Dangers Lurking in Synthetic CBD Underscore Value of Quality Product

NEW YORK, June 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

CannabisNewsWire Editorial Coverage

Dating back thousands of years, people have found ways to treat pain and other ailments with cannabidiol (CBD) oil which is harvested from the hemp plant. However, the natural healing properties of CBD are being jeopardized by the advent of man-made synthetic CBDs. These chemical analogs are dangerous imitations of plant-derived product, binding to human endocannabinoid receptors at astronomically larger quantities than natural cannabinoids. These designer drugs prompted the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to issue a national health alert warning about synthetic cannabinoids. Shunning synthetics, Marijuana Company of America, Inc. (OTC: MCOA) (MCOA Profile) provides consumers complete transparency and delivering only pure, plant-based 100% hemp-derived products through its hempSMART™ brand. While Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC: MJNA) and PotNetwork Holding, Inc. (OTC: POTN) market hemp-derived CBD products, some companies such as Isodiol International, Inc. (CSE: ISOL) (OTC: ISOLF) (FSE: LB6A.F) and CV Sciences, Inc. (OTC: CVSI) utilize extraction techniques to produce isolated cannabinoid compounds for both commercial and/or research uses.

Surging Demand Creates Copy Cats

Hemp-derived CBD grew from a market category that didn't exist five years ago to generating $190 million in sales in 2017. The U.S. industry is poised to reach $1 billion dollars in 2018, led by hemp-derived CBD, food, personal care and industrial products. Hemp Business Journal estimates the U.S. hemp industry will grow to a $2.6 billion market by 2022 with an estimated five-year CAGR of 25%.

In a recent article, "Fighting fakes: Hemp leaders on the dangers of synthetic CBD," public health investigators issued warnings when 50 people were sickened after consuming synthetic CBD. What the epidemiologists found was that the products, while labeled CBD, did not contain CBD compounds. Instead, the products contained a synthetically produced cannabinoid.

CBD products are often mislabeled, both in how much CBD the products contain and where the CBD comes from. A study published in JAMA revealed that nearly 70% of online CBD marijuana extracts are mislabeled, some had extra CBD, some less, and some contained hidden CBDs. Blind testing found that only about 31% of the extracts tested contained the amount of CBD listed on the label.