Cannabis: Cannabidiol (CBD) can reduce the risk of psychosis. I study

A new brain imaging study shows that the more CBD is present in a cannabis strain the more it has therapeutic effects in treating psychosis.

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The more cannabidiol (CBD) present in a cannabis strain, the less impaired brain function is in patients with psychosis. According to a new brain imaging study, in fact, in the "share" of cannabidiol there is a protective mechanism that could also help "treat disorders such as psychosis and addictions".

This is what emerges from one search conducted by a team at University College London, who believe that increasing CBD levels could act as a buffer to the negative effects of serious mental health conditions.

For the study, fMRI, functional magnetic resonance imaging, was used for the first time, evaluating how different proportions of cannabis affect brain functioning.

"Over the past two decades, cannabis-related addiction and psychosis rates have increased, while at the same time cannabis strains with more THC and less CBD have become increasingly common," said lead author of the study, Matt Muro. (UCL Clinical Psychopharmacology Unit and Invicro). We have now found that CBD appears to help the patient against some of the acute effects of THC on the brain ”.

A systematic review

CBD or cannabidiol is one of the many compounds found in cannabis. Unlike THC, CBD does not produce psychoactive effects and has been extensively studied by the scientific community, which has come to show that it is capable of treat a huge range of diseases.

Now, the UK study aims to better understand the interaction between THC and CBD and for this they tracked the resting brain activity of 17 people after taking different cannabis strains.

The two strains had equal levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), but different levels of CBD. The results showed that the low-CBD strain had compromised the functional connectivity in the default mode of the brain and salience networks (those that allow you to orient yourself between external and internal stimuli, focusing attention in the correct way), while the high-CBD strain caused only minimal disruption in these regions, suggesting that CBD counteracts some of the harmful effects of THC.

The salience network supports other brain networks and determines which sensory or emotional inputs we pay attention to. Network disruptions have previously been implicated in addiction and psychosis.

The researchers also found that the disruption of functional connectivity produced by THC in the brain region called the posterior cingulate cortex was strongly correlated with the relationships of the participants' subjective experiences, suggesting that the brain area may be central to driving the subjective effects of cannabis. This relationship between the posterior cingulate cortex and subjective effects was also blocked by CBD.

According to the researchers, their findings add evidence that i cannabis strains with higher CBD content may be less harmful,

"As cannabis is becoming legal in more parts of the world, people who buy cannabis should be able to make an informed decision about their choice of cannabis type and be aware of the related risks."

For the authors, therefore, all this only highlights the cannabidiol's ability to restore brain activity to normal functioning, once again demonstrating its therapeutic effects. While CBD can restore the functions of certain areas of the brain, this could also be a neuroprotective mechanism in treating disorders such as psychosis and addiction.