CBD shows promise in curbing alcohol cravings in new study
NCT ID NCT06512389
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Sep 17, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study tests whether cannabidiol (CBD) can reduce alcohol cravings and drinking in people with alcohol use disorder. Thirty-six participants will receive both CBD and a placebo at different times to compare effects. The goal is to see if CBD can help control alcohol use, but it is not a cure—ongoing management is still needed.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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About 36 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Aug 2024
- Expected to finish
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Sep 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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19 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Meets DSM-5 criteria for AUD. * Meets drinking criteria of average weekly consumption \> 10 standard drinks for women and \> 15 standard drinks for men over the past 90 days. * Willing to take study medication and participate in laboratory sessions requiring self-administration of alcohol * Agrees not to use cannabis or illicit drugs during the study period. * Able to communicate and provide informed consent in English. * Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) and Aspartate Transaminase (AST) level should not be more than 2 times the upper normal limit, and bilirubin should not be more than 1.5 times the upper normal limit. * Enrolled in the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) * Willing and able to safely abstain from alcohol for at least 12 hours prior to the eligibility and alcohol self-administration visit. * Individuals who are capable of becoming pregnant: agree to the use of highly effective contraception during study participation and for an additional 28 days after the end of cannabidiol administration. Exclusion Criteria: * Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment (CIWA-Ar) score of 10 or above upon initial assessment * History of severe alcohol withdrawal including withdrawal seizures, alcoholic hallucinosis, or delirium tremens * Any history of seizures * Serious unstable medical condition, including severe hepatic abnormalities * Having any clinical condition, drug sensitivity, or prior therapy which, in the investigator's opinion, makes the participant unsuitable for the study * Current medical conditions, prescriptions, or over the counter medications that interfere with receiving the study drug or alcohol (based on the study physician's assessment) * Severe mental illness (e.g. active psychosis with ongoing delusions and/or hallucinations, active manic or hypomanic episodes, evidence of a major neurocognitive disorder, etc.) and other substance use disorders (moderate or severe; excluding tobacco use disorder) as determined by the qualified investigator * Experiencing active suicidal ideation within the past 1 month and/or suicide attempt within the past 6 months * Recent recreational drug use (assessed via urine toxicology screen) other than alcohol and nicotine products * Current use of CBD products or use of CBD products within the past month. * History of hypersensitivity to CBD * Self-report of significant alcohol-induced flushing after 1-2 drinks (a proxy for aldehyde dehydrogenase deficiency) * Currently pregnant or breastfeeding or intending to become pregnant or breastfeed. * Currently institutionalized which refers to a person who lives in an institutional collective dwelling, such as a hospital, nursing home or prison, including a resident under custody (e.g., patient or inmate). * Currently in treatment for AUD (e.g. Alcoholics Anonymous, group therapy, individual therapy, on anticraving medication)
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
Toronto, Ontario, M6J 1H4, Canada
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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