Review: Cannabis Preparations Reduce Symptoms in Patients With Anxiety-Related Disorders

Crawley, Australia: Cannabis-based treatments mitigate symptoms and promote quality-of-life improvements in patients suffering from anxiety-related disorders, according to the findings of a systematic review published in the journal Psychiatry Research.

A team of Australian researchers reviewed 57 studies assessing the use of plant-derived and synthetic cannabis formulations in patients with either generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), social anxiety disorder (SAD), or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Despite substantial heterogeneity amongst studies, most papers nonetheless reported cannabis preparations to be effective at reducing anxiety symptoms.

“Among studies with a low relative risk of bias studies included in this review, 69 percent reported improvements in anxiety symptoms and quality of life following medicinal cannabis use,” researchers reported. “Among high-quality trials that investigated GAD, there were consistent reductions in anxiety scores reported. Similarly, qualitative findings highlighted improvements in both symptom relief and sleep quality, especially for participants with PTSD.”

The study’s authors concluded: “Across a range of anxiety-related disorders, most high-quality studies found that medicinal cannabis reduced anxiety symptoms in individuals with GAD, PTSD and SAD. … Future studies should investigate how medicinal cannabis can be integrated with standard treatments, such as Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), traditional anxiolytics and cognitive therapy for anxiety-related disorders.”

Survey data reports that some 70 percent of consumers who use cannabis for self-medication purposes do so to address feelings of anxiety.

Full text of the study, “Medicinal cannabis in the management of anxiety disorders: A systematic review,” appears inPsychiatry Research.

Analysis: Legal Cannabis Markets Have Generated $25 Billion in State Tax Revenue

Washington, DC: Taxes derived from the licensed sale of state-regulated adult-use cannabis products totaled more than $4.4 billion in 2024 – the highest total ever recorded in a single year, according to an analysis provided by the Marijuana Policy Project.

Cannabis sales generated the greatest amount of tax revenue in California (over $1 billion), followed by Illinois ($578 million), Michigan ($524 million), and Washington ($516 million).

Since 2014, when Colorado and Washington became the first two states to regulate the adult-use cannabis market, states have generated a combined total of more than $24.7 billion in tax revenue from the sale of marijuana products.

“States with legal, adult-use cannabis sales have allocated tax revenues to a variety of needs, including their General Funds and specific services and programs,” the report’s authors acknowledge. “Cannabis taxes have provided funding for Medicaid, education, school construction, housing, roads, early literacy, bullying prevention, behavioral health, alcohol and drug treatment, veterans’ services, conservation, job training, conviction expungement expenses, and reinvestment in communities that have been disproportionately affected by the war on cannabis, among many others.”

Twenty-four states have enacted legislation legalizing the adult use of cannabis. However, three states – Delaware, Minnesota, and Virginia – have yet to license cannabis retailers.

Separate economic data provided last month by Vangst Staffing and Whitney Economics reports that some 425,000 workers are currently employed full-time by state-licensed cannabis businesses.

Full text of the report, “Cannabis Tax Revenue in States that Regulate Cannabis for Adults,” is available from MPP.

Nevada: Governor Signs Legislation Allowing Those With Prior Marijuana Convictions To Become Foster Parents

Carson City, NV: Republican Governor Joe Lombardo has signed legislation (AB 107) into law allowing those with prior low-level marijuana convictions to be eligible to become foster parents.

In March, members of the Nevada Assembly voted 42 to zero in favor of the measure. Senate members approved the bill on May 23rd by a vote of 19 to 2.

The Governor signed the bill last Thursday. The measure took effect upon passage.

Nevada law previously disqualified anyone with a federal or state drug-related conviction from fostering children. The new law provides an exception for those with marijuana possession convictions, if the conviction did not occur within the preceding five years.

