Summary: Researchers are investigating how cannabis affects ADHD symptoms, focusing on its interactions with the body’s endocannabinoid system. Evidence suggests cannabis influences attention, hyperactivity, and anxiety, but the findings are limited due to legal restrictions and the complexity of ADHD presentations.
Cannabidiol (CBD) products, often preferred for avoiding THC’s psychoactive effects, lack sufficient scientific backing for ADHD treatment. The review highlights the variability in cannabis products and pathways, underscoring the need for more rigorous studies.
Key Facts: Cannabis interacts with the endocannabinoid system, influencing ADHD symptoms.
The research is limited by variability in products, pathways, and ADHD presentations.
CBD shows promise, but scientific evidence for ADHD treatment remains insufficient.
Source: Thomas Jefferson University
Whether marijuana itself or various products containing cannabinoids and/or THC, the main psychoactive compound in weed – have been touted as panaceas for everything from anxiety and sleep problems to epilepsy and cancer pain.
Nursing researcher Jennie Ryan, PhD, at Thomas Jefferson University, studies the effects of cannabis on symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). They scrutinized clinical and preclinical findings, which together suggest that cannabis affects the endocannabinoid system in a variety of ways to affect attention, hyperactivity and anxiety. Credit: Neuroscience News Current medical guidelines for ADHD include medications such as Adderall and cognitive behavioral therapy. As with most treatments, the benefits can be accompanied by downsides.
“Parents are interested in cannabidiol, which does not contain THC,” Dr. Ryan says. “But we don’t have the science yet to back recommendations.”In a recent review paper, Dr. Ryan and her colleagues plumbed the scientific literature to compile evidence, which is generally suggestive of interactions between cannabis and ADHD.The researchers focused on how cannabis use affects ADHD symptoms. Furthermore, the human body produces its own cannabinoids – the endocannabinoid system – which led the researchers to wonder how might this endogenous system influence ADHD?They scrutinized clinical and preclinical findings, which together suggest that cannabis affects the endocannabinoid system in a variety of ways to affect attention, hyperactivity and anxiety.“A relationship is there,” Dr. Ryan says.However, the picture is complicated by the sheer variety of cannabis products used, the […]
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