People in the UK who are prescribed medical cannabis through a private clinic can now request flower from the global cannabis brand Cookies, according to a press release seen by leafie. The first strain available, Hawaiian Rain, is a high-potency flower containing 31% THC. Priced at [...]

A systematic review commissioned by the Home Office has found that the UK’s drug policies may be causing more serious violence than they prevent, according to a new report. The research, conducted by the independent, not-for-profit research organisation RAND, examined the impact of drug-related law enforcement [...]

Nearly three-quarters of medical cannabis patients report that cannabis outperforms conventional prescription sleep medications, according to a major European survey. The study, conducted by Frankfurt-based Bloomwell Group between December 2024 and March 2025, surveyed 1,086 people who have been using cannabis to aid sleep since 2023. [...]

Patients prescribed medicinal cannabis in Australia showed improvements in their quality of life, fatigue and sleep disturbance over a 12-month period, according to new research published in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS One. The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Sydney, found that patients with [...]

A study published in the Maternal and Child Health Journal has found that children whose mothers used cannabis during pregnancy showed no signs of stunted cognitive development at age two. Researchers examined a cohort of 1,489 mother and child pairs to identify how mothers use cannabis [...]

An ongoing adult-use cannabis trial in Switzerland named Weed-Care has published an update showing positive health outcomes, such as improvements in mental health and a decrease in addiction problems.   The trial, being conducted in Basel northwest Switzerland, has been gathering data on the “for-pleasure” use of [...]

A new study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders has shown that the mental health benefits of psilocybin, the main psychoactive compound found in magic mushrooms, may vary significantly depending on a person’s race. Researchers recruited almost 3,000 people in the US who planned to [...]

A four-year study, published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, has found that teenagers are not put off by the negative effects of alcohol. Researchers followed over 12,700 students aged 12 to 15 from 105 schools across Northern Ireland and Scotland to assess how early [...]

Patients who are living with hypermobility disorders report significant improvements in pain management, sleep quality, and anxiety levels after using cannabis-based medicinal products (CBMPs), according to new research published in the journal ACR Open Rheumatology. Researchers from Imperial College London and the Curaleaf Clinic analysed data [...]

New analysis of wastewater samples has shown significant increases in the number of people consuming party drugs, a Home Office report has shown. The study, which analysed wastewater from treatment plants covering 25% of England’s population, found that Ketamine use in England has surged by 85% [...]

A study has shown that the decriminalisation of cannabis in the US city of Atlanta led to a significant decrease in violent crime, contradicting initial fears from critics of the policy. Data showed that violent crime rates fell by nearly 20 per cent after the city [...]

A survey has revealed that 84% of UK doctors would be willing to prescribe medical cannabis to manage chronic pain if it were part of the NHS toolkit. The research, commissioned by medical cannabis clinic Alternaleaf, comes as experts warn that the number of chronic pain [...]

Analysis released by Transform Drug Policy Foundation has shown that that legalising and regulating cannabis for adult non-medical use in the UK could generate up to £1.5 billion in annual net benefits to the Treasury. The report, titled High Returns: The Economic Benefits of UK Cannabis [...]

According to the results of a study published recently in the Journal of Safety Research, taking prescribed cannabis before the start of a journey does not affect the ability of patients to drive safely. In the study, funded by the Motor Accident Insurance Commission, Australian researchers [...]

A Manchester-based charity called CannCare has announced it will provide support to medical cannabis patients in the UK facing discrimination after a rise in reported issues. The charity, which opened its doors on 1 March, offers assistance to patients using cannabis-based products for medicinal use (CBPMs) [...]

Cancer patients using cannabis-based medicinal products (CBMPs) experience significant improvements in pain management, sleep quality, and anxiety levels, according to new research published in the Journal of Pain & Palliative Care Pharmacotherapy. The six-month observational study, which analysed data from 168 cancer patients prescribed cannabis oil [...]

Having access to medical cannabis helps mothers be more present parents, increases their patience with their children, and enables them to better manage their own health needs, according to the results of a study funded by the New Zealand government. The study, published in the journal [...]

A parliamentary committee in Switzerland has put forward plans that would legalise the possession and use of cannabis. The proposal would allow the sale of cannabis products to Swiss citizens over 18 years of age and for a maximum of three plants to be grown at [...]

Researchers from Cleveland Clinic have announced plans for a drug trial that will study if a novel psychedelic drug can help treat postnatal depression. The drug, called RE104, is almost identical in makeup to psilocybin, with the main difference being the length of time patients experience [...]

A large-scale study of hospital admissions in Ontario, Canada has shown that there are higher incidences of schizophrenia in patients with cannabis use disorder (CUD) when compared to the rest of the population.  Researchers based in Ontario and Berlin studied data from hospital admissions between 2006 [...]

Scientists from Yale University have published a study that demonstrates how a part of the brain that plays a significant role in the sensation of pain can be suppressed by non-psychoactive parts of the cannabis plant.  Cannabidiol (CBD), cannabigerol (CBG), and cannabinol (CBN) are non-psychoactive cannabinoids [...]

Researchers have published a study which shows a correlation between cannabis use and an increase in the amount of daily exercise a person carries out. Uptakes in people’s cigarette and alcohol use were also linked to cannabis use. The data was taken from a nationwide survey [...]

Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the darknet marketplace Silk Road, has been granted a presidential pardon by Donald Trump on the first day of his second term as President of the United States.  Ulbricht, who was sentenced to a whole life sentence in 2015, was released [...]

A team of researchers from University College London (UCL) have begun a clinical trial exploring the potential of DMT to treat alcohol use disorder. The study aims to enhance treatment options for individuals seeking to reduce or eliminate their alcohol consumption, and “to better understand how [...]

Scientists from the University of Kentucky (UK) are set to embark on a ground-breaking study which will explore the benefits of administering cannabis-based medicines to patients living with late-stage dementia. Care providers are restricted by the small number of treatment options available for controlling the symptoms [...]

A study has found that the structural difference in the brains of people who use drugs may be present before experimentation with substances, casting doubt on the contested gateway theory that soft drug experimentation leads to harder drug use. Scientists studied the brains of nearly 10,000 [...]

Smoking a single cigarette can take around 20 minutes off a person’s life, according to research commissioned by the Department of Health. In a report, published in the journal Addiction, researchers at University College London found that the average loss of life per cigarette smoked was [...]

A single 800mg dose of orally administered CBD can significantly reduce a subject’s cravings for alcohol, according to the results of a new study. Researchers from the Department of Addictive Behavior and Addiction Medicine at the University of Heidelberg in Germany analysed how CBD impacts alcohol [...]

A new study has revealed that deaths caused by opioid overdose in the USA go down directly after the legalisation of recreational cannabis. The study also showed that states which changed their cannabis legislation earlier experienced an even greater decrease in deaths than others that did [...]

Data taken from the UK Medical Cannabis Registry has shown a positive association between cannabis and improved health-related quality of life for people who have been diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). IBD is an umbrella term for conditions that affect the stomach. Symptoms can range [...]

Data from a federally funded survey has found that cannabis use amongst teens in the USA is at its lowest since the first states began to legalise adult access to the drug in 2012. The annual Monitoring the Future (MTF) Survey, which is supported by the [...]

A survey by Health Canada, the government body responsible for regulating the Canadian cannabis market, has shown that the number of people buying cannabis from illegal sources has dropped to just 3%.  The annual Canadian Cannabis Survey aims to give researchers important information about the way [...]

The United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has called for world leaders to treat drug use as a health issue after declaring that the “war on drugs has failed, completely and utterly”. Türk made the statement at the Dealing with Drugs II [...]

Teens who believe their parents use cannabis are more likely to hold favourable attitudes toward the drug and to consider trying it themselves, according to new research. The study, published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Child and Family Studies, also showed that the closeness of the [...]

A poll carried out for a UK-based think-tank has found that 66% of police officers believe that the use of cannabis is either ignored or dealt with so lightly that it is in effect ‘decriminalised’. The anti-drug, Tory-linked think tank The Centre for Social Justice commissioned [...]

Adolescents who use cannabis and report symptoms of psychosis may be self-medicating to alleviate those symptoms and the associated distress, according to the results of a new study. In the study, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, researchers analysed data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development [...]

Men with a lifetime history of cannabis use experience “significantly less cognitive decline” over their lifetimes compared to non-users, according to new research. The study, published by a team of Danish researchers in the journal Brain and Behaviour, assessed the relationship between cannabis use and age-related [...]

The UK Government has announced a series of reforms to hemp licencing, making it easier for farmers to grow the crop. At present, anyone landowner or farmer wishing to grow hemp has to apply for a licence, outlining the specific fields they wish to use for [...]

A study led by Imperial College London will investigate if there is a role for psilocybin in the treatment of opioid addiction. It is reportedly the first time research involving psilocybin-assisted therapy to treat substance addiction will be financially backed by the UK Government.  Despite the [...]

The NHS is not prescribing cannabis flower medication to any patients, including those with conditions such as epilepsy, chronic pain, and cancer, according to new research from the Cannabis Industry Council (CIC). Through a Freedom of Information (FoI) request, the CIC asked 152 NHS Foundation Trusts [...]

A study into the ‘next day’ performance of people given an oil containing THC and CBD has found that cannabis has no significant impact on safety-sensitive tasks such as driving a vehicle. Cannabis, specifically the THC contained within, is well known to produce an effect on [...]

A parliamentary committee has recommended that cannabis should be partially legalised and accessed through social clubs in Ireland. The committee, set up to guide Ireland’s future drug legislation, said that personal possession of all drugs should be decriminalised and the country’s approach to drug use should [...]

Increasing access to medical cannabis on the NHS for chronic pain could save the state healthcare provider almost £4 billion annually, according to a new research study published by the Cannabis Industry Council (CIC). The study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Expert Review of Pharmacoeconomics & [...]

A study by researchers at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine and Boston Medical Center (BMC) has found that cannabis use among young adults in the country of Georgia did not increase following legalisation. The use of cannabis was legalised for adults over the [...]

The Cannabis Industry Council (CIC) has published a good practice guide for prescription cannabis clinics in the UK. The guidance includes 10 principles of good practice and five specific policies for clinics to implement. The good practice guide encourages ethical and responsible operations, builds industry collaboration, [...]