CBD Emerging Trends
So what is the difference between marijuana, hemp, and CBD anyway?
Well, these three all come from the same “genus of flowering plant” which is known as cannabis. Within cannabis there is a class of compounds, aka cannabinoids, which in our society lovingly call the two most identified as THC and CBD (although there are a 110 cannabinoids that has been identified). In regards to legal policy, what does separate marijuana from industrial hemp is the actual amount of THC. Any plant which has .03% or less on a “dry weight basis” is to be identified as hemp period and anything greater will be deemed as marijuana. Medical strains usually contain 10-30% THC.
I attended an informational training about CBD not long ago to learn more about the current research and benefits of this controversial medicinal product. What was received was nothing more than insightful, hopeful, and frightening all at the same time. There is currently over 400 compounds with CBD which includes raw, heated, and aged. Of this, researchers continue to learn more everyday about the benefits and potential implications which could come from both the short and long term use. Much of the objective research seems to be flowing outside of the United States (go figure) as much of the funding dollars are from big pharma here in the US. However, Germany and Israel seem to be doing a great deal of medical journals with Israel having research stemming all the way back to the 1960’s.
What I found most refreshing is the newest research findings. There continues to be consistent documentation surrounding efficacy in cancer treatment, neuro conditions (especially in epilepsy), and chronic pain. In mental health, med research reports positive findings in anxiety and depressive spectrum disorders.
If you would like to read more on current research out of the country check out http://www.interesjournals.org/ and http://cannabis-med.org/. For research within the US you can head to https://www.nih.gov/ and https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/.
