With the increasing recognition of CBD as a potential health help, there has also been a proliferation of misperceptions regarding THC’s involvement in the healing process. Today we are sharing with you list of myths and controversies about THC and CBD.
It does not induce intoxication, but it is generating considerable interest among medical researchers and patients. The interest in cannabidiol (CBD), a non-intoxicating cannabis component with considerable therapeutic qualities, has increased dramatically during the past year. Numerous commercial start-ups and online retailers have hopped on the CBD bandwagon, promoting CBD produced from hemp as the next big thing, a wonder oil that will shrink tumors, stop seizures, and alleviate chronic pain without getting people “high.” In tandem with the rising knowledge of cannabidiol as a potential health help, however, there has been a growth of CBD-related myths.
? “CBD IS FOR MEDICAL USE. THC IS A RECREATIONAL DRUG.”
The first myths and controversies about THC and CBD in our list. Project CBD receives numerous queries from throughout the world, and users frequently state that they are seeking “CBD, the medical component” of the plant and “not THC, the psychoactive component” that causes intoxication. In fact, THC, often known as “The High Causer,” has remarkable medicinal effects. Scientists at the Scripps Research Center in San Diego have found that THC suppresses an enzyme involved in the development of amyloid beta plaque, the hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease-related dementia. The federal government recognizes single-molecule THC (Marinol) as an anti-nausea agent and appetite stimulant, classifying it as a Schedule III medication, a classification reserved for pharmaceuticals with a low potential for abuse. However, whole-plant cannabis, the only natural source of THC, is classed as a Schedule I drug with no medical use.
? “THC IS A UNSAFE CANNABINOID.” CBD IS A HEALTHY CANNABINOID.”
The tactical retreat of the drug warrior: concede ground on CBD while continuing to condemn THC. Tetrahydrocannabinol is portrayed as the bad cannabinoid, whereas CBD is portrayed as the good cannabinoid, by marijuana prohibitionists intent on further stigmatizing cannabis with a high THC content. Why? Because CBD doesn’t make you feel high like THC does. This moralistic, reefer madness dichotomy is explicitly rejected by Project CBD in favor of whole-plant cannabis therapies.
? “CBD IS MOST EFFECTIVE IN THE ABSENCE OF THC.”
THC and CBD are the power duo of cannabis chemicals; they function optimally when combined. According to scientific studies, CBD and THC interact synergistically to augment one other’s therapeutic effects. In an animal model of colitis, British researchers have demonstrated that CBD enhances the anti-inflammatory benefits of THC. In tests on brain cancer and breast cancer cell lines, researchers at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco showed that a combination of CBD and THC has a more effective anti-tumor effect than either chemical alone. And substantial clinical research has showed that the combination of CBD and THC is more effective for treating neuropathic pain than either ingredient alone.
? “SINGLE-MOLECULE PHARMACEUTICALS ARE PREFERABLE TO “RUDE” WHOLE-PLANT MEDICATIONS.”
According to the federal government, certain components of the cannabis plant (THC, CBD) have medical use, but the plant itself does not. The single-molecule blinders of the federal government reflect a cultural and political predisposition that favors Big Pharma products. Single-molecule medication is the major corporate method, the FDA-approved method, but it is not the only method, nor is it necessarily the best method for cannabis treatments. In addition to THC and CBD, cannabis includes several hundred chemicals, including different flavonoids, fragrant terpenes, and numerous minor cannabinoids. The medicinal effect of the complete plant is higher than the sum of its individual molecules. However, the Food and Drug Administration is not in the business of approving medicinal plants.
Let’s continue with the list of myths and controversies about THC and CBD. What more?
? “CBD DOES NOT HAVE PSYCHOACTIVE EFFECTS.”
CBD is not an intoxicant, yet describing it as non-psychoactive is misleading. When a clinically depressed patient takes a low dose of a CBD-rich sublingual spray or tincture and enjoys their first good day in a long time, it is clear that CBD is a potent mood-altering substance. It is preferable to state, “CBD is not psychoactive like THC,” as opposed to merely stating, “CBD is not psychoactive.” CBD will not get a person high, but it can have favorable psychological effects.
? “PSYCHOACTIVITY IS INHERENTLY A DISADVANTAGE.”
According to politically acceptable drug war dogma, the psychoactive effects of marijuana are undesirable side effects. Big Pharma is interested in manufacturing medically active marijuana-like compounds that don’t get people high, although it’s not clear why slight euphoria is inherently undesirable for a sick or healthy individual. In ancient Greece, euphoria referred to a condition of health and happiness. The euphoric characteristics of cannabis, far from being an undesirable side effect, are integral to the plant’s therapeutic usefulness. According to Dr. Tod Mikuriya, cannabis should be viewed as a medicine that happens to have psychoactive effects, as many medicines do, rather than as an intoxication with a few therapeutic properties on the side.
