Alcohol: Can CBD reduce cravings?
France ranks 6th among the countries with the highest alcohol consumption within the OECD. Excessive consumption and chronic alcoholism could be reduced, according to a team of researchers from Lyon… thanks to CBD.
CBD would inhibit the craving for alcohol.
CBD could reduce alcohol cravings. We owe this study to scientists from the University Addictology Department of Lyon, at Le Vinatier Hospital Center, as well as several other researchers.
CBD continues to make a name for itself in people's minds. It must be said that the cannabinoid, widely praised for its various health benefits and effects in pain management in general, would prove effective on people with alcohol problems.
It seems that cannabidiol "facilitates the reduction of alcohol consumption," describe the authors of the document. Research has also shown that the molecule "can provide idiosyncratic protection to the liver and brain, which could reduce the development and impact of alcohol-related liver diseases and related brain injury."
The researchers also emphasize the need to conduct clinical trials on humans, none having been carried out to date and no publication of which mentions. none of which have been published to date. This would "pave the way for testing new harm reduction approaches in AUD".
CBD has proven effects on animals.
French and Belgian researchers have scrutinized 26 studies published between 1974 and June 2018, all focusing on the effects of CBD in animals receiving a dose of ethanol. Several of them attest that CBD can reduce alcohol consumption.
One specific case reports researchers having found that mice administered CBD were less motivated to work, namely in situ, to press a lever, in order to access a liquid containing 8% ethanol.
Some experiments confirm that CBD decreases the overall level of alcohol consumption in animal subjects by reducing ethanol intake, motivation for ethanol, relapse, and by influencing anxiety and impulsivity.
Other studies have shown that mice regularly receiving CBD were less likely to relapse after being weaned off alcohol, even when stressed.
The authors of the study write that, regarding its impact on various aspects of the disease ("ingestion, motivation, relapse, anxiety, and impulsivity"), CBD "could have a significant action on alcohol consumption in human subjects."
