Time to acknowledge the mixed effects of cannabis on health: a summary and critical review of the NASEM 2017 report on the health effects of cannabis and cannabinoids.

This is a summary and critical review of The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report of cannabis’ health effects. The report stated that effects of cannabis are understudied and research findings are mixed. It concluded that the under developed evidence base poses a public health risk and rightly addressed complications of cannabis research that need to be collaboratively resolved. We support NASEM’s urgent call for research, but add that the mixed evidence base cannot be solely attributed to research limitations. Rather, we propose a need to acknowledge the heterogeneity in cannabis’ effects to advance the field.