? “CBD IS DETERMINING”
CBD at moderate amounts is mildly energetic (or “alerting”). However, extremely high dosages of CBD may have a biphasic response and induce sleep. If CBD-rich cannabis flower induces a sedative effect, this is likely due to the presence of myrcene-rich terpenes. Terpene myrcene has sedative and analgesic effects. CBD is not inherently sedative, but by reducing anxiety, it may help to restore better sleeping patterns.
? “HIGH DOSES OF CBD WORK BETTER THAN LOW DOSES.”
CBD isolates require higher doses for efficacy than CBD-rich oil extracted from whole plants. However, this does not suggest that CBD isolate is a superior therapeutic alternative to CBD-rich cannabis, which has a larger therapeutic window than CBD isolate. According to reports from physicians and patients, a synergistic combination of CBD, THC, and other cannabis components may be beneficial at low dosages – as low as 2.5 mg CBD and/or 2.5 mg THC. Some folks may need much greater dosages of CBD oil to achieve the desired effects. CBD, THC, and cannabis in general have biphasic characteristics, which means that low and high doses can have opposite effects. A higher dose of CBD may be less therapeutically beneficial than a moderate dose.
? “CBD TRANSFORMS INTO THC IN THE HUMAN STOMACH.”
CBD taken orally is well tolerated by people. However, false reports that CBD transforms to THC in the stomach have created worries about CBD’s potential adverse side effects, which could limit its medicinal utility and market potential. It fails to (read the evidence). Extensive clinical research have demonstrated that CBD, even at levels exceeding 600 mg, does not produce euphoric effects comparable to THC. In contrast, CBD in sufficient quantities can mitigate or counteract the psychoactive effects of THC. In a 2017 report, the World Health Organization gave CBD a clean bill of health, stating: “Simulated gastric fluid does not precisely recreate physiological circumstances in the stomach, and spontaneous conversion of CBD to delta-9-THC has not been proven in persons receiving CBD treatment.”
Let’s continue with the list of myths and controversies about THC and CBD. What more?
? “CBD IS COMPLETELY LEGAL IN THE UNITED STATES DUE TO THE FACT THAT IT IS NO LONGER A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE.”
Not exactly. The 2018 Farm Bill allowed industrial hemp cultivation (classified as cannabis with less than 0.3% THC) in the United States and removed several hemp derivatives, including CBD, from the scope of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Controlled Substances Act. However, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) considers CBD to be a medicine. And because the FDA has previously approved CBD as a medication (Epidiolex) for the treatment of two kinds of pediatric epilepsy, it is prohibited to offer hemp-derived CBD as a dietary supplement, according to the FDA. The DEA retains authority over CBD generated from marijuana (cannabis containing more than 0.3% THC), which is still illegal under federal law. Rooted in reefer madness racism and enforced disproportionately against people of color, marijuana prohibition is comparable to the still-standing Confederate statue – a symbol of continuing racism and social injustice. (Read more: CBD: WHEN IS IT LEGAL? WHEN ILLEGAL?.)
? “LEGALIZING CBD, BUT NOT CANNABIS, ADEQUATELY SERVES THE PATIENT POPULATION.”
Seventeen U.S. states have enacted “CBD only” (or, more accurately, “low THC” or “no THC”) legislation. And 30 states have legalized medical marijuana in some form (not just CBD). Some states limit the sources of CBD-rich goods and specify the disorders for which CBD is permissible, while others do not. However, a CBD-rich treatment with little THC is not effective for everyone. Parents of children with epilepsy have discovered that administering THC (or THCA, the raw, unheated version of THC) helps manage seizures. THC-rich goods are more effective than CBD-rich products for certain epileptics and a large number of other individuals. The majority of patients are poorly served by CBD-only laws. They should have access to a wide range of whole-plant cannabis medicines, not simply those with minimal THC content. Any less would constitute a national scandal. Regarding cannabis therapies, one size does not fit all, and neither does one compound, one product, or one strain.
? “CBD IS CBD; ITS ORIGIN MAKES LITTLE DIFFERENCE.”
Some low-resin industrial hemp cultivars may be amenable to CBD oil extraction, but fiber hemp is by no means an excellent CBD source. Industrial hemp often has far less cannabidiol than cannabis flower tops rich in CBD-rich resin. Because hemp is a “bioaccumulator” that absorbs toxins from the soil, the extraction of a modest amount of CBD from industrial hemp increases the danger of contamination. But as plant breeders focus on generating high-resin cannabis varieties (marijuana) that meet the legal requirements for industrial hemp – with THC levels below 0.3% and CBD levels surpassing 10% by dry weight – the dispute over CBD’s source is soon becoming moot. CBD extracted and refined from industrial hemp or produced in a laboratory is devoid of essential medicinal terpenes and other plant components that interact with CBD and THC to increase their therapeutic effects.
We have reached the end of the article regarding myths and controversies about THC and CBD. Hope the truth is clearer to you now!
