Although CBD is usually considered non-psychoactive, it can alter your mood. That’s why it’s touted as a possible remedy for anxiety. Yet most people haven’t found it terribly effective.

So what’s the deal? Does it actually work?

The Effects of CBD

The ‘scientific’ name for CBD is cannabidiol. After THC, it’s the second most abundant cannabinoid in cannabis.

CBD has been effective in treating severe forms of childhood epilepsy. The CBD-based drug Epidiolex is FDA-approved and the first of its kind. But that’s a very specific example of CBD’s efficacy.

Most of the time, CBD is indicated for treating anxiety and inflammation for the general population. Many consumers find little to no success with it though. Unless, that is, they take a very high dosage.

All of the studies and research on CBD show that the average bare minimum dosage for any kind of effect seems to be 300 mg. Even when used for treating childhood epilepsy, the dosage is often 600+ milligrams. It all comes down to CBD’s bioavailability.

Low Bioavailability

As with all cannabinoids, the body is only able to absorb a fraction of CBD that’s consumed. Generally, this amount is about 10%. So it takes at least 30mg IN THE BODY to make a difference.

Unfortunately, CBD products usually contain very low levels of CBD. In many cases, it could be a few milligrams of CBD per dose. So a 10mg  gummy is only going to deliver 1mg of CBD.

So whether it’s being used for inflammation or anxiety, you’ll need a product with a 300mg dosage. And that means you’ll be spending a lot of money.

Finding High Doses of CBD

Products with the highest dosage of CBD are tinctures or products that are orally consumed under the tongue or swallowed. A bottle of CBD tincture may have thousands of milligrams. This enables the consumer to easily take a 300 mg dose without breaking the bank.

Combine High Dose CBD With Low Dose THC?

If you’re not sensitive to THC or can handle a low dose of it, there’s a synergistic effect when combining it with CBD. In other words, the effects of THC can also kick up the effectiveness of CBD which means you’d need a lower dose. The CBD will also kick up the effectiveness of THC though too.

More products are marketed now that combine a high amount of CBD with a low amount of THC. And these seem to deliver better anti-anxiety and anti-inflammatory effects than CBD alone. As long as you can handle THC.

Breaking It Down

To nutshell it for you, if you’re looking to get relief from anxiety and inflammation, the best effects of CBD come at higher doses of at least 300mg.

If you can tolerate a low dose of THC with a high dose of CBD, it will be a bit more affordable.

We hope this post helped! If you’re interested in more cannabis-related articles, take a tour of our blog!

The post What Are the Effects of CBD… And Does It Actually Work? appeared first on GROW Cannabis Marketing.

The military has for a long time had a zero-tolerance marijuana policy. Given that marijuana is still illegal at the federal level – and that the military is a federal entity – this makes sense.

Of course, it goes much deeper than that. The issue with marijuana – and CBD in particular – in the military is never as cut and dry as the conservative agenda would like it to be.

Evidence of the benefits of CBD are mounting. And since not all CBD comes from the marijuana plant, Congress is now pushing to make CBD from hemp legal in the military.

Amendment Passes House

Yep. Congress has passed an amendment which would permit those in the service to use hemp and CBD products. A House committee also approved a provision earlier this month that would allow troop members who previously used cannabis to re-enlist.

The amendment was sponsored by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and is part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The act also included several non-cannabis amendments and was approved by the House in a 336 to 71 vote.

No sense in celebrating this as a victory just yet though. As the act moves under scrutiny of the more conservative Senate, misunderstandings about CBD and marijuana will likely gum up the works.

They already have.

Secrecy in the Pentagon

Back in February, the Pentagon ever so quietly moved to make the use of CBD punishable for military troops. A memo issued from Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Matthew P. Donovan changed the military’s previous policy and made any violations punishable.

In the memo, Donovan stated, “Substance misuse by service members is a safety and readiness issue, and the Department must remain vigilant in addressing emerging threats, including those that come from new products and sources.”

What the Department of Defense claims as the biggest issue though is the fact that using CBD products could result in a positive result for cannabis use on a drug test.

