Effects of food deprivation on subjective effects and self-administration of marijuana in humans.
Psychological Reports June 1991 DOI: 10.2466/pr0.1991.68.3c.1263 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Within-subjects randomized experiment Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 5 |
| Population | Five marijuana smokers |
| Intervention | fasting |
| Dose | 0.8 and 3.6% THC active marijuana; 0.0% THC placebo |
| Duration | 24-hour fast; six 3-hour experimental sessions |
| Measures | heart rate, carbon monoxide level, "high" ratings, number of puffs self-administered |
| Topics | Cannabis |
| Key findings | Active marijuana (0.8% and 3.6% THC) produced dose-dependent increases in heart rate and "high" ratings compared with placebo, but a 24-hour fast did not alter these effects. Marijuana self-administration varied widely among subjects and was not systematically affected by fasting. The authors conclude that acute food deprivation does not affect marijuana's mood-altering effects and note they could not adequately determine whether fasting increases the drug's reinforcing efficacy, since active marijuana was not self-administered more than placebo. |
Abstract
The effects of fasting on the intake and subjective effects of marijuana were studied in five marijuana smokers. A within-subjects design was used in which subjects smoked either active (0.8 and 3.6% THC) or placebo (0.0% THC) marijuana after eating normally or after fasting for 24 hr. Six experimental sessions were conducted in a randomized order. Each 3-hr. session consisted of two periods: a sampling period in which subjects took 4 controlled puffs from a cigarette of a given potency, followed about one hour later by a 30-min. self-administration period, in which subjects could smoke as much or as little of the sampled marijuana as desired. Subjective and physiological measures (i.e., carbon monoxide level and heart rate) were assessed before and 5, 20, and 60 min. after the four puffs during the sampling period. During the self-administration period, the number of puffs taken was recorded. Dose-dependent effects of marijuana, such as elevated heart rate and "high" ratings, were observed during the sampling period, but these effects of marijuana were not affected by the feeding manipulation. Subjects varied widely in their marijuana self-administration, but self-administration was not systematically affected by fasting. We conclude that an acute period of food deprivation does not affect the mood-altering effects of different potencies of marijuana. We could not adequately demonstrate whether fasting increases the reinforcing efficacy of marijuana, since self-administration rate of active marijuana did not exceed that of placebo marijuana self-administration.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on cannabis, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cannabidiol inhibits THC-elicited paranoid symptoms and hippocampal-dependent memory impairment Healthy participants | 2012 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 48 |
| Distinct Effects of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol on Neural Activation During Emotional Processing Healthy, English-native, right-handed men who had used cannabis 15 times or less in... | 2009 | Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial | n = 15 |
| Acute Effects of a Single, Oral dose of d9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and Cannabidiol (CBD) Administration in Healthy Volunteers Healthy male subjects | 2012 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 16 |
| Modulation of Mediotemporal and Ventrostriatal Function in Humans by Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Healthy, native English-speaking, right-handed men of white race/ethnicity who had used... | 2009 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 15 |
| Cannabidiol (CBD) content in vaporized cannabis does not prevent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-induced impairment of driving and cognition Healthy volunteers with a history of light cannabis use | 2019 | Randomized, double-blind, within-subjects crossover | n = 14 |