THC May Mitigate Deadly COVID Symptoms, Study Shows

Top researchers at the University of South Carolina say THC may be effective at quelling cytokine storms, a potentially fatal symptom of the coronavirus, The State reports.

The cytokine storm symptoms, known as Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), essentially hijack the body’s immune system to use it against itself. Coronavirus patients are most frequently hospitalized due to COVID-19-related ARDS.

“The underlying mechanism is your immune system goes haywire and starts destroying your lungs and all your other organs,” said Prakash Nagarkatti, the study’s co-author.

According to the study, researchers were able to trigger ARDS among lab mice, which they then injected with THC. The researchers conducted dozens of such experiments across three separate studies and reported that 100% of the mice who were given THC survived the frequently fatal symptoms.