were not current users. Heroin is an illegal opioid. Other opioids include powerful prescription medications such as oxycodone (OxyContin).
For the study, participants received either an oral CBD solution or an inactive placebo and then were shown videos that contained neutral and drug-related cues. Neutral cues included relaxing scenarios such as scenes of nature, while drug-related cues included scenes of IV drug use and heroin-related items such as syringes, rubber ties and packets of powder.
The researchers found that, compared to a placebo, CBD reduced drug cue-induced craving and anxiety in the participants.
“Our findings indicate that CBD holds significant promise for treating individuals with heroin use disorder,” said first author Yasmin Hurd. She is the director of the Addiction Institute at Mount Sinai in New York City.
“A successful non-opioid medication would add significantly to the existing addiction medication toolbox to help reduce the growing death toll, enormous health care costs, and treatment limitations imposed by stringent government regulations amid this persistent opioid epidemic,” she said in a Mount Sinai news release.
The United States is struggling with an opioid epidemic that’s claimed more than 300,000 lives since it began. Two current opioid addiction treatments are