CBD Oil Legality in East Amherst

Much of the following article is drawn from the book CBD What You Need To Know by Gregory L Smith MD, MPH.

With all of the buzz surrounding CBD oil in East Amherst one central question remains, is CBD oil legal? Let’s review a quick history lesson before we answer this question. It was around 1906 the Pure Food and Drug act was passed. This act prohibited habit forming drugs. At the same time marijuana smoking was growing in popularity due to the prohibition of alcohol. It was also during the 1930’s that the great depression had hit. This is significant because during this time period people were looking for work and were unable to find it. In the 1930’s racism was still alive, and this was the perfect opportunity to pin marijuana usage on Mexicans and African Americans. How you may ask? With the help of the press baron William Randolph Hearst the term marihuana was used instead of marijuana. Marihuana was Spanish slang that translates to “Mary Jane”. The term marihuana was suddenly linked to “Mexican migrant workers (who were seen as job competition) and negro Jazz musicians” by the media. The connection between African Americans, Mexicans and Marijuana was established.

On-top of the medias crusade against marijuana the Federal Bureau of Narcotics was losing money due to the great depression. At the time (1930’s) the FBN was run by Harry Jacob Anslinger. Please refer below for more information on how Anslinger became known as “The arch nemesis of cannabis”. The following text is drawn from CBD A Patients Guide to Medical Cannabis by Leonard Leino & Juliana Birnbaum adopted from Smoke Signals; A Social History of Marijuana Medical, Recreational and Scientific by Martin A Lee.

“On August 11^th, 1930, Harry Jacob Anslinger became the director of the newly formed Federal Bureau of Narcotics. He was the godfather of Americas war on drugs., and his influence on public policy on would be felt long after his death in 1975, Anslinger did not pay much attention to cannabis until 1934 when, when the FBN was floundering. Tax revenues plummeted during the great depression, the FBN budget got slashed, and Harry’s entire department was on the chopping block. Then he saw the light and realized marijuana may be the perfect hook to hang his hat on. Anslinger understood that the likelihood of prohibitory legislation increased if the substance in question was associated with minorities. HE eschewed references to benign-sounding cannabis and hemp, while calling for a federal ban on marihuana. Very few Americans knew that marijuana, the weed that some African Americans and Chicanos were smoking, was merely a weaker version of the concentrated cannabis medicines that everyone had been taking since childhood. By stigmatizing marijuana and the foreigners who smoked it, Hearst succeeded in exacerbating anti-Mexican sentiment during the Great Depression, while many Anglos felt they were competing with brown-skinned migrants for work."

The Legalization of CBD Oil in East Amherst

It was sin 1937 Marijuana was officially made illegal in the US. The Controlled Substance Act of 1970 classified marijuana along with heroin as a schedule I drug. This should have raised some concern among the general public. In order for a drug to be classified as a schedule I drug it must have high addiction/ toxicity potential and no medicinal value. Why is addiction and overdose potential relevant? In 2003 one of the United Sates Government agencies obtained a patent on CBD oil. That patent clearly states that CBD does not appear to have any overdose potential or concern for addiction. The patent also clearly states the medicinal benefits of CBD. Reference my article “What is CBD oil” for more in the government patent.

It was in 1963 that CBD was first isolated from the cannabis plant by Dr. Raphael Mechoulam. During the 1970’s and 1980’s Dr. Mechoulam oversaw multiple studies showing the health benefits of THC and CBD for seizures and other conditions. Due to the fact marijuana was classified as a schedule I drug research was extremely limited. It was in 1998 the British Government Reached out to GW Pharmaceuticals and Dr. Geoffrey Guy to begin clinical studies on CBD rich plants. Dr. Geoffrey’s trials concluded that CBD could be beneficial for a list of diseases. Since 2014 the US Government has begun to support funding regarding CBD oil usage and seizure disorders in children.

Where does this leave us in East Amherst today. Keep in mind this article is only focused on the legality of CBD products derived from hemp plants not marijuana plants. Both hemp and marijuana come from the cannabis plant. A hemp plant has little to no TCH and very high levels of CBD. CBD oil that originated in legal hemp plants is legal and available in all 50 states. The following is a excerpt from the book CBD: What You Need to Know by Gregory L. Smith MD. “On February 7^th, 2014, President Obama, singed the Farm Bill of 2013 into law. Section 7606 of the act, Legitimacy of Industrial Hemp Research, defines industrial hemp as distinct from marijuana and authorizes for the first time since 1937 in the US for institutions of higher education or state departments of agriculture in states that legalized hemp cultivation to regulate and conduct research and pilot programs. So far 31 states have defined industrial hemp as distinct from marihuana and removed barriers to its production.” In 2017 the Appropriations Act Sec, 773 states federal funds may not be used to “prohibit the transportation, processing, sale or use of industrial hemp that is grown or cultivated in accordance with section 7606 of the Agricultural Act of 2014m within or outside the State in which the industrial hemp has been grown and cultivated.

With that said in some states and federally there is still confusion about the legality of CBD oil. This is best referred to as a grey area. If you are purchasing CBD oil from a federally registered hemp grower this helps your case. State laws surrounding CBD oil vary greatly. Do your research and use at your own risk. If you would like to learn more stop into our East Amherst NY Northtown Chiropractic & injury Rehab offices today.