“Nevada’s longstanding foster care ban no longer aligned with public attitudes toward marijuana, nor did it align with the marijuana laws of Nevada or the surrounding states that regulate its use,” NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano said. “As cannabis laws change, it is imperative that lawmakers continue to target and amend these ‘holdover’ policies so that consumers no longer face discrimination for behaviors that are state-legal.”

Nevada voters legalized adult-use marijuana possession and sales in 2016.

Alaska: District Court Judge Says State-Imposed Restrictions on Sale of Hemp-Derived Intoxicants Don’t Violate Federal Farm Act

Juneau, AK: A federal court judge has rejected arguments that state regulations restricting the sale of hemp-derived intoxicating products violate federal law.

The ruling, issued by a US District Court judge for the District of Alaska, finds that the state-imposed restrictions “are consistent with the 2018 Farm Act.” In 2023, state regulators restricted the sale of hemp-derived products solely to state-licensed cannabis dispensaries. (Alaska legalized the sale and use of marijuana for recreational purposes in 2014.)

In his ruling, the judge opined that the 2018 federal law provides states, not the federal government, with “primary regulatory authority” over matters specific to “the production and sale of industrial hemp … within their borders.” Therefore, the court determined that Alaska’s regulations “are not preempted by the 2018 Farm Act.”

Earlier this year, judges for the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit upheld restrictions imposed upon hemp-derived products in Virginia. Judges similarly determined, “Despite the 2018 Farm Bill, the states retain a significant role in the regulation of hemp” and that the Bill “expressly permit[s] states to regulate the production of hemp more stringently than federal law.”

In recent years, unregulated manufacturers have engaged in synthesizing hemp-derived CBD into a variety of novel intoxicating products. This synthetic conversion process often involves the use of potentially dangerous household products. Lab analyses of unregulated products containing delta-8-THC and similar compounds often find them to contain lower levels of cannabinoids than what is advertised on the products’ labels. Some products also possess heavy metal contaminants and unlabeled cutting agents. Other novel compounds, like THC-O, have not been tested for safety in human trials.

The case is AK Industrial Hemp Association et al. v. Alaska Department of Natural Resources.

Study: Cannabis Use Associated With Reduced Anxiety, Improved Sleep Quality in Older Adults
Cannabis use is associated with short-term reductions in pain, depression, and anxiety, as well as with improved sleep quality the following night.

a graph line indicating a decrease overlaid on a background with a stethoscope, notepad, pen, and cannabis leaves
Analysis: Cannabis-Related Hospitalizations Fall Among Underage Youth Following Adult-Use Legalization
“The total effect, 3.5 years after legalization, was a 34 percent reduction in hospitalizations for those below relative to those above the minimum legal age,” investigators determined.

A senior woman reads the label on a cannabis CBD bottle
Preclinical Data Finds “Compelling” Evidence That CBD Offers a “Comprehensive Treatment Approach” to Alzheimer’s Disease
“These data present CBD as a potential target to combat not only molecular deficits in AD but also cognitive impairment,” the study’s authors concluded.

A voter in Nebraska casts a vote for marijuana
Nebraska: Lawmakers Kill Bill Facilitating Voter-Approved Medical Cannabis Access
The bill’s failure will likely delay patients’ ability to access cannabis products.

Study: Cannabis Use Associated With Reduced Anxiety, Improved Sleep Quality in Older Adults

Orlando, FL: Older adults’ use of cannabis is associated with reduced anxiety and improved sleep, according to data published in the journal Psychiatry.

Investigators affiliated with the University of Central Florida assessed the impact of cannabis use on anxiety, sleep quality, depression, and pain in a cohort of older (ages 55 to 74) medical cannabis consumers.

Researchers reported that cannabis use was associated with short-term reductions in pain, depression, and anxiety, as well as with improved sleep quality the following night. Subjects’ improved sleep was directly related to their reductions in anxiety, the study’s authors determined.

