The Story of CBD
The household favourite Cannabidiol (more popularly known as CBD), although seemingly new, has been providing relief and medicinal benefit for thousands of years.
The household favourite Cannabidiol (more popularly known as CBD), although seemingly new, has been providing relief and medicinal benefit for thousands of years. Made popular with the wide variety of products and accessibility in mainstream stores, CBD has carved its way into the public's vocabulary by providing a multitude of health benefits. The compound and its advocates have had an interesting journey getting CBD the recognition it receives today.
Cannabidiol is the second most prevalent of the active ingredients of cannabis. While CBD is one of the main components of medical marijuana, it is derived directly from the hemp plant, which is similar to the marijuana plant. The use dates all the way back to 2727BC where it is rumoured to have been used in secret societies. The first human to use CBD most notably was chinese emperor Emperor Sheng Neng who decided to use it for treatment of poor memory, malaria and gout by infusing cannabis in his tea. As time went on, we consistently see cannabis and its properties being used to the same effect to remedy both mental and physical ailments.
At the end of the 19th century and start of the 20th, cannabis was the third most common ingredient in physician prescriptions and over-the-counter medications, after opium and alcohol. However due to government interference resulting in a lack of research being done on the plant, CBD lost recognition in the medical community. By the year 1940, Roger Adams (a Harvard University graduate) was the first successful person in extracting and isolating CBD from the cannabis sativa plant. Adams is also responsible for discovering tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
It wasn't until years later that he realized that he had succeeded in extracting the chemical compound. After this had happened Adams and his fellow scientists started researching the possible benefits of CBD. Later on in 1946, when Dr. Walter S. Loewe began testing CBDs effects in animal trials, it was proven that CBD doesn’t cause an altered mental state. Over a decade later in the 1960s after further trails on animals, the first CBD oil for therapeutic use was released. At this time, scientists had limited knowledge of cannabinoid structure and understanding of the biological composition contained within the plant. Due to this fact, early research could not accurately determine which compound was causing which effect.
In the 1980s, a potentially massive breakthrough was made when it was discovered that CBD could be a potential epilepsy treatment. The results of the small test model done was a success, decreasing frequency of seizure activity in half the studies participants. Unfortunately, there were stigmas and negative correlation with cannabis at the time so these findings were not publicized as the huge medical advancement that they were.
Luckily with a shift in societal prejudice against cannabis and all its properties those that once opposed cannabis, now turn to CBD for relief, and its therapeutic properties are helping to change the lives of thousands of people around the world.
Fast forward to today, a poll by Gallup shows that about 14% of Americans report using CBD supplements and at least 8% of people over 65 have also tried it. Although those statistics are substantial, it is likely that this is just the beginning and within the next 5 years those numbers are likely to grow exponentially.
We are beginning to see state and private money supplanting federal government funding of medical cannabis research. Federal restriction was only lifted in 2018 with the introduction of the Farm Bill. More thoroughly done studies with less obtuse and incomplete results will show exactly what CBDs full potential is. Cannabis is here to stay. The potential of compounds like CBD have the ability to impact the lives of millions of people, and with continued effort and exploration, CBD can change the world!