Welcome to our series on "Be Informed Series" on CBD aka Cannabidiol. As the CBD industry grows, we are learning as we go and want to help you learn as well. Since CBD is easily the fastest growing ingredient these days, we have no choice but to follow it with watchful eyes to make sure you do not get duped by ridiculous claims.
Some people are saying that CBD is our current “snake oil”. We do not agree with this here on Fitness Informant, however we have come across some brands making serious claims with little to no evidence to back it up. We will go over these claims in due time, but first, we have to make a big distinction between CBD and another popular cannabinoid.
Many look at CBD and think that it is from marijuana. This is simply not true for the CBD industry. CBD is mainly found in hemp, which is simply a Cannabis plant. Both marijuana and hemp are sources of cannabinoids. Both THC and CBD are cannabinoids, and there are 113 known cannabinoids as of right now.
CBD and THC Similarities
CBD and THC are both cannabinoids. Cannabinoids are a group of alkaloids that are found in cannabis. They both have similar properties as far as benefits go. For example both CBD and THC are used for pain, nausea, and anxiety. In fact, combining both has been shown to be a potential treatment for migraines.
It appears that THC and CBD may be best when taken together, as there is something called the "Entourage Effect", something we'll get to in our next write-up.
CBD and THC Differences
To keep this as simple as possible, THC is the cannabinoid that gets you high. CBD on the other hand, does not get you high. That is easily the biggest difference between the two. We’re sure you’ve heard of THC and marijuana, well think of CBD and hemp from here on out.
Now we could stop there, but we have a few more points to make.
Marijuana is federally illegal, while hemp is not. CBD products on the market are not allowed to have anymore than 0.3% THC content. While they have similar benefits, they also have some differing benefits. For example, THC (marijuana) is commonly used to treat symptoms of glaucoma, while we have no such research for CBD.
CBD, on the other hand, in its isolated form, is an FDA approved drug for the treatment of rare forms of epilepsy. Due to the similarities, there is only so much we can say on how CBD differs from THC as far as benefits. With that said, CBD being accepted as a drug for epilepsy is quite a breakthrough in our eyes for the potential of CBD.
As of now, there are a wealth of studies underway, and in the following few years, we will have more to say regarding CBD. For now, we’re excited for the research to come, not just on CBD, but all of the cannabinoids. When more research is out, we will have more to say.
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