NFL Partnering On New Study Using CBD To Treat Pain And Protect From Concussions
The National Football League (NFL) is partnering with Canadian researchers on a clinical trial to test the safety and efficacy of CBD for pain management and neuroprotection from concussions—key issues for many football players who experience injuries as part of the game.
The Phase 1 trial will involve 35 people who will receive either a placebo or CBD-rich cannabis extract to test whether it’s “safe, well-tolerated and without adverse physiological and psychological dysfunction” for daily use.
NFL has committed hundreds of thousands of dollars to research investigating the therapeutic potential of the non-intoxicating cannabinoid in recent years, including funding for studies on CBD as a potential opioid alternative.
“This study is designed to investigate anti-inflammatory and neuroprotection of the CBD formulation to determine whether it can be used on a daily basis safely during the periods of intensive exercise (resistance) training during the off-season prior to competition,” a notice says.
“Specifically, the investigators will investigate the pharmacokinetic, physiological, and psychological effects of CBD,” it says. “The investigators hypothesize that the CBD formulations will be non-intoxicating (non-psychotropic), safe, well-tolerated and do not cause adverse physiological or psychological dysfunction.”
NFL first announced that it would be providing funding for the project—as well as a separate study based at the University of California San Diego—in 2022. The league agreed to spend $1 million on the cannabis trials.
Outside of the research context, NFL’s drug testing policy changed demonstrably in 2020 as part of a collective bargaining agreement. It stipulates that players will not face the possibility of being suspended from games over positive tests for any drug—not just marijuana.
Other sports leagues are similarly adopted revised policies as the state-level cannabis legalization movement continues to spread
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