Table 3 Reviews of CBD’s anxiolytic properties in rats and mice

de Mello Schier et al. 2012 [60]

This reviewed included 17 studies. One study reviewed showed no significant effects of high doses of CBD (100 mg/kg) were seen in rats in the Geller-Seifter conflict test. In another, a low dose of CBD (10 mg/kg) had anxiolytic effects in rats submitted to the conditioned emotional response. Later studies using the elevated plus maze (EPM) helped to elucidate this contradiction. The authors concluded that anxiolytic effects are only present at low doses

Blessing et al. 2015 [61]

This review included 32 studies. The authors concluded that overall, preclinical evidence supports systemic CBD as an acute treatment of GAD, SAD, PD, OCD, and PTSD, and suggests that CBD has the advantage of not producing anxiogenic effects at higher dose

Lee et al. 2017 [62]

This review included 28 studies of both acute and chronic CBD administration on anxiety-like behaviour in male animals. The majority of the listed studies were in Wistar rats, and predominantly, anxiolytic effects were noted

Iffland and Grotenhermen 2017 [63]

The authors observed in the data that anxiolytic effects in rats were reversed after repeated 14-day administration of CBD.

However, this finding might depend on the used animal model of anxiety or depression and that CBD may only be anxiolytic in subjects where stress had been induced before CBD administration