CBD is everywhere. What is it, and where to access it

COURTESY PHOTO

Courtney and John Doctor, owners of Naked Nectar in Charlotte, sell CBD products derived from hemp.

It seems like CBD is in everything.

Naked Nectar, a Black-owned CBD online store in Charlotte, sells oils, muscle relief salves, and gummies.

“We try to use this as a way to be an alternative to other forms of medication and things like that,” said co-owner John Doctor. “We just want you to understand how to eat to live metaphorically.”

Naked Nectar started in 2019, a year after the Agricultural Improvement Act legalized the production of hemp. Under law, CBD, or cannabidiol can contain no more than 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.

“The muscle salve that'd be good for like arthritis or pain, inflammation, or people after they work out things of that nature,” said Courtney Doctor, Naked Nectar’s co-owner Naked Nectar. “Some of the gummies or the [CBD flower] can be good if you have trouble going to sleep, anxiety, or insomnia.”

CBD that comes from the marijuana plant remains illegal under the Controlled Substances Act.

Courtney is a registered nurse and John has a background in rehabilitation counseling.

Naked Nectar ships orders across the United States and offers same day pick-up and delivery for local customers.

CBD is used to relieve anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. it can also treat seizures and can promote sleep. The marketing of CBD has outpaced research on the product, according to a statement on Harvard Medical School’s website.

Cannabidiol is the best two active compounds that come from the hemp plant. Cannabidiol is an active ingredient in cannabis that is derived from the hemp plant, a cousin of marijuana, but does not cause a high by itself.

According to Harvard University researchers, some CBD products do contain a small amount of THC, which produces a psychoactive or a “high feeling" from marijuana and can increase paranoia, anxiety, appetite, and fatigue. However, CBD does not get you high. It does not change consciousness and users cannot overdose.

CBD oil is federally legal in all 50 states provided its extracted from hemp not marijuana.

The endocannabinoid system in the brain regulates mood, appetite, sleep, memory, and reproduction and fertility.

When CBD pairs with the receptors in the system, it can work to alleviate negative symptoms in people who live with diabetes, autoimmune diseases, heart disease, chronic and acute pain, cancer, obesity and metabolic diseases, and other neurodegenerative diseases.

CBD can help to reduce chronic pain.

“The most common reason folks take CBD is pain,” said Dr. Dung Trinh, owner and founder of the Healthy Brain Clinic and a CBD expert. “It's chronic pain. It could be back pain and arthritis pain.”

In 2018, the first CBD medication was approved by the Food and Drug Administration to help with seizures and two rare and severe forms of epilepsy in people ages 2 years or older.

The only drawback to using CBD is that it can cause drowsiness and may cause problems if used with other medications.

“If you're taking a ton of other medications, especially if you're taking a ton of other medications that are filtered through your liver, and you got CBD also filtering through your liver, that may be a problem,” Trinh said. “There may be potential medication interactions with CBD. So always talk to your doctor if you're taking CBD.”

More Black-owned CBD shops are helping to increase representation within the field.

“I believe our presence alone amongst the Black community is important because it just shows representation. We don’t get to see a lot of us in this industry,” John Doctor said. “The representation itself is major because it shows other brothers and sisters that it's a way for us to benefit financially, but not just spiritually, psychologically, and medically, in all formality from strength. It shows true power.”

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