As research around using cannabis and cannabis bi-products increasingly reveals the benefits of this substance we are seeing an increasing number of countries around the world legalizing Marijuana for both medical and recreational use. In the USA hemp has been completely legalized nationwide, while 33 states have legalized cannabis for medical use and another ten states have legalized cannabis for recreational use. www.businessinsider.com.au/legal-marijuana-states-2018-1
The stigma around using marijuana is decreasing while at the same time the research around the benefits of this drug for a wide variety of aliments is increasing.
One of the popular products is Cannabidiol (CBD), which is used medically to treat a great range of medical concerns. However, it should not be confused with either Cannabinol (CBN) which has few medical benefits or Cannabinodiol (CBND) which is a psychoactive compound. In the USA a CBD based drug, Epidiolex, is currently the only medication that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). However, cannabis-based drugs are being developed and put through to the FDA for approval as more pharmaceutical companies take advantage of relaxing restrictions of the substance and increased public support.
Consuming CBD Oil
There is still debate as to whether CBD should be classed as a drug, and therefor come under scrutiny from the FDA (which will also mean that it is regulated), or as a dietary supplement. Part of this debate is caused by the fact that CBD can be consumed in so many ways and used as both a supplement as well as for medical relief. However, unlike THC which is normally smoked cannabis, the more medical substance is more commonly taken as an oil in capsule form. It can also be used in cooking for a similar effect. Alternatively, it can be applied topically as a cream for relief from aches and pains.
Understanding The Research
Because of the rising interest and availability of CBD oil, websites like Thryve CBD Oil are meeting the need for the public to have a greater understanding of this substance. There is some amazing research being undertaken, but the general population often struggles to source, read and understand scientific research, so they need resources that are accessible to the average layperson. With articles and information that discuss and disseminate the different benefits, contradictions and uses of CBD oil this is an area of growing curiosity.
Increased Research into Benefits of CBD
Although it is commonly said that CBD does not have any psychoactive effects, it would appear that further research is showing this to not be 100% accurate. Although CBD certainly doesn’t have the same ‘high’ as THC (the component of cannabis known, and prized, for its psychoactive effects), research from New York’s International Research Center on Cannabis and Mental Health suggests that it has a very mild psychoactive effect, and it is this effect that is the reason why it can help treat anxiety disorders.
Other research since 2018 alone has looked at the roll of CBD Oil in rehabilitation and physical therapy, the effects of both CBD and THC as an anticonvulsant for use with people suffering from DravetSyndrome and research has now been looking into CBD oil long enough to be able to bring results from longitudinal studies, particularly in relation to the effect CBD oil has on epilepsy.
Another interesting line of research has looked into CBD oil being used to treat marijuana addiction, with very positive results (see here)
The emerging amount of rigorous research into the positive, and negative, effects of CBD oil, as well as THC, meaning pharmaceutical companies are thinking of more applications and ways in which to use the substance. More profound is the dramatic change that increased information around the effects and use of CBD is having on the general public. Gone are the victims of the ‘war-on-drugs’ propaganda, instead we can see a population that wants to know unbiased information and is open to the idea that marijuana and it’s derivates may have incredible benefits to them personally.
With an aging population the likelihood that CBD can work as a non-addictive painkiller, often considered to be more effective than opiates, that it may relieve the symptoms of arthritis, and with research is looking into how beneficial CBD may be in treating dementia and Alzheimer’s it is not hard to see why the public interest in this as a medication is growing.
Image Credits: CBD Oil from Victoria43/Shutterstock
