Record Number of Cannabis Studies Published in 2021
In 2021, the number of published research papers on cannabis reached a new record—3,800 studies. This figure is 9% higher than the total recorded in 2020.
Scientists Show Increased Interest in the Medicinal Properties of Cannabis
Over the past decade, the scientific community has paid increasing attention to cannabis. From 2010 to 2021, researchers uploaded 27,000 articles about cannabis experiments to PubMed.gov. In comparison, from 1990 to 1999, there were fewer than 3,000 such articles, and in the 1980s, the number did not exceed 2,000. Since the first scientific paper on cannabis was published in 1840, experts have presented the results of 38,500 studies.
In the 20th century, scientists mainly studied the negative consequences of smoking cannabis. However, the situation changed at the beginning of the 21st century: from 2000 to 2021, the number of studies on the medical use of cannabis increased ninefold. Moreover, from 2000 to 2018, funding for cannabis research in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada grew nearly fivefold, reaching $151 million per year.
Science Will Dispel Myths About Cannabis
Paul Armentano, Deputy Director of NORML, an organization advocating for cannabis legalization, commented on the growth in scientific research: “In recent years, scientific interest in cannabis has grown exponentially. The knowledge base about the plant, its compounds, their mechanisms of action, and their effects on consumers and society has expanded just as rapidly. It’s time for policymakers to stop viewing cannabis through the lens of ‘ignorance’ and start discussing legislative reform based on evidence confirmed through testing.”
To summarize scientific data on cannabis, NORML published a review of more than 450 studies conducted from 2000 to 2021. The organization’s staff evaluated the safety and effectiveness of using the plant to treat 23 different conditions, including:
- autism,
- chronic pain,
- diabetes,
- fibromyalgia,
- migraine,
- post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The electronic version of NORML’s guide, titled Clinical Applications for Cannabis & Cannabinoids: A Review of the Recent Scientific Literature, can be downloaded from Amazon and the NORML store for $7.19. Proceeds from book sales will be used to promote the idea of ending cannabis prohibition in the United States and other countries.