NFL awards 1 million $ to study the effects of cannabis on pain management

The NFL announced that it is awarding $1 million to two research teams at the University of California, San Diego, and the University of Regina in Canada to study the effects of cannabinoids natural approaches to pain management, neuroprotection against concussions, and injury recovery in athletes.

«We’re always interested in trying to improve our approach to and treatment of acute and chronic pain in NFL players, and we want to ensure that our players receive the most up-to-date medical consensus regarding any of these treatments,» NFL Chief Medical Officer Dr. Allen Sills told the Associated Press.

«So, the standard of evidence has to be really high for NFL players. Whenever we want to introduce a new therapy, we need to understand how that decision might impact their well-being and performance. We know there has been a lot of interest in this area, but we didn’t feel there was much solid research on the benefits of cannabis or CBD for treating acute and chronic pain. That’s why we wanted to try to contribute to the body of scientific knowledge in this field.»

Dr. Kevin Hill, Director of Addiction Psychiatry at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and a cannabis researcher, is the co-chair of the NFL-NFLPA Joint Committee on Pain Management. Hill explains why there hasn't been much research on this topic.

«One reason is that the The DEA's classification of cannabis makes this research more difficult, », but the main reason is that stakeholders aren't really interested in advancing science," Hill told the AP.

«There are states and companies making a lot of money selling cannabis-based products and CBD-based products right now. So they don’t feel the need to prove the effectiveness of these products, even though millions of people are using them. So this is a difficult situation we find ourselves in as healthcare professionals or organizations that truly care about the health and safety of our constituents—the players, in this case.»

«We really want to know if they work. And every day, I meet patients who are interested in cannabinoids, and it’s the same thing—we really don’t know the answers to that question. So it becomes a very complicated risk-benefit discussion. So I’m thrilled to be part of something that will actually help find answers to the questions everyone has been talking about for years.»

«I would also like to emphasize that this is just the first step. The The NFL has conducted excellent research in other areas: concussions, musculoskeletal injuries, etc. We’re not limiting ourselves to cannabinoids. We’re not limiting ourselves to cannabinoids. »We want to know if there are ways to better treat pain. So we’re going to use this and examine this process to see if there’s a way to improve it, while continuing to advance science in the interest of the players’ health and safety.”

These projects will take three years to complete.

Cannabis is a banned substance in the NFL, although the Rules Regarding Players' Use of Cannabis have been relaxed. Players who test positive are no longer suspended, but may be fined depending on the number of positive tests. The The testing schedule has also been changed and now takes place during the first two weeks of training camp, rather than from April through August. In addition, the threshold required to trigger a positive test result has been quadrupled.

«This type of work will be of interest to athletes in many different sports and at all levels,» Sills said.

«We know that all sports involve a certain degree of injury and the pain associated with those injuries. So I think this will be widely applicable. These products already exist, and in many cases, they are widely used and marketed. This research will therefore help inform people about which strategies may be beneficial and which are not. I believe it will have a significant impact on the NFL, on elite sports as a whole, and on sports at all levels of society.»