Headache and migraine severity ratings reduced by cannabis

Headache and migraine ratings reduced by nearly 50%.

A new study recently published in the Journal of Pain has examined the impact of short and long-term effects of Cannabis on Headache and Migraine.

Data was analysed from 1,876 cannabis users who used an app to track their headache severity and a further 1,019 who tracked their migraine severity over a 16 month period.

Headache and migraine ratings were reduced by nearly 50% after using cannabis with men reported larger reductions in headache after cannabis use than women. There was evidence for tolerance to the effects of cannabis developing over time.

The present study indicates that inhaled cannabis reduces headache and migraine severity ratings by approximately 50%. Repeated use of cannabis is associated with tolerance to its effects, making tolerance a risk factor for the use of cannabis to treat headache and migraine. However, cannabis does not lead to the medication overuse headache that is associated with other conventional treatments, meaning that use of cannabis does not make headaches or migraines worse over time.

The authors concluded that future studies should work to rule out placebo effects and endeavour to provide information on the most type and dose of cannabis.