Anorexia Nervosa
A small 2014 trial found dronabinol added a modest weight gain in severe anorexia nervosa — but the evidence base is two studies deep.
Mental Health Emerging
What the research says
A 2014 double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial gave dronabinol 2.5 mg twice daily to 25 women with severe, long-standing anorexia nervosa. Over four weeks they gained about 0.73 kg more than on placebo — a small but statistically significant gain — with no serious side effects and no change in eating-disorder psychopathology (EDI-2 scores were unchanged).
A 2020 systematic review found only two original randomized trials total: that well-designed one (positive for weight) and an older high-dose THC study that found no effect, where side effects may have cancelled the benefit. Two trials are the entire literature — there is no evidence on cannabis and eating-disorder recovery, long-term safety, or psychopathology.
The honest caveats
Anorexia nervosa is a psychiatric emergency, not an appetite problem — weight gain without psychological treatment has a high relapse rate, and the disorder's hallmark is resistance to eating regardless of appetite. There are also real risks: cannabis can reinforce avoidance behaviors, heavy use brings its own dependency and 'amotivational' state, and using cannabis to manage eating can become part of the illness. This is strictly a specialist-managed conversation (eating-disorder medicine, not a dispensary).
Compounds to explore
These are the compounds — terpenes and cannabinoids — that the research connects to this condition. They are starting points for reading a COA or choosing a product, not prescriptions. Each has its own guide with more detail.
Cannabinoid THC Dronabinol (synthetic THC) is the only drug tested in anorexia nervosa trials. Cannabinoid CBD No anorexia-nervosa trial evidence; sometimes discussed for the co-occurring anxiety.