Study Casts Doubt on Using Marijuana to Treat Alzheimer's

A new animal study suggests that marijuana may not be useful in improving memory among individuals with Alzheimer's disease or affecting progression of the disease, the Vancouver Sun reported Feb. 9.

Mice genetically engineered to develop Alzheimer's were given a synthetic version of cannabis that is 100 to 800 times more powerful than smoked marijuana. Researchers found that mice given the drug fared no better in remembering how to negotiate a maze than those given a lower dose of the drug or none at all.

Researcher Weihong Song of the University of British Columbia said the study doesn't prove that marijuana won't help humans with Alzheimer's, “But what we can say at this point is that the previous research done with rats and mice on the [beneficial] effects of synthetic cannabinoids is not necessarily applicable to humans.”

The study was published in the journal Current Alzheimer Research.