Attention Deficit Hyper Activity Disorder (ADHD) can be a debilitating condition for many people, including children. ADHD can interfere heavily in a patient’s life. It is also one of the most misunderstood conditions in our society. Individuals suffering from ADHD often have problems at school and work. Although there are studies showing cannabis as an effective treatment for this debilitating condition, the science is not completely in.
Adrian Columb is seeking to add to the evidence that cannabis can be used as a treatment for ADHD. From Melbourne, Australia, Columb has started an Indie Go Go campaign to fund a Blue Ribbon clinical trial on cannabis as an effective treatment for ADHD — the same treatment he chose for himself. Columb believes that the trial will cost $1.5 million.
“The problem right now in getting such a study funded is cannabis’s classification as a Schedule 1 narcotic in the United States. This is a big problem, because most of the researchers interested in this type of study live in the States,” Columb said. If funded, Dr. Kirsten Meuller-Vahl, the Medical Director of the Department of Psychiatry, Social Psychiatry, and Psychotherapy at Hannover Medical School in Germany, has agreed to do the study. However, he hopes to find a university interested in his research questions. He is quick to point out, “If we could get a university lab to do the study we could do it for a lower price tag”.
Columb feels strongly that until a Blue Ribbon Clinical Trial is done, science will continue to ignore cannabis as an effective treatment for ADHD. He is also concerned for parents who are getting arrested for treating their children with ADHD using cannabis. At the moment the funding campaign has had little monetary support, but, “At the least, this campaign has sparked a discussion on three continents about using cannabis to treat a condition that affects so many people around the world.”
With new research coming out everyday on conditions cannabis can treat, this would be study could lead to advances in treating a very common ailment, ADHD. Check out more information on the study here.
Photo Credit: Charles Williams
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