Aurora, CO: The daily consumption of hemp-derived CBD is associated with reduced cravings for alcohol in subjects diagnosed with alcohol use disorder (AUD), according to clinical trial data published in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry.
Investigators affiliated with the University of Colorado’s Anschutz Medical Campus assessed the use of CBD versus placebo in a cohort of 44 adults with AUD. Participants consumed 15 mg capsules containing hemp-derived CBD either with or without THC or a placebo for eight weeks. Patients were assessed at baseline, four weeks, eight weeks, and 16 weeks.
Researchers reported that daily CBD consumption reduced participants’ alcohol cravings with “minimal side effects.” Participants who consumed CBD with trace amounts of THC “demonstrated stronger improvements in AUD symptoms” relative to those who consumed CBD only. However, CBD dosing didn’t directly influence the number of drinks participants consumed per day.
“Results suggest good tolerability, low potential for adverse effects, and potential clinical efficacy, supporting the rationale for additional investigations,” the study’s authors concluded. “Future studies should prioritize large, well-powered RCTs [randomized clinical trials] to validate these preliminary findings in individuals with varying AUD severity and treatment histories.”
The results of a 2024 randomized clinical trial similarly concluded that the oral administration of 800 mg of synthetic CBD significantly reduces subjects’ cravings for alcohol.
A 2021 observational study also determined that the consumption of CBD-dominant cannabis is associated with reductions in subjects’ alcohol intake. That study reported that participants who ingested CBD-dominant cannabis during the trial period “drank fewer drinks per drinking day, had fewer alcohol use days, and fewer alcohol and cannabis co-use days” compared with those who did not.
Separate studies also suggest that CBD dosing can reduce cravings for other psychoactive substances, including tobacco, methamphetamine, and heroin.
Full text of the study, “A preliminary randomized trial of the safety, tolerability, and clinical effects of hemp-derived cannabidiol in alcohol use disorder,” appears in Frontiers in Psychiatry.