Cannabidiol (CBD) is a natural compound found in the marijuana and hemp plants. In 2018, the Farm Bill legalized the use of CBD derived from the hemp plant – as long as it does not contain more than 0.3% THC, the compound responsible for giving people a high.
There has been a lot of research on the benefits of CBD oil. Some of the findings include its anti-inflammatory findings, how it can reduce anxiety and other mental health issues, as well as a host of other wellness benefits.
Research is now being made into how it can relieve pain, treat chronic diseases like arthritis, minimize withdrawals related to smoking and substance abuse.
These potential benefits are just the tip of the iceberg but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done before CBD oil can be accepted as a viable treatment option. Experts around the world are having their say on the matter. With more studies being conducted and findings published, established organizations have faced questions to provide their opinion.
Here are 5 things experts are saying about CBD oil, how it can be used and its benefits.
1. The World Health Organization (WHO)
Here is an extract taken from a report released by the World Health Organization in 2017:
“In experimental models of abuse liability, CBD appears to have little effect on conditioned place preference or intracranial self-stimulation. In an animal drug discrimination model CBD failed to substitute for THC. In humans, CBD exhibits no effects indicative of any abuse or dependence potential.
CBD has been demonstrated as an effective treatment of epilepsy in several clinical trials, with one pure CBD product (Epidiolex®) currently in Phase III trials. There is also preliminary evidence that CBD may be a useful treatment for a number of other medical conditions.
There is unsanctioned medical use of CBD based products with oils, supplements, gums, and high concentration extracts available online for the treatment of many ailments.
CBD is generally well tolerated with a good safety profile. Reported adverse effects may be as a result of drug-drug interactions between CBD and patients’ existing medications.
Several countries have modified their national controls to accommodate CBD as a medicinal product.
To date, there is no evidence of recreational use of CBD or any public health related problems associated with the use of pure CBD.”
2. Dr Sunil Pai, MD, Founder Of The Sanjevani Integrative Medicine Health Center and Phivida Clinical Advisor
In an interview with Business Insider, Dr Pai had this to say concerning CBD and its impact in professional sports:
“Published cannabinoid research on pubmed.gov presents compelling potential outcomes. When a regular and therapeutic dose of cannabidiol is administered, systematic reductions of inflammation occur. Beyond chronic pain and arthritis from sports injuries, inflammation is widely accepted as a primary precursor of major disorder groups, from; diabetes, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis to brain, breast and prostate cancer.”
3. American Nurses Association (ANA)
The ANA is in strong support of the use of cannabinoids for medicine. In 2016, they released a statement regarding their position – here’s an extract from that statement:
“It is the shared responsibility of professional nursing organizations to speak for nurses collectively in shaping health care and to promulgate change for the improvement of health and health care” (ANA, 2015, p. 36).
Therefore, the ANA strongly supports:
- Scientific review of marijuana’s status as a federal Schedule I controlled substance and relisting marijuana as a federal Schedule II controlled substance for purposes of facilitating research.
- Development of prescribing standards that includes indications for use, specific dose, route, expected effect and possible side effects, as well as indications for stopping a medication.
- Establishing evidence-based standards for the use of marijuana and related cannabinoids.
- Protection from criminal or civil penalties for patients using therapeutic marijuana and related cannabinoids as permitted under state laws.
- Exemption from criminal prosecution, civil liability, or professional sanctioning, such as loss of licensure or credentialing, for health care practitioners who discuss treatment alternatives concerning marijuana or who prescribe, dispense or administer marijuana in accordance with professional standards and state laws.”
4. Epilepsy Foundation
The FDA has approved the use of CBD to treat a rare form of epilepsy. Here’s what the Epilepsy Foundation are saying about CBD oil:
“Cannabidiol, or CBD, which does not cause psychoactive effects but has shown some positive effects on certain body systems. This is the part that has been effective in reducing seizures in some people with epilepsy.
Early evidence from laboratory studies, anecdotal reports, and small clinical studies over a number of years suggest that cannabidiol (CBD) could potentially help control seizures. Research on CBD has been hard to do and taken time due to federal regulations and limited access to cannabidiol. There are also many financial and time constraints. In recent years, a number of studies have shown the benefit of specific plant-based CBD product in treating specific groups of people with epilepsy who have not responded to traditional therapies.”
5. Muscular Dystrophy Association
Muscular Dystrophy Association describes how CBD can be used for the development and regeneration of muscle fibers:
“These data show for the first time that the phytocannabinoids CBD, CBDV, and THCV can regulate skeletal muscle cell differentiation.
In particular the phytocannabinoids CBD and CBDV produced a statistically significant increase in myoblast differentiation (in contrast to the other cannabinoids…
This means these particular phytocannabinoids or combinations thereof may prove to be useful in the treatment or prevention of chronic or degenerative skeletal muscle diseases which are caused by alteration of the differentiation process and subsequent degeneration of skeletal muscle tissue, such as dystrophies, including Duchenne muscular dystrophy.”
Conclusion
When experts talk about a subject, people tend to listen more often, both in the general public and at government level. As more expert findings are published, it is only a matter of time until CBD oil becomes more readily available to treat these conditions and more. These 5 examples are just the beginning of things to come.