A new study analysing the use of CBD in young adults and adolescents has shown promising results in Australia for treating anxiety.
The pilot study which took place over the span of 12 weeks reported a 42.6% reduction in anxiety compared to pre-treatment.
Participants were aged 12-25 and took between 200 and 800Â milligrams of CBD per day depending on the observed effectiveness. They were measured by two different rating scales to judge the effectiveness of treatment, a self-rating system and a standardised Hamilton Anxiety Rating.
According to the self-rating system 42.6% reported reduced anxiety and on the Hamilton Anxiety Rating there was a 50.7% reduction in anxiety.
The study was carried out at the University of Sydney but only featured a small set of 31 participants.
Many of these participants however had found little progress in other anxiety treatments including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) previously. It should be noted though that during the study they did continue to receive CBT.
Speaking in the press release Professor McGorry said “We’re seeing more and more young people experiencing anxiety – it’s the fasting growing form of mental ill-health in young people and we urgently need innovation in treatment. Cannabidiol is a promising treatment option which appears safe and effective. We need further research to confirm this and explore its value”.
There were some mild side effects noted including in using CBD to treat for anxiety “mild sedation” and “mild fatigue” but importantly no major side effects such as irritability, sleep issues or suicidal thoughts.
As is common with current CBD research, although the results are encouraging further studies are necessary to build more concrete results.
“An open-label pilot study is limited by its design. To see a treatment effect in the treatment-resistant group is encouraging, but it could still be a placebo effect,” Professor Amminger said.
To read the study click here.
