CBD has taken the world by storm since the 2018 Farm Bill legalized industrial hemp and cannabidiol products. But because CBD is largely unregulated, there is an inherent danger to it – believing that it is a magic elixir for all that ails you. It is not. Anyone who purports it to be is either terribly ignorant or purposely trying to mislead you.
As a case in point, the FDA has spent a lot of time since the start of the COVID-19 crisis cracking down on product manufacturers and distributors claiming that CBD is an effective treatment for the disease caused by the coronavirus. Not only is there no scientific evidence proving such claims to be true but believing the claims could also end up being hazardous to one’s health.
Most Warned About Product
An analysis of FDA warning letters published by the Journal of Cannabis Research reveals that cannabis is the most warned about product in terms of COVID-19. Researchers looked at FDA warning letters sent from March 2020 through August 2021. The single largest group of letters went to organizations pushing CBD as an effective COVID-19 treatment.
Warning letters were intended to make manufacturers and distributors aware that some of the claims they were making about CBD and COVID 19 were misleading, contained false promotions, or were unsubstantiated. The FDA warned about promoting “unapproved and misbranded products relating to Coronavirus Disease 2019.”
Not Just COVID
For the record, falsely promoting CBD as a magic elixir is not limited just to COVID-19. Product manufacturers and distributors make all sorts of claims without any scientific evidence whatsoever. Unfortunately, what they do is no different from what turn-of-the-twentieth-century snake oil salesman were doing.
There is no such thing as a cure-all. There is no medicine or health product in the world capable of addressing every disease under the sun. And quite frankly, most health supplements only provide a fraction of the benefits they are purported to provide, if any at all.
Limited data does seem to suggest that CBD is a beneficial cannabinoid that may lead to better health in some people. Science seems to suggest that CBD could be used to treat certain health conditions. But thus far, CBD’s medical applications have proved limited.
Scientific Study Is Necessary
As things currently stand, medical cannabis patients in Utah can visit Brigham City’s Beehive Farmacy to purchase restricted medicines with THC. They do not need to visit a licensed pharmacy to buy CBD products. Such products are freely available at grocery stores, standard pharmacies, and even online.
Despite this being the case, a lot more research is necessary before we fully understand the health and medical benefits CBD brings to the table. Just because a manufacturer claims that CBD will help for X, Y, or Z does not mean it is true.
Unfortunately, American consumers are all too quick to believe unsubstantiated health claims about a variety of products. We seem to be a culture that wants a pill for everything. Rather than eating right and managing our weight, we want a pill to prevent us from gaining a few extra pounds. Rather than getting enough exercise, we would rather take pills to control high cholesterol and hypertension.
CBD is just the latest in a lengthy list of substances and products that some people feel compelled to push as a magic elixir. CBD may prove to be medically beneficial in the long run. There may be anecdotal evidence suggesting it has medical applications right now. But it is not a cure-all for everything that ails you.
