Assuming that the reporter in this video means CBD or cannabidiol when she says "cannabanoid," this is just one in a series of reports I've seen on the THC-vs-CBD issue, popularized by Dr. Paul Morrison's team at the Institute of Psychiatry in London. (See this, this, and this.) Their argument goes, more or less, "THC can induce temporary psychosis, and CBD inhibits it, but some strains of marijuana are high in THC with little or no CBD, so choose your strains wisely." I haven't heard Dr. Morrison say anything to the effect that cannabis should remain illegal, and even cannabis-friendly scientists such as Dr. Philip Robson, who developed Sativex, have echoed the THC-vs-CBD message.

So, the important point is that nothing in this research necessarily supports prohibitionist arguments, and the scientific community does not seem to be using it to serve that agenda. (If this video is any indication, the "psychosis" isn't all that bad.) Moreover, by injecting high concentrations of THC directly into the veins of participants, Dr. Morrison's team is creating situations of little relevance to the average marijuana user, and so I consider their methods flawed. However, their conclusion that THC can induce short-term psychosis-like symptoms is supported by other studies, and, significantly, so is their conclusion that CBD protects against this effect.

For example, in a 1982 Lancet article, a South African team reported on evidence from 20 patients admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Urine tests showed they had taken marijuana, but ruled out "alcohol and other exogenous agents," making it unlikely that the patients were tweaking on harder drugs. Other psychotics, who did not test positive for marijuana, were used as controls. "After 1 week the cannabis group showed marked improvement, whereas the controls remained virtually unchanged," even though "there was no significant difference in the amount of medication received between the two groups." This suggests that the cannabis group's symptoms were brought on by cannabis itself, and not that they were already psychotics who chose to self-medicate with pot. The team attributed their symptoms to a marijuana strain virtually devoid of CBD. In short, their findings support Dr. Morrison's, using a very different research method.

Many studies have demonstrated the benefits of CBD. One, published in 2006 by a Brazilian team, found CBD to be "an effective, safe and well-tolerated alternative treatment for schizophrenic patients," able "to significantly reduce" the "anxiety and psychotic-like symptoms" induced by high doses of THC. Wikipedia tells of another article claiming that CBD offers a wide range of benefits, including inhibiting the growth of cancer cells.

One of my hopes is that scientists study how THC-to-CBD ratios vary by strain, by growing conditions, by harvesting time, and by part of the cannabis plant. (I think this would be a great project for Erowid, MAPS, or NORML, similar to EcstacyData.) I also hope that CBD, because it offers such a broad range of benefits (though it won't get you high), will be removed from the Schedule I list and made readily available as an over-the-counter supplement. I may be dreaming, but at least I can help spread the word.