Driving while taking any cannabis-based product that contains the intoxicant THC will impair your ability to drive. Since THC is in many cannabis-based products, it would seem to be a poor choice to get behind the wheel under the influence of any cannabis. A recent study has confirmed that, when it comes to driving on CBD or cannabis containing THC, the safer option is CBD. According to experts, CBD, or cannabidiol, doesn’t impair driving.

Study

During the study, Dutch researchers conducted a test where they had participants on a highway instead of a driving simulator. The participants were 26 healthy men and women who reported cannabis use less than twice a week in the past year. However, they also reported using it more than ten times in their lives. Additionally, they were not taking any medications that have been reported to affect driving. During each of the four sessions, the participants drove twice for an hour, once 40 to 100 minutes after vaping. The second set occured another 240 to 300 minutes after vaping.

For each session, researchers gave the subjects one of the following:

• 13.75 milligrams of THC
• 13.75 milligrams of a combination of THC/CBD
• 13.75 milligrams of pure CBD
• A placebo

Results

Upon the completion of the study, researchers found that the two types containing THC affected the participants in the same way as having a blood alcohol content of 0.05 percent. This resulted in impaired driving. At the same time, those taking pure CBD showed the same level of driving as those on the placebo. Specifically, they showed no noticeable impairment.

Discussion

After the study, researchers suggested that no one should try driving for at least four hours after taking a cannabis-based product that contains THC. Those in charge of the study also recommended waiting the same amount of time after taking CBD. While those taking CBD did not show any noticeable impairment, this was explained to only be the case for this specific dosage. The researchers also explained that more tests would be necessary. These additional tests would help show how long to wait for these products to wear off before attempting to drive. Also, researchers will need to examine the likelihood of accidents while under the influence as well.

While CBD is considered safer than cannabis for driving, the researchers still suggest against driving while under the influence of either. Researchers found in this study that CBD does not impair a person’s driving ability. However, they believe it would not be safe to do so while under its influence. Hopefully, as more people study the effects of the different cannabis types, they will be able to examine more safety measures

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