Cannabis in Chinese Medicine: Are Some Traditional Indications Referenced in Ancient Literature Related to Cannabinoids?
E. Brand, Zhong-Zhen Zhao
Frontiers in Pharmacology March 10, 2017 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2017.00108 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Cannabis |
| Key findings | The authors argue that ancient Chinese medical texts record cannabis indications, including pain and mental illness, that may relate to cannabinoids such as CBD and Δ9-THC, but that most relevant historical records remain untranslated and key questions—such as how traditional drug names correspond to plant parts and how fiber-cultivar selection affected medicinal use—remain unresolved. |
Abstract
Cannabis sativa L. (Cannabaceae) has a long history of utilization as a fiber and seed crop in China, and its achenes (“seeds”) as well as other plant parts have been recorded in Chinese medical texts for nearly 2000 years. While the primary applications of cannabis in Chinese medicine center around the use of the achenes, ancient indications for the female inflorescence, and other plant parts include conditions such as pain and mental illness that are the subject of current research into cannabinoids such as cannabidiol (CBD) and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). However, little previous research has been conducted to analyze the Chinese medical literature in light of recent advances in the pharmacology and taxonomy of cannabis, and most of the relevant Chinese historical records have not yet been translated into Western languages to facilitate textual research. Furthermore, many key questions remain unresolved in the Chinese literature, including how various traditional drug names precisely correspond to different plant parts, as well as the implications of long-term selection for fiber-rich cultivars on the medical applications of cannabis in Chinese medicine. In this article, prominent historical applications of cannabis in Chinese medicine are chronologically reviewed, and indications found in ancient Chinese literature that may relate to cannabinoids such as CBD and Δ9-THC are investigated.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on cannabis, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Causal association between cannabis and psychosis: examination of the evidence | 2004 | Review | |
| Cannabis sativa: A comprehensive ethnopharmacological review of a medicinal plant with a long history. General (historical and pharmacological review) | 2018 | Review | |
| Psychiatric effects of cannabis | 2001 | Review | |
| Beyond THC: The New Generation of Cannabinoid Designer Drugs | 2011 | Review | |
| Cannabidiol, a Cannabis sativa constituent, as an antipsychotic drug | 2006 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 4
- A relação entre o uso da cannabis e o despertar de psicoses Revista Brasileira Multidisciplinar 2020
- Can we interrogate public databases to fill critical gaps in mental health epidemiology? Testing the association between cannabis and psychosis in the UK as an example Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences 2023
- Newly Emerging Drugs of Abuse. Handbook of experimental pharmacology 2020
- Is there sufficient evidence that cannabis use is a risk factor for psychosis? 2020