The efficacy and safety of cannabinoids for the treatment of mental disorders and substance use disorders: a…
Given that the 2026 trial review found no benefit for anxiety, PTSD, or psychosis and no depression trials at all, what evidence-based option should I be on instead of self-medicating with cannabis?
Top of the evidence hierarchy, independently funded. how we score evidence
Botanical cannabis has never been FDA-approved for any psychiatric indication.
Across 54 randomised trials and 2,477 participants, cannabinoids showed no significant benefit for anxiety, PTSD, psychotic disorders, anorexia nervosa, or opioid use disorder, and there were no randomised trials at all of cannabinoids for depression. Small effects were seen for cannabis withdrawal (SMD -0.29), tic severity in Tourette syndrome (SMD -0.68), sleep time in insomnia, and autistic traits, all at low certainty; adverse events were more frequent with cannabinoids (OR 1.75, number needed to harm 7).
Worth asking
Given that the 2026 trial review found no benefit for anxiety, PTSD, or psychosis and no depression trials at all, what evidence-based option should I be on instead of self-medicating with cannabis?
Source
The efficacy and safety of cannabinoids for the treatment of mental disorders and substance use disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis. — Wilson J, Dobson O, Langcake A, et al. (2026)
Top-tier peer-reviewed journal
Read the source: https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(26)00015-5
DOI: 10.1016/S2215-0366(26)00015-5
How this was scored
- Study design
- Meta-analysis of randomised trials
- Funding
- Independently funded
- Published in
- Top-tier peer-reviewed journal
- Sample size
- 2,477
- Preregistered
- Yes
- Conflicts disclosed
- Yes
- Independent of proponent
- Yes
- Retracted
- No
Read the full scoring rubric, including what it can't tell you.
Published August 19, 2026.
Questions
How strong is the evidence behind this?
Resolv rates this source "gold standard". Top of the evidence hierarchy, independently funded. It scores 98 out of 100 on our published rubric. The score is calculated from recorded facts about the source — study design, funding, publication venue, sample size, preregistration — not typed in by an editor.
What is the source for this?
The efficacy and safety of cannabinoids for the treatment of mental disorders and substance use disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis. — Wilson J, Dobson O, Langcake A, et al. (2026). Published in: Top-tier peer-reviewed journal. DOI: 10.1016/S2215-0366(26)00015-5. The full source is linked on this page so you can read it yourself.
Who paid for this research, and does that matter?
Study design: Meta-analysis of randomised trials. Funding: Independently funded. The researchers were independent of whoever benefits from the result. Industry sponsorship is one of the most reliably measured biases in medicine, which is why funding carries real weight in the score rather than sitting in a footnote.
Is cannabis-thc, marijuana, weed, thc, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, medical cannabis, dronabinol, nabiximols FDA approved for this use?
No. Its current status is: Not FDA-evaluated for this use. Botanical cannabis has never been FDA-approved for any psychiatric indication.
Is this medical advice?
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.