Why Are People Using Controversial CBD Oil?

CBD can also enhance a healthy body by reducing inflammation, relieving general pain, alleviating mental disorders, and relaxing the body.

Everything that comes in can have people giving different views about it. CBD was legalized by the food and drug administration, which has brought about a difference in people's views. However, many have embraced it since it has different health benefits. CBD is a compound derived from cannabis and hemp plants for its health benefits, including pain relief and alleviating mental health disorders, including stress, anxiety, and depression. CBD oil is controversial since some people believe it has a psychoactive effect on the user, which is not. Unlike THC, CBD does not alter the brain; however, it works for the well-being of the body.

CBD Oil

Cannabidiol is the most common cannabinoid derived from the cannabis and hemp plant. CBD can be extracted from the plant using chemicals or CO2. According to Rochfort et al. (2020), CO₂ is the best method of extracting CBD since it does not use chemicals that can contaminate the degrading product. After extraction CBD is mixed with a carrier oil such as coconut or hemp oil. Hemp-derived CBD is emphasized since the plant contains higher amounts of CBD than cannabis, leading to THC amounts.

CBD does not alter the user's mental state, and it interacts with the endocannabinoid receptors in the body by binding the CB1 and CB2 receptors to provide relief to the body.

What CBD is and What It's Not

CBD Is Non-Hallucinogenic

CBD is one of the many cannabinoids derived from the hemp or cannabis sativa plant. It does not have a compound derived from the cannabis plant, which causes a psychoactive effect on the user.

CBD Is Not Marijuana

The cannabis plant contains a high percentage of THC extracted from the whole plant. Therefore, CBD does not work like marijuana, and its main use is for medical such as relieving pain and alleviating stress, anxiety, and depression. CBD hit the market since after FDA legalized it. Its study is still in its infancy stage but has proved reliable for offering therapeutic effects to the body. There is only one CBD drug approved by FDA called epidiolex. Teitelbaum (2019) indicated that CBD could treat epilepsy; it has been used in the US for two years on two rare kinds of epilepsy diagnosed in children. Epidiolex is administered to patients from the age of 2 years. Research shows that CBD (epidiolex) significantly reduced seizures experienced by the patients compared to those with a placebo.

The Legal Status of CBD

CBD is legal in almost 50 states. However, most are for hemp-derived CBD. Only a handful of concentrated cannabis CBD is legitimate. The FDA emphasizes US hemp since they are grown under agricultural regulations. Cannabis family plants tend to absorb compounds from the soil, and thus, when grown with many chemicals, they can be traced in the end product and thus affect the quality of the plant.

CBD products are legal with THC levels below 0.3%, which is satisfied nonpsychoactive. In Europe, most states have a legal THC level of 0.2%, which was revised and upgraded to 0.3%. Europe has a total of 44 states, but only 24 are of the EU; they make joined laws (speak same voice) the rests tend to make their federal laws, which brings the difference in the view of CBD. For example, there are stated which cannabis CBD products, others have a higher THCV level limit compared to others nations such as Italy.

FDA regulates CBD but does not regulate CBD products found in the market and thus creates a loophole for the many counterfeit products in the market. Although CBD is infused in different products, in foods and beverages is illegal. However, there are no legal actions against people selling the product besides issuing warning letters.

Health Benefits of CBD

Anti-Inflammation

Burstein (2015) clarified that CBD has an anti-inflammatory effect and thus can be used to reduce the appearance of inflammations. It also can be used for internal swelling. For this reason, CBD is used to treat different skin conditions, including acne, eczema, and psoriasis, which are characterized by inflammations on the skin because of its soothing effect not only on the mind but also on the skin.

Relieves Pain

Among the major reasons for the wide spread of CBD is its ability to relieve pain. Many people experience pain at some point in life. Pain can be troublesome and affect your productivity. It can range from mild to server, but any form is pain hurts. Überall (2020) showed that CBD relieves both local and chronic pain from the muscles to the nerves. Therefore, CBD is used in the UK and Canada for treating arthritis and multiple sclerosis, whose main symptom is severe unmanageable pain.

Alleviate Mental Disorders

Many people lately are affected mentally and thus making it hard for them to carry out their daily activities. The most common mental health disorders reported are stress, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. CBD relaxes and soothes the body and mind, easing and alleviating the mental discomfort and disturbance of the user. According to Bitencourt & Takahashi (2018), CBD can alleviate posts traumatic stress disorder. Based on the review from a specialist, when CBD is used alongside the normal routine, the patients show reduced symptoms of PTDS. However, it is not advisable for the patient to self-prescribe CBD since it reacts with people differently. Some might have a positive reaction, while others may have a negative. Therefore, it is good to consult your doctor to confirm if CBD can react with your medication.

Conclusion

Most people do not believe in CBD since they have no scientific proof for helping relieve different health problems. Most research on CBD was done on rats and mice when the body system cannot be compared to the human system. This calls for human research to justify the claims. CBD oil has different reviews and thus makes its effect on the human body debatable. For example, although CBD has various health benefits, such as anti-inflammation, pain relief, and alleviation, it has different side effects, including drowsiness, change in appetite, and diarrhea. However, there is a need for research on the long-term effect of CBD on the human body.

References

Bitencourt, R. M., & Takahashi, R. N. (2018). Cannabidiol As A Therapeutic Alternative For Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: From Bench Research To Confirmation In Human Trials. Frontiers In Neuroscience, 502.

Rochfort, S., Isbel, A., Ezernieks, V., Elkins, A., Vincent, D., Deseo, M. A., & Spangenberg, G. C. (2020). The Utilization Of Design Of Experiments Approaches To Optimize Supercritical Fluid Extraction Of Medicinal Cannabis. Scientific Reports, 10(1), 1-7.

Teitelbaum, J. (2019). A Hemp Oil, CBD, And Marijuana Primer: Powerful Pain, Insomnia, And Anxiety-Relieving Tools. Altern. Ther. Health Med, 25, 21-23.

Überall, M. A. (2020). A Review Of Scientific Evidence For THC: CBD Oromucosal Spray (Nabiximols) In Chronic Pain Management. Journal Of Pain Research, 13, 399.