Smileband Health issues

A cannabis compound could hold promise as a treatment for psychosis - despite the drug being considered a cause, 'promising' research suggests.

Cannabidiol, subject to an array of research in recent years, is widely known to have therapeutic benefits for dozens of ailments, including multiple sclerosis.

And a new medical trial, led by Kings College London scientists, has now found it can ease symptoms of psychosis - such as hallucinations and hearing voices.

The British study, which involved 88 patients, offers sufferers hope of a drug that doesn't trigger any serious side effects.

However, the findings dispute the substantial body of evidence that links smoking cannabis to the mental health condition that drives some to suicide. Campaigners have long been concerned that super-strength skunk, flooding the illegal market at a worrying rate, is actually fuelling rates of psychosis. 

But these high potency strains, often purposely created by criminals, are abundant in tetrehydrocannabinol (THC) - responsible for marijuana's high.

Researchers believe CBD, which doesn't cause a high, has quite the opposite effect - and has been touted as a cure for various conditions. 

Dangerous side effects 

Anti-psychosis drugs have been used as a first-line treatment for 60 years - but are worryingly linked to heart attacks.

Figures estimate that around one per cent of the population suffer from psychosis, which can cause delusions, such as hearing voices, and lead to severe distress.

Ian Hamilton, a lecturer in mental health at York University, welcomed the findings, which he described as 'timely'.

He told MailOnline: 'Traditional medicines are not tolerated well by patients as they have a range of side effects which can put people off taking them.'

Mr Hamilton suggested that the medicines using CBD could be effective at treating the symptoms of the condition. Is there a risk of psychosis? 

He was behind research in April that found the risk of developing psychosis as a result of smoking cannabis is much lower than first thought.

A review of existing studies published on 4/20, an unofficial day to celebrate cannabis, found that cases are relatively rare. 

Skunk, the potent form of the drug, is responsible for a quarter of new cases of psychotic mental illness, KCL researchers announced two years ago. 

They found skunk to be so powerful that users are three times more likely to suffer a psychotic episode than those who have never tried it.