Addiction BiologyNovember 2026Eleftherios M Hetelekides, Patricia L Davies, Mark A Prince et al.
Increasingly potent concentrated cannabis products containing high levels of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) are being consumed with alcohol. This combination is known to acutely impair cognitive and psychomotor abilities, although few studies have evaluated alcohol and cannabis co-use using neural measures. This naturalistic feasibility study explored the acute effects of co-intoxication on...
'Kava,' or 'kava kava,' (Piper methysticum) is a psychoactive plant indigenous to the Pacific Islands. Historical consumption is reported to provide anxiolytic and sedating effects. In regions where kava is native, it has been used in religious and cultural practices, as well as for medicinal purposes. The mechanisms by which kavalactones - the best studied psychoactive constituent of kava -...
Kratom is a psychoactive botanical that is increasingly popular in the United States. While potential risks of kratom use have been identified, research on harm reduction strategies and contextual factors contributing to adverse reactions is limited. Given that kratom is federally unregulated at present, and a variety of kratom products are widely available on the commercial market, more data...
Importance Psilocybin use has surged in the US following decriminalization efforts and promising clinical trial results. Mirroring early cannabis legalization, public access and enthusiasm are outpacing regulatory oversight and scientific understanding, posing potential risks to public health. Objective To review emerging evidence on the public health implications of unregulated psilocybin...
High school youth have an elevated risk of substance use. Some substances (e.g., inhalants, MDMA) used by youth are overlooked or grouped in an "other" category. Compared to other racial/ethnic groups, American Indian (AI) youth may be at higher risk of using these substances. The purpose of this study is to examine the prevalence and patterns of use of "other" substances among youth living on...
Approximately 8.5 million Americans over the age of 12 endorsed past year psychedelic use in 2022, with 1.4 million individuals initiating use during this time. Although emerging evidence indicates there may be beneficial aspects of psychedelic use, there is a need to understand how individuals might mitigate potential risks within nonclinical contexts, such as through the use of protective...
Background: Most studies examining the simultaneous use of cannabis with other drugs have focused on cannabis and alcohol, with fewer studies examining simultaneous use of cannabis with other drugs. The United States is currently experiencing an upward trend in psychedelic use and there is an increasing need to characterize cannabis and psychedelic drug interactions to best inform public health...
Highly potent cannabis concentrates are widely available and associated with affective disturbance and cannabis use disorder. Little is known about the effects of concentrated Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) and their relationship to long-term affect. We explored how baseline affective symptoms (anxiety and depression) relate to acute (i.e., immediate or short-term)...
Cannabis is commonly used among people who drink alcohol, yet evidence on acute effects of co-use is conflicting. Two important variables that may influence the effects of cannabis and alcohol are cannabinoid content (i.e., the ratio of cannabidiol [CBD] and 9-tetrahydrocannabinol [THC]) as well as the order of use (i.e., cannabis before alcohol vs. alcohol before cannabis). Research is mixed...
Using a federally compatible, naturalistic at-home administration procedure, the present study examined the acute effects of three cannabis flower chemovars with different tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) to cannabidiol (CBD) ratios, in order to test whether chemovars with a higher CBD content produce different effects. Participants were randomly assigned to ad libitum administration of one of three...
Published studies examining the effects of cannabis have largely utilized forms of cannabis that are not representative of the legal market products currently available. The present study aimed to characterize naturalistic use of legal market flower and edible products by examining associations among blood cannabinoids and amount of THC consumed as well as physiological, cognitive, and...