Cannabidiol reduces cigarette consumption in tobacco smokers: Preliminary findings.

“The role of the endocannabinoid system in nicotine addiction is being increasingly acknowledged. We conducted a pilot, randomised double blind placebo controlled study set out to assess the impact of the ad-hoc use of cannabidiol (CBD) in smokers who wished to stop smoking.

24 smokers were randomised to receive an inhaler of CBD (n=12) or placebo (n=12) for one week, they were instructed to use the inhaler when they felt the urge to smoke.

 Over the treatment week, placebo treated smokers showed no differences in number of cigarettes smoked.

In contrast, those treated with CBD significantly reduced the number of cigarettes smoked by ~40% during treatment.

 Results also indicated some maintenance of this effect at follow-up.

 These preliminary data, combined with the strong preclinical rationale for use of this compound, suggest CBD to be a potential treatment for nicotine addiction that warrants further exploration.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23685330

The association between cigarette smoking and drug abuse in the United States.

“Cigarette smoking has been identified as an independent risk factor for many human diseases. However, the association between cigarette smoking and illegal drug use has not been thoroughly investigated. We have analyzed the 1994 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse to clarify whether cigarette smoking has any effect on the initiation of illegal drug use…”

“This study suggests that cigarette smoking may be a gateway drug to illegal drug use.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11110061

Study Adds to Evidence That Cigarettes Are Gateway to Marijuana

“Teen smokers who rationalize their use of cigarettes by saying, “At least, I’m not doing drugs,” may not always be able to use that line.

New research to be presented Sunday, May 5, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Washington, DC, supports the theory that cigarettes are a gateway drug to marijuana.

“Contrary to what we would expect, we also found that students who smoked both tobacco and marijuana were more likely to smoke more tobacco than those who smoked only tobacco,” said study author Megan Moreno, MD, MSEd, MPH, FAAP, an investigator at Seattle Children’s Research Institute and associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington.

Dr. Moreno and her colleagues randomly selected incoming college students from two universities — one in the Northwest and one in the Midwest — to participate in the longitudinal study. Students were interviewed prior to entering college and again at the end of their freshman year regarding their attitudes, intentions and experiences with substances.

Specifically, students were asked if they had used tobacco or marijuana ever in their lives and in the past 28 days. Researchers also assessed the quantity and frequency of marijuana and tobacco use in the past 28 days.

Results showed that prior to entering college, 33 percent of the 315 participants reported lifetime tobacco use, and 43 percent of lifetime users were current users. In addition, tobacco users were more likely to have used marijuana than those who did not use tobacco.

By the end of their freshman year, 66 percent of participants who reported tobacco use prior to entering college remained current users with an average of 34 tobacco episodes per month. Of these, 53 percent reported concurrent marijuana use. Overall, users of both substances averaged significantly more tobacco episodes per month than current users of tobacco only (42 vs. 24).

“These findings are significant because in the past year we have seen legislation passed that legalizes marijuana in two states,” Dr. Moreno said. “While the impact of these laws on marijuana use is a critical issue, our findings suggest that we should also consider whether increased marijuana use will impact tobacco use among older adolescents.”

Future work should involve designing educational campaigns highlighting the increased risks of using these substances together, Dr. Moreno concluded.”

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/05/130505073742.htm

Cigarettes Are a Gateway Drug, Say Scientists

“Most teens roll their eyes at the idea that any drug can be a “gateway” to more serious stimulants, but new data presented Sunday at the Pediatric Academic Societies’ annual meeting found that teens who smoke cigarettes are 23 times more likely to smoke marijuana compared to those who don’t use tobacco.”

 

“Researchers from Seattle Children’s Research Institute and the University of Washington randomly chose 315 incoming college freshmen from two universities (one in the Midwest and another in the Northwest) and asked if they smoked cigarettes or marijuana, then asked them the same question after the school year ended.”

Read more:  http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/blogs/healthy-living/cigarettes-are-a-gateway-drug–say-scientists-210018087.html