Is CBD Oil Addictive? Here’s What the Research Says

It’s growing in popularity, and that means that people have lots of questions about CBD oil.

What’s one popular question we get asked a lot? Is CBD oil addictive?

The confusion is understandable since many still associate it with marijuana (totally different strain). And of course there is still confusion surround marijuana dependence. But that’s a different story altogether.

So, is CBD habit forming? Is addiction something you need to worry about if you use CBD?

The World Health Organization Report

Back in 2017, the Expert Committee on Drug Dependence from the World Health Organization (WHO) did an extensive report on CBD oil. It looked various different areas, including:

And yes, whether or not CBD oil is addictive.

So, what did the report say?

More Great Stuff: What is CBD oil and how does it work in your body?

Is CBD Oil Addictive?

The WHO reported:

“The evidence from well controlled human experimental research indicates that CBD is not associated with abuse potential.”

Abuse potential means the likelihood that abuse of a particular drug or substance will occur.

How’d they reach that conclusion? They reviewed several different studies, both human and animal.

One study found that “An orally administered dose of 600mg of CBD did not differ from placebo on the scales of the Addiction Research Centre Inventory.”

A second review of data found similar results:

“…CBD was placebo-like on all measures (including visual analogue scales, psychomotor performance such as the digit symbol substitution task, heart rate and blood pressure) compared to active cannabis….”

So, when trialed with a placebo, CBD had the same addictive qualities. Read: none.

So, according to these studies, is CBD oil addictive? Nope.

What About Side Effects?

So, if it isn’t addictive, are there any negative side effects?

Again we turn to the WHO report:

“CBD does not produce the effects that are typically seen with cannabinoids such as THC… Across a number of controlled and open label trials CBD of the potential therapeutic effects of CBD it is generally well tolerated, with a good safety profile.”

So, according to the review of research done by the World Health Organization, if you’re worried about negative side effects or becoming addicted to CBD, don’t be. It’s considered safe on both counts.