Do cannabinoids constitute a therapeutic alternative for anorexia nervosa?

Cannabinoids have been postulated as an alternative for anorexia nervosa. However, their actual clinical efficacy and safety are still discussed.

To answer this question we used Epistemonikos, the largest database of systematic reviews in health, which is maintained by screening multiple information sources, including MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane, among others. We extracted data from the systematic reviews, reanalyzed data of primary studies and generated a summary of findings table using the GRADE approach.

We identified four systematic reviews including two primary studies, both corresponding to randomized trials. We concluded cannabinoids might not increase weight or improve symptoms in anorexia nervosa, and are probably associated to frequent adverse effects.