Medical cannabis improves quality of life in autistic adults – UK study

By Sarah Sinclair

The treatment improved quality of life and reduced behavioural psychological symptoms in patients.

A new UK study shows that medical cannabis could improve quality of life in adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

A paper, published this week using data from the UK, shows the treatment improved quality of life and reduced behavioural and psychological symptoms in autistic patients. 

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurological development disorder which affects an estimated 700,000 people in the UK. Those with ASD commonly face challenges as a result of additional symptoms associated with the diagnosis, including severe anxiety and insomnia. 

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Autism diagnosis in adulthood tied to increased burden of psychiatric conditions

BY CHARLES Q. CHOI 

People diagnosed with autism in adulthood are nearly three times as likely as their childhood-diagnosed counterparts to report having psychiatric conditions, a new study finds.

“Experiences of childhood- versus adulthood-diagnosed people are likely to be quite different,” says lead investigator Vanessa Bal, Karmazin and Lillard Chair in Adult Autism at Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey. Generalizing findings from one group to the other “is going to have serious implications for research.” read more