Thus, Donovan issued a memo that aimed to eliminate any confusion by flat-out prohibiting all CBD products and sparing “the U.S. military the risks and adverse effects marijuana use has on the mission readiness of individual service members and military units.”

Sounds vaguely like a sequel to Reefer Madness.

How It Came to Light

The memo was recently brought to media attention when the information was tweeted to service members and followers by the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. They are responsible for issuing advisories to military members regarding supplement use.

This came as a shock to certain branches of the military, such as the Navy and the Marines, who had been allowed to use topical CBD products up until Donovan’s memo. Army and Air Force troops were already restricted from the use of any CBD products.

Even those that come from hemp.

But Isn’t Hemp Legal?

Yes.

But even though the federal government legalized hemp in the 2018 Farm Bill and proceeded to remove it from its list of controlled substances, the CBD from hemp remains a federally prohibited substance.

This makes no earthly sense.

By law, any cannabis products that possess less than 0.3% THC are considered hemp. This law is precisely what enabled the CBD market to flourish and folks were able to start reaping the many benefits of CBD from hemp without breaking the law.

Troubled by this blatant disconnect from logic, Congress has moved to rectify this.

Thus, Gabbard’s amendment reads, “The Secretary of Defense may not prohibit, on the basis of a product containing hemp or any ingredient derived from hemp, the possession, use, or consumption of such product by a member of the Armed Forces.”

Period.

Could CBD in the Military Be a Thing?

If the amendment is signed into law, it will supersede Donovan’s memo and the Department of Defense’s rules. Then CBD in the military would no longer be punishable.

Of course, these policies have to find approval in the Senate. So the best we can do is hope.

If you’re interested in more stories about the cannabis industry in Southeast Michigan and beyond, keep exploring our blog! As experts in cannabis marketing, we have our finger on the pulse.

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As a result, doctors have had the right to discuss the option of using CBD or marijuana with their patients.

Unless their patients are animals. (Not metaphorically, of course.)

When the lawmakers wrote out the legislation, they failed to include veterinarians. Because of this, they aren’t legally allowed to initiate discussions with owners about CBD or marijuana, or recommend the cannabis products as possible treatment.

This has left Michigan veterinarians seeking the right to talk cannabis with their patients’ owners.

CBD Products for Animals Enter the Marketplace

CBD became legal in the U.S. as a result of the 2018 Farm Bill that legalized hemp. Even so, there were no regulations or standards put in place for the product.

As such, there are an increasing number of CBD products available for pets. And plenty of research shows the effectiveness of CBD for treating certain ailments including pain, anxiety, depression, and anxiety.

The CBD pet market has the potential to reach $1.16 billion in the U.S. by 2022. It’s exploding.

That means pet owners are already using these products for their four-leggeds.

This can be problematic if the CBD products interact with Fluffy’s or Fido’s current medication.

If pet owners disclose that they’re using these products, they can explore potential counter indications with their veterinarian. But if they don’t, veterinarians are not permitted to ask questions or freely discuss it.

This puts a significant limit on his or her ability to give informed medical advice to an animal’s owner.

Michigan Veterinarians Seeking the Right to Talk Cannabis

Many veterinarians in Michigan say that questions about CBD and marijuana products are a daily occurrence in their practices. Answering those questions is, by law, completely kosher.

Not being able to initiate those conversations, however, means that unless pet owners ask those questions, vets cannot advocate what could potentially help the owner’s pet.

Permitting veterinarians to share their expertise on potential health benefits and risks would help pet owners make more informed decisions. Particularly because there can be a lot of confusion about what’s on those shelves.

Their options are only going to increase as marijuana products for pets begin to enter the marketplace.

Thus, Michigan lawmakers are starting to see the necessity of inserting veterinarians into the medical marijuana laws.

Enter House Bill 5085

Legislation pending in the House Agriculture Committee would do just that.

House Bill 5085 proposes adding language to Michigan’s public health code explicitly allowing veterinarians to talk about marijuana or CBD with pet owners.

The bill will need to clear both the House and Senate and be signed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer to become a law.

Of course, veterinarians will still be prohibited from prescribing any products not approved by the FDA. Allowing them to discuss products with pet owners and guiding them toward reliable information though is a positive step forward.