“These findings provide evidence of momentary improvements in pain, anxiety, depression, and indirect benefits for sleep quality,” they concluded. “The results of this study contribute to a growing body of research evaluating the utility of MC [medical cannabis] for older adults and serve to help inform moderate use guidelines for this population.”

Survey data provided by AARP reports that more than one in five older adults have consumed cannabis over the past year, with some two-thirds of older consumers acknowledging having used it “to improve or manage a physical health condition,” such as chronic pain, anxiety, or sleep disturbances. Industry-backed survey data finds that an estimated 16 percent of US adults say that they use cannabis products to help them sleep.

Full text of the study, “Impact of medical cannabis on anxiety and sleep quality in older adults,” appears in Psychiatry.

Analysis: Cannabis-Related Hospitalizations Fall Among Underage Youth Following Adult-Use Legalization

Ottawa, Canada: The legalization of the adult-use cannabis market in Canada resulted in a significant decline in the rate of underage youths requiring hospitalization for marijuana-related incidents, according to data published in the American Journal of Public Health.

Researchers affiliated with the University of Ottawa and the University of Toronto assessed nationwide rates of cannabis-related hospitalizations among those ages 15 to 44 years old in the years immediately prior to and following legalization.

They reported that hospitalization rates increased by two percent annually among both underage youth and adults during the three years prior to legalization. Following legalization, hospitalization rates fell among underage youth, but not among adults.

“The total effect, 3.5 years after legalization, was a 34 percent reduction in hospitalizations for those below relative to those above the MLA [minimum legal age],” the study’s authors concluded. “The results suggest that cannabis legalization may … prevent such increases for at-risk young people in regions pursuing cannabis legalization.”

Survey data from Canada and the United States have consistently failed to identify an uptick in young people’s use of marijuana following legalization.

Full text of the study, “Minimum legal age of nonmedical cannabis purchase laws and cannabis-related hospitalizations in Canada, 2015-2022,” appears in the American Journal of Public Health.

Nebraska: Lawmakers Kill Bill Facilitating Voter-Approved Medical Cannabis Access

Lincoln, NE: State lawmakers killed legislation (LB 677) that sought to provide a regulatory framework for the production and dispensing of medical cannabis. Some 70 percent of Nebraskans approved a pair of ballot measures in November legalizing the use of medical cannabis by authorized patients.

Despite that public support, lawmakers filibustered the measure – which sought to facilitate the law’s implementation while also imposing various changes to its provisions. The failure of the bill will likely delay patients’ ability to access cannabis products. Regulations governing the law will now be left to members of a yet-to-be-appointed commission.

Numerous elected officials, including Republican Attorney General Mike Hilgers and U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts, have publicly opposed adopting the voter-approved law, and the AG is asking the state’s Supreme Court to nullify the election result.

Additional information is available from Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana.

Preclinical Data Finds “Compelling” Evidence That CBD Offers a “Comprehensive Treatment Approach” to Alzheimer’s Disease

Madrid, Spain: CBD treatment is neuroprotective and is associated with improved memory in preclinical models of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), according to data published in the journal Alzheimer’s Research and Therapy.

Spanish researchers assessed the impact of CBD in in vitro and in vivo models of AD. They reported that CBD reduces neuroinflammation, reduces the build-up of proteins associated with the onset of AD, significantly improves long-term and short-term spatial memory, and promotes neuronal repair and regeneration.

“These multifaceted effects of CBD, ranging from molecular-level modulation to behavioral improvements, underscore its potential as a comprehensive therapeutic approach for AD,” the study’s authors concluded. “These data present CBD as a potential target to combat not only molecular deficits in AD but also cognitive impairment, offering a promising therapeutic approach that could potentially slow disease progression and improve quality of life for AD patients.”

Full text of the study, “Cannabidiol as a multifaceted therapeutic agent: Mitigating Alzheimer’s disease pathology and enhancing cognitive function,” appears in Alzheimer’s Research and Therapy.