New Study Confirms Effectiveness of Cannabinoid-Based Sleep Aid for Insomnia
Recently, the Australian company Zelira Therapeutics, formerly known as Zelda Therapeutics until the end of last year, announced to the press the successful completion of preliminary trials of its experimental cannabinoid-based sleep medication, ZLT-101, by the Australian health authorities. The drug has been in testing since 2017. Now, it will officially move on to the final clinical trial phase, and if successful, this will open the door for certification and formal sale in pharmacies across the country.
According to documents available to the press regarding the trials, the first two phases of the experiment involved groups of 23 people diagnosed with various forms of chronic insomnia. These phases were deemed successful, as the severity of symptoms in all volunteers who took the medication was noticeably reduced compared to those in the control group.
Of course, the trials did not go entirely smoothly. Many participants reported side effects typical of this type of medication, specifically a high chance of experiencing mild dizziness, headaches, and dry mouth. Seventeen members of the test group reported these effects; however, it’s worth noting that similar symptoms were also observed in four members of the control group who received a placebo. According to the trial report, 97% of these side effects disappeared completely within 24 hours after a single use of the medication.
Nevertheless, these factors set the experimental drug apart from other sleep aids, which often have much more dangerous side effects if the recommended dosage is not followed or if used chronically.
“The very fact that the therapeutic effect of ZLT-101 lasts for two weeks after a single use, with such mild negative effects, already makes the drug a potentially safe alternative to currently widely used sleep medications,” says Peter Easterwood, a health and sleep therapy expert at the Sleep Study Center at the University of Western Australia.
The full report on the effectiveness of the medication will be available to the public at the end of March, after the completion and review of the clinical trial results. Despite this, Zelira’s director, Osagie Imasogie, is already counting on not only a national but potentially global release of this promising insomnia treatment.