High-strength cannabis now dominates illegal market, study finds
Samples showed huge rise in highly psychoactive strains, raising public health concerns
Tuesday, February 27, 2018
Almost all cannabis seized by police now comprises high-strength varieties, with outdoor-grown herbal strains and hashish barely found, according to a new analysis. In the first study of its kind for 10 years, researchers found 94% of samples seized were varieties with a high psychoactive content, suggesting they dominate the illicit market. The increasing discrepancy between THC and CBD levels in cannabis could increase the number of users at risk of developing psychotic disorders. "It’s certainly worth putting the real risk into context, which this doesn’t," said Jon Liebling of the United Patients Alliance (UPA). "The risk of early onset psychosis due to long-term heavy use of cannabis is one in 26,000." (See also: How hash and weed all but disappeared from Britain's streets, as high-strength ‘skunk’ took over)
