This Week in CBD: November 2, 2018

Epidiolex, the first cannabis-derived medicine that the FDA has ever approved, is now available in pharmacies in the United States. This follows the DEA’s limited rescheduling of CBD, which only allows for the sale of medications that have the FDA’s seal of approval.

In other words, the rescheduling only applies to Epidiolex…so far.

But the new availability of the drug means that people with seizure disorders will have safe, legal access to the drug, and insurance may defray some of the costs.

Some parents in Cleveland, Ohio are asking schools to distribute CBD to their children.

They say that it’s a natural, alternative treatment for conditions like ADHD, without the side effects of drugs like Ritalin or Adderall.

But the school district says that Ohio’s medical marijuana rules – which have been interpreted to include CBD – prohibit them from complying with the parents’ request.

And since Ohio’s medical marijuana program has yet to be fully implemented, there’s no legal source for CBD in the state (except for, presumably, Epidiolex).

This week, we saw a number of deep-dive articles analyzing the popularity of CBD. The New York Times, Vox, and Mic all weighed in. And what do they have to say? Well, either it’s about self-care, widespread anxiety, or just a big ol’ placebo effect.

Meanwhile, Cannabis Now reported on the trend of cultivating cannabis with higher concentrations of CBD, as researchers, growers, and consumers look beyond the “industrial” uses of hemp.

Rather than hemp vs. marijuana distinctions, the industry is shifting toward more detailed descriptions of cannabis, including strains that are CBD-dominant, CBD-rich, THC-rich, and THC-dominant.

But don’t get too comfy with these categories. As we learn more about the other cannabinoids and terpenes, new ways of describing cannabis cultivars are sure to follow.

But in the meantime, lawmakers are coming around to the views of hemp advocates. We can now even count Paul Ryan in the pro-hemp camp.

At a rally in Kentucky on Tuesday, Ryan made several positive remarks about the uses of industrial hemp and the effectiveness of CBD for seizures, saying, “It has proven to work.”

On Wednesday, Full Spectrum Nutrition filed a lawsuit against Cannoid, LLC, to prevent them from enforcing a trademark that they filed on the brand name “Entourage Hemp.”

According to the lawsuit, since many companies use the word “entourage” to describe and market their products, this trademark would improperly limit the way other brands could talk about this well-known concept.

A new clinical study will test the safety and efficacy of using CBD to treat irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

FSD Pharma and SciCann will launch the double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to test a proprietary CBD drug called “Steady Stomach.”