The research library
Modern research
What peer-reviewed work shows today — on cannabinoids, on CBD, on medicine — together with the Israeli research programme, the industry figures and the regulation now being argued over.
What Peer-Reviewed Research Says
Botanical plate from F.E. Köhler'sMedizinal-Pflanzen(1887). Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
A Chemically Complex Plant
A widely cited 2016 review inFrontiers in Plant SciencedescribesCannabis sativaas a source of both cellulosic and woody fibers, alongside a rich profile of phytochemicals — positioning the plant as valuable to both industrial fiber production and phytochemical research.
A separate 2021 review notes that beyond the well-known compounds THC and CBD, cannabis produces well over a hundred other cannabinoids and hundreds of additional compounds whose medical potential remains largely unexplored — an active and growing area of study.
Sources: Andre, C.M., Hausman, J.F. & Guerriero, G. (2016)."Cannabis sativa: The Plant of the Thousand and One Molecules," Frontiers in Plant Science. · Cannabis sativa: Interdisciplinary Strategies (2021)
A Recognized Fiber Crop
By the early 20th century, hemp was catalogued alongside jute, flax, and manila as one of the world's major commercial fiber plants — reference works of the period grouped it with these crops for its rope- and textile-making qualities, a classification that changed little until the mid-century decline in Western hemp cultivation.
FromThe New International Encyclopædia(1905). Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
What the Research Says About CBD
Cannabidiol, or CBD, is a non-intoxicating compound found in cannabis and hemp. Unlike THC, it doesn't produce a "high," which is part of why it has drawn interest from people who want the plant's potential benefits without the psychoactive effects. Preclinical and early clinical research points to antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticonvulsant, and neuroprotective properties, and CBD is being studied for conditions ranging from chronic pain and anxiety to epilepsy and inflammatory disease.
Much of this evidence traces back to the discovery of the body's own endocannabinoid system — a signaling network that helps regulate pain, mood, appetite, and immune function. The two best-studied endocannabinoids the body produces on its own are anandamide (AEA) and 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG), which act on the same CB1 and CB2 receptors that THC and CBD interact with. Researchers at the U.S. National Institutes of Health have noted that modulating this system may hold therapeutic potential across an unusually wide range of conditions, precisely because it touches so many basic physiological processes.
This is now a genuinely large field of study: a 2024 bibliometric analysis of the Web of Science database identified over 3,000 published papers on cannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system in cancer research alone, spanning 1995 to 2024, with output climbing steadily most years.
Research also increasingly points to an "entourage effect": CBD and THC, and likely other cannabis compounds alongside them, appear to work better together than any single molecule does alone. Studies have found that combining CBD with THC can enhance anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor activity in laboratory models compared to either compound used in isolation.
It's worth being precise about what this evidence does and doesn't show. Much of the research is preclinical — cell lines and animal models rather than large human trials — and CBD's effects can vary significantly by dose, formulation, and what else it's combined with. As one longtime CBD research organization puts it, CBD is best understood as a molecule with genuine therapeutic promise, not a cure-all.
Sources: Project CBD — "What is CBD?" · Project CBD — Medical Conditions Archive· Pacher, P., Bátkai, S. & Kunos, G. (2006). "The Endocannabinoid System as an Emerging Target of Pharmacotherapy,"Pharmacological Reviews · Bibliometric analysis of cannabinoid/ECS cancer research, 1995–2024, PMC. For ongoing literature tracking, CannaKeys maintains a searchable database of endocannabinoid system studies by condition, cannabinoid, and terpene.
The Epidiolex Milestone
In June 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Epidiolex — a purified, plant-derived cannabidiol (CBD) medication — for treating seizures associated with Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, two severe, difficult-to-treat childhood epilepsy conditions. It was the first FDA-approved drug derived directly from the cannabis plant.
Multiple randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials found that purified CBD significantly reduced seizure frequency in these conditions. Researchers are careful to distinguish this pharmaceutical-grade, rigorously tested extract from unregulated "artisanal" CBD products, whose dosing and purity are far less consistent.
The idea itself was not new. In 1980, researchers in Brazil — in collaboration with Raphael Mechoulam's group at the Hebrew University — gave CBD to patients with drug-resistant epilepsy in a double-blind trial. By the end of treatment, only 10% of the CBD group still had generalized seizures, compared to 90% in the placebo group. The findings were, in the words of a later review, "entirely consistent" with what Epidiolex would show decades later — and were largely ignored by the scientific community for the next 40 years.
