663. Is Weed a Performance-Enhancing Drug?

663. 大麻是提高运动表现的药物吗?

Freakonomics Radio

2026-02-13

50 分钟
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The science says no, at least not in the athletic sense. But the psychic benefits can be large — just ask former N.F.L. star Ricky Williams. He says athletes should consider cannabis a healing drug, not a party drug. Even the N.F.L. is starting to agree. (Part two of a two-part series.)   SOURCES:Angela Bryan, professor, associate chair for faculty development in the department of psychology and neuroscience at the University of Colorado, Boulder.Ricky Williams, former N.F.L. running back, founder of Highsman.  RESOURCES:"Using A Lab On Wheels To Study Weed From Dispensaries," by Science Friday (2024)."Exercise-induced euphoria and anxiolysis do not depend on endogenous opioids in humans," by Michael Siebers, Sarah Biedermann, Laura Bindila, Beat Lutz, and Johannes Fuss (Psychoneuroendocrinology, 2021)."Endocannabinoids mediate runner’s high," by Sudhakaran Prabakaran (Science Signaling, 2015)."Cannabis and Exercise Science: A Commentary on Existing Studies and Suggestions for Future Directions," by Angela Bryan, Arielle Gilman, and Kent Hutchison (Sports Medicine, 2015).Run Ricky Run, documentary (2010).  EXTRAS:"Is America Switching from Booze to Weed?" series by Freakonomics Radio (2024). Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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  • Last week, we heard from the cyclist Floyd Landis.

  • He won the Tour de France in 2006, but was busted almost immediately after for doping.

  • This is going to sound stupid out of context, but it just felt unfair.

  • I'm one of everyone else doing what we do.

  • Within the game we were playing, I was not breaking the rules.

  • We also heard from the founder of the Enhanced Games, that is an upcoming competition,

  • where doping, or at least what we have historically called doping, is encouraged.

  • Are we going to say, oh, you know what,

  • we will limit ourselves to being humans 1.0 and never try and progress?

  • We started down this path because of an email I got from a company called Athletic.

  • It's spelled A-T-H-L-E-T-H-C.

  • In case you're not familiar, T-H-C is the main psychoactive component of cannabis.

  • The company sells what they call ridiculously tasty microdose THC mints.

  • They're supposed to help athletes with everything from power to recovery.

  • Their website includes a quote from basketball great Kevin Durant saying how cannabis helps him get into that flow state.

  • where everything just clicks.

  • There's another quote from UFC fighter Nate Diaz,

  • extolling the benefits of cannabis for mental focus and relaxation.

  • These are not testimonials for athletic, by the way,

  • they're just quotes from elsewhere that the company is using.