A new study has found that the marijuana compound cannabidiol (CBD) may be a potential option for combatting nicotine addiction.
The study was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, and it was conducted by researchers at the University of California Irvine and Virginia Commonwealth University. The study is titled Cannabidiol as a potential cessation therapeutic: Effects on intravenous nicotine self-administration and withdrawal symptoms in mice.
“Cigarette smoking remains a leading cause of preventable disease and death worldwide”, notes the study. “Due to the devastating negative health effects of smoking, many users attempt to quit, but few are successful in the long-term. Thus, there is a critical need for novel therapeutic approaches.”
For the study, researchers “sought to examine whether cannabidiol (CBD) has the potential to be repurposed as a nicotine cessation therapeutic.”
In the first study, male and female mice were trained to respond for intravenous nicotine infusions at either a low or moderate nicotine dose and then were pretreated with CBD prior to their drug-taking session.
“We found that CBD produced a significant decrease in the number of nicotine rewards earned, and this effect was evidenced across CBD doses and with both the low and moderate levels of nicotine intake”, states the study. “These effects on drug intake were not due to general motor-related effects, since mice self-administering food pellets did not alter their behavior with CBD administration. The potential effects of CBD in mitigating nicotine withdrawal symptoms were then investigated.”
Researchers found that “CBD attenuated the somatic signs of nicotine withdrawal and prevented nicotine’s hyperalgesia-inducing effects. Taken together, these results demonstrate that modulation of cannabinoid signaling may be a viable therapeutic option as a smoking cessation aid.”
Although the study was conducted using an animal model, researchers say the results could have implications for humans and they hope their study leads to further research using human participants.
The full text of the study can be found by clicking here.