Sources:"Emerging Use of Epidiolex in Epilepsy," PMC · Epilepsy Foundation· Cunha, J.M. et al. (1980). "Chronic Administration of Cannabidiol to Healthy Volunteers and Epileptic Patients,"Pharmacology, 21(3) · "Fifty Years of Research on Cannabidiol as an Anticonvulsant," PMC (2024)
Medical Cannabis Research in Israel
Active medical cannabis licenses in Israel as of March 2025
Estimated peak annual market value of medical cannabis products
Patients licensed for PTSD as of March 2025, up from 7,329 in Dec 2020
Israel has run a regulated medical cannabis program since 1992 and is widely regarded as a leading hub for cannabis research, with government-backed studies dating back decades. A 2025 review of Israeli Medical Cannabis Unit records found that flower-based products accounted for over 94% of usage by 2025, and that chronic non-cancer pain remains the most common approved indication, followed by PTSD.
A 2024 reform shifted prescribing authority for most indications to Israel's health maintenance organizations (HMOs), while PTSD and chronic pain remained under the Israeli Medical Cannabis Unit. Researchers tracking this transition have noted a subsequent decline in active licenses, which they attribute to stricter gatekeeping under the new system rather than reduced patient need.
Source: Aviram, J. (2025)."Medical cannabis in Israel: a comprehensive review of trends and regulations, 2011-2025," Journal of Cannabis Research
PTSD
A nationwide database study from Hadassah University Medical Center found that PTSD was the third most common indication for medical cannabis in Israel between 2014 and 2021, with growth outpacing other patient groups over that period.
Yakirevich Amir, N. et al. (2023). European Psychiatry.
Autism Spectrum Disorder
A retrospective cohort study of over 36,000 autism patients at Clalit Health Services, Israel's largest HMO, found only 1.2% were prescribed medical cannabis, with prescriptions concentrated among patients with earlier diagnoses and higher rates of co-occurring conditions. Separately, a controlled clinical trial of a CBD-based treatment (SCI-210) for autism symptoms has been conducted at Soroka Medical Center.
Sadeh, H. et al. (2026). Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology.
Israel: A Hub for Cannabis Research
Modern cannabis science traces much of its foundation to Israel. Professor Raphael Mechoulam, working at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, first isolated and characterized THC in 1964 and later helped identify the body's own endocannabinoid system — work that underlies nearly all cannabinoid medicine practiced today.
Israel's Ministry of Health has run a licensed medical cannabis program since 2007, covering conditions including cancer-related pain and chemotherapy side effects, Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, and PTSD. The number of licensed patients grew roughly fourfold in a decade, from about 33,000 to around 140,000 by 2024. A large nationwide study from Hadassah Medical Center tracked over 12,900 PTSD patients licensed for medical cannabis between 2014 and 2021.
That growth has also raised concern inside the health system itself: current clinical guidelines advise against cannabis for PTSD specifically because high-quality supporting studies remain limited, and regulators have moved toward tighter prescribing protocols in 2026. We include this tension deliberately — it illustrates the gap that often exists between real-world patient use and the pace of rigorous clinical evidence, in any country.
Sources: Yakirevich Amir et al., Hadassah Medical Center / Hebrew University (2023) · "Medical cannabis in Israel: a comprehensive review of trends and regulations, 2011–2025," PMC · Ynet, coverage of the 2026 regulatory reform
U.S. Hemp Industry, 2025
Total value of U.S. hemp production in 2025 — up 64% from 2024
Value of floral hemp alone, up 49% year-over-year
Growth in grain hemp production, reaching 7.26 million pounds nationally
According to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service's 2025 National Hemp Report, U.S. hemp production value grew sharply across nearly every category. Fiber hemp told a more mixed story: harvested volume rose modestly, but its value fell 13%, reflecting continued price pressure in industrial fiber markets even as floral and grain segments expanded.
Kansas has emerged as a fast-growing regional hub for fiber and grain hemp, more than tripling its harvested acreage between 2024 and 2025 and becoming the only state with three dedicated fiber and grain processors under contract.
What's Happening in the Industry
Headlines paraphrased with links to original reporting. Full coverage and a global business directory at hemptoday.net.
The 2026 U.S. Hemp Regulation Debate
A provision attached to a 2025 federal appropriations bill is set to redefine "hemp" under U.S. law starting November 13, 2026 — banning most consumable hemp-derived cannabinoid products currently on the market, including many CBD and THC beverages and edibles. Industry groups estimate the affected market at roughly $28 billion. Several lawmakers have introduced competing responses:
December 2025
Cannabinoid Safety and Regulation Act
Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) proposed a federal regulatory framework with strict THC-per-serving limits, as an alternative to an outright ban.
April 2026
Hemp Safety Enforcement Act
Bipartisan bill from Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Joni Ernst (R-IA) — would let states and tribal governments opt out of the federal ban if they keep their own age limits and safety rules.
Ongoing
House delay & repeal bills
Several House members have introduced their own bills to delay or repeal the ban outright. None have passed as of this writing.
Nov 13, 2026
Ban takes effect (as currently scheduled)
Unless one of the bills above passes first, the original ban proceeds on schedule. This is a fast-moving situation — treat this timeline as a snapshot, not a final outcome.