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Can Cannabis Cure Psychosis?
Despite recent research, the answer is still probably no
Cannabis is a perennial topic of interest, partly because it may be useful as a treatment for a scant few medical conditions, but mostly because it is really fun getting high*.
So when a story is published saying that cannabis might be useful in treating psychosis, we leap on it with feverish abandon.
The same thing happens whenever a story is published saying that booze is good for you or that chocolate is healthy. We love a story that tells us that the thing that we’ve been avoiding is actually — shock! — good for us!
Sadly, much like the drinking and chocolate myths, this newest story is almost certainly untrue.
Cannabis probably can’t treat psychosis.
Scanning Brains
The study that I am talking about is a recent randomized-controlled trial comparing the effects of cannabidiol (CBD)— a chemical component of cannabis — on the brain chemisty of people who were at risk of psychosis and healthy controls. They used MRI scans to assess the differences in the brain that…
