Compassionate Cannabis Users? – Cannabis News, Lifestyle

Are cannabis users naturally compassionate? Can cannabis make you a more understanding person? A study, the first of its kind, appears to have answered that question. And all signs point to yes. According to the study, cannabis users show higher levels of empathy.

Cannabis and compassion have gone hand in hand since the plant was discovered. But now the concept of “compassionate cannabis users” has scientific support.

Compassionate cannabis users?

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, was led by researchers at the University of New Mexico. It is the first study to show the non-clinical benefits of cannabis in healthy adults.

Researchers analyzed the psychology of 146 college students who used cannabis with varying levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). They controlled for age, race, gender, class, and childhood experiences. Researchers found that cannabis users performed better on measures of prosocial behavior.

They concluded that cannabis users are more compassionate and empathetic, and have high standards of moral fairness.

Male cannabis users scored better on “tolerance” than females. Still, men and women performed better on the compassion scale than THC-free individuals.

Groundbreaking study

Researchers believe that THC’s role in creating compassionate cannabis users right now depends on how long it has been since users last used cannabis.

“The transience of effects suggests that cannabis induces behavioral and cognitive changes, rather than that cannabis users and non-users differ fundamentally in their basic approaches to social interactions,” said co-author and associate professor Sarah Stith of the UNM Department of Economics.

In other words, there is no fundamental difference between consumers and non-consumers. Cannabis makes people compassionate, but once the effects of THC wear off, so does the higher tolerance.

Tiphanie Chanel, another co-author in UNM’s psychology department, called the study “groundbreaking”. She hopes this will lead to more research on the “impact of cannabis on human interactions and well-being.”

Nothing new about compassionate cannabis users

Studies focusing on cannabis to treat chronic pain come to the same conclusion. A 2021 Harvard study found improvements in mood in patients who used cannabis for chronic pain.

This Harvard study, published in the journal Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, correlated daily cannabis use with improved sleep, mood, anxiety, and quality of life.

Likewise, a 2022 Canadian study of over 7,000 patients found “statistically significant improvements” when patients used cannabis to treat anxiety and depression.

“There were statistically significant improvements between baseline and follow-up scores…with greater improvements in patients who were actively seeking medical cannabis to treat anxiety or depression,” the authors wrote.

How does cannabis make someone compassionate?

Compassionate cannabis users are a complex topic and further research is needed. But once you know how cannabis works, you can make a few guesses.

THC interacts with the body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS). The ECS regulates our mood, appetite, sleep, pain responses, and immune system. There are natural cannabinoids that bind to our receptors, like anandamide. Anandamide is called the “bliss molecule”. If you’ve ever gone for a jog or an intense workout and feel incredibly relaxed and content afterwards – that’s anandamide working through your system.

THC is an external cannabinoid that binds to cannabinoid receptors and mimics the effects of anandamide. Being stoned is like getting a runner’s high without running. Fortunately, the body doesn’t treat external cannabinoids as poisons, but works with them as medicinal healers. That’s why you can’t overdose on cannabis.

Because THC mimics the happiness molecule, it relaxes the brain and body. With a calm biological system, a person can slip into a relaxed state of mind. And when you are calm and content, you become more compassionate.