History and legalization of CBD in the US

Brief History

The therapeutic benefits of CBD date back to 2737 BC. A Chinese Emperor Sheng Nung used cannabis tea to relieve the symptoms of malaria, gout and even arthritis. It is believed that cannabis served as a therapeutic resource throughout history. Due to the advancements in modern medicine, CBD was ignored due to the lack of scientific evidence to back its therapeutic benefits.

In the late 1980s, CBD started gaining attention due to its pain-relieving qualities. Finally, in 1998 a British pharmaceutical company GW started medical trails to fully comprehend the therapeutic capabilities of CBD. This research was the stepping-stone that led to international studies led by medical societies. Following in the footsteps of GW pharmaceuticals, Raphael Mechoulam, an Israeli researcher, uncovered how to isolate THC and CBD from mother plant. This research was well-received in medical world and helped researcher to isolate their research on CBD.
While studying CBD numerous benefits came to light, including lowered depression and anxiety disorder, reduced seizures in epileptic patients and reduced pain levels. Studies also proved the effect of CBD on the human body, which was very different from THC. CBD showed signs of therapeutic relaxation feeling in the human mind and body.

Up till now, the studies have shown positive effects of CBD on the human body. In December 2018, United States passed the CBD Legalization Farm Bill, which made CBD derived from industrial hemp legal to use.

CBD Legalization
As more and more people started to push for the CBD legalization of medical marijuana, it turned into a popular stance in the US. In 2014, a Farm Bill was passed which was the pilot program for hemp industry. This act allowed the industrial growth of hemp which allowed the hemp industry to flourish.

In December 2018, President Trump signed the new Farm Act. According to this Farm Act of 2018, products containing less than 0.3% THC are considered legal. The Act of 2018 also states that the product must be approved by FDA before making its way to the market. CBD is considered as any other agricultural product, which makes it legal to grow and purchase in the United States.

As hemp-derived CBD is obtained from marijuana plants, it still remains under the jurisdiction of individual state laws. As long as hemp is grown in accordance with the Act of 2018, CBD products can be purchased, consumed and produced in all 50 states.

There are only 3 states where marijuana and marijuana-derived products are completely illegal to buy, consume and produce. These three states include Idaho, South Dakota and Nebraska. Aside from these three states, you can buy and consume hemp products. There are 10 states where marijuana is legal both medicinal and recreational. In addition to those 10 states, there are 23 states where marijuana-based products are only allowed for medicinal purposes. There are few states which allow only CBD oil to be consumed for medicinal purposes, while other CBD products are not allowed to consume.

Federal Law
There are two forms of Cannabis sativa, one is hemp and the other one is marijuana. Hemp is a new form of cannabis, although it comes from the same family. Hemp contains a high quantity of cannabidiol (CBD) which is recognized for its medicinal properties and extremely low quantity of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which is responsible for the ‘’high’’ feeling you get from marijuana.

Marijuana, on the other hand, contains a high quantity of THC, ranging from 15% to 25%. It also contains traces of CBD ranging from 0.1% to 0.2%. According to the Farm Act 2018, CBD products that are derived from hemp should contain less than 0.3% of THC. Although CBD products that are derived from marijuana are not considered legal. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) marijuana is Schedule 1 drug. Farm Bill also regulates the hemp farmers, there is a set of instructions for the production of cannabis plants. If the hemp plant is produced in any other way which is not in accordance with the Farm Bill, it will be considered illegal. Licenses are also provided to the hemp farmers, anyone farming hemp without a license will be considered illegal. In short CBD product containing legal amount of THC will still be illegal if farmer doesn’t have a license.

Finding approved CBD products is a bit of a hassle. There are a lot of CBD products in the market, finding the approved product which has been produced on legal standards of FDA can be difficult at times. Before buying CBD product one must ensure the origin of the product, certificate of analysis and potency.