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Cannabinol is a popular ingredient in over-the-counter sleep products, marketed as a gentle, plant-derived way to unwind at the end of the day. But new research conducted at the University of Connecticut suggests consumers should use it with caution.

Repeated exposure to cannabinol, also known as CBN, can produce signs of physical dependence in mice, UConn researchers report in the November issue of the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

"CBN is everywhere right now. Gummies, tinctures, capsules—and it's marketed as a safe, herbal sleep supplement," says Steven Kinsey, a professor in UConn's Elisabeth DeLuca School of Nursing. "Our findings suggest consumers should be aware repeated use may carry risks."

Like THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol), CBN occurs naturally in the cannabis plant. It is often described as less psychoactive than THC. But Kinsey and his colleagues found that CBN activates biological pathways similar to those activated by THC and produces hallmark features of drug dependence.

For example, mice given CBN twice daily for three days became tolerant to the drug's effects, showing the drug had less effect after repeated use.

They also showed signs of withdrawal when the drug was taken away, twitching their heads and fluttering their paws in much the way humans' hands might shake. And mice trained to respond in a certain way to the high from THC responded in the same way to CBN, telling the researchers that CBN "feels like" THC, at least from a mouse's point of view.

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