Plus, it could also help veterinarians treat accidental overdoses. Right now, the owner would have to offer up the information that their dog ate too many marijuana cookies. And he or she may not be willing to do that.

When all is said and done, there’s simply no reason to prohibit veterinarians from partaking in discussions about products that could help lead to better information and research.

House Bill 5085 would do just that.

Interested in All Things Cannabis?

Michigan veterinarians seeking the right to talk cannabis is yet another sign of how quickly this industry is changing and growing.

As experts in cannabis public relations and marketing, we know how important it is to stay on top of what’s happening in the cannabis world.

So keep checking back with our blog to keep up to date.

The post Michigan Veterinarians Seeking the Right to Talk Cannabis appeared first on GROW Cannabis Marketing.

The REEF in Detroit, for example, has a CBD bar with more than 40 products ranging from oils and tinctures, to tablets, topicals and edibles.

But making sense of CBD is still confusing for a lot of people.

At dispensaries like The REEF, their bud tenders are always ready and willing to educate customers on using CBD.

But maybe you’d rather go in armed with information already. If that’s the case, we’ve created a CBD primer to help clarify.

The Case for CBD

Every disease known to humankind interacts with the human endocannabinoid system (ECS). Every disease.

CBD is one of the primary cannabinoids in cannabis. And the human ECS is equipped with receptors for it.

For a long time though, there simply wasn’t enough evidence of the benefits of CBD. Research on CBD from marijuana was hindered because of the plant’s status as an illicit drug.

Legalization has allowed more research though. And recent studies have found that using CBD as a regular dietary supplement for conditions like pain, anxiety and nausea can be quite effective.

CBD’s non-addictive qualities have also been effective in assisting with the opioid epidemic. With expanded access to cannabinoids, there will likely be continued progress on this front.

But with so many CBD extracts on the market today, where do you even begin to start doing your own research?

Making Sense of CBD Labels

Don’t get discouraged. We’ll clarify what some of the more common labels mean so you can make sense of the CBD game.

1. Full-Spectrum

Full-spectrum means anything that was derived from whole-plant flowering cannabis and is part of a “full” spectrum of many cannabinoids. These include CBD, CBG, CBN, CBG, CBC, THC, THCa, and others.

In general, if a full spectrum product contains more than 0.3% THC, you can only legally purchase at a state-approved dispensary.

If it contains less than 0.3% THC, it is sold as a hemp product under the 2018 United States Farm Bill and is federally legal.

2. Distillate

A distillate starts out as a full-spectrum oil made from a whole-plant process. But then it is further refined to remove or reduce CBD, CBG, CBD, CBN, and CBC.

This extract of CBD is the most common and is helpful for people struggling with anxiety, epilepsy, and other disorders. At this time, a THC-free distillate is the most costly extract.

3. CBD Isolate

This white and powdery substance is almost (99.9%) pure CBD. There are no additional cannabinoids in a CBD isolate.

4. Nano CBD

This is a smaller form of CBD where certain micro-emulsions are made to be water-soluble. The purpose of nano CBD is to make it easier to incorporate into beverages.

There’s also some belief that these smaller (nano) particles could increase absorption in the bloodstream. The jury is still out on that though.

5. “Gas Station” CBD

Okay. It’s not really called Gas Station CBD. You could just as easily call it Vape Shop CBD or Nail Salon CBD.

Because legalization has made CBD so accessible, there’s a lot of fake stuff out there. So avoid buying CBD from any place that’s not a dispensary.

In many cases, there may only be trace amounts of CBD. If any at all.

The CBD Market Is Exploding

With the legalization of CBD, there’s been a huge surge of innovative commercial applications for it – from gummy bears, dog treats and beverages, to a wide array of cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

And with a projected market of $20 billion by 2024, it shows no sign of slowing down any time soon.

Ready to Try CBD?

Making sense of CBD doesn’t have to be difficult.

At dispensaries like The REEF, you’ll find the highest quality CBD with the most knowledgable staff. So stick to those establishments.

And by all means, skip the gas station.

For more helpful tips and advice about all things cannabis, keep checking back with our blog.

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