eased many medication side effects (for example, irritability and anxiety). The study also found that…
This systematic review and meta-analysis pooled eight clinical studies to examine cannabidiol (CBD) for anxiety. Across 316 participants, the analysis found a statistically significant and sizable effect on anxiety (Hedges' g = -0.92, 95% CI -1.80 to -0.04). The review covered generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, and PTSD, but…
Recent controlled studies find that THC often raises short-term feelings of anxiety in lab-tested adults, especially at higher doses. Results about CBD are mixed: many newer studies report no clear anxiety-reducing effects in healthy people, and findings in clinical groups are inconsistent. Studies differ in dose, how cannabis was given,…
This paper reviewed studies since 2016 to identify cannabis-related factors linked with higher risk of psychosis. It found that personal and genetic vulnerability, earlier age of first use, more frequent use, higher-THC products, how cannabis is taken, and using other drugs all raise the odds of cannabis-related psychosis. Evidence that…
