How CBD and Marijuana are Completely Different

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The use of marijuana dates back to ancient China, where the plant was both an oil seed crop, and used for fabric and textiles. Nowadays it has become a controversial substance, with modern drug laws classifying it as anything other than useful. It’s also become a part of counter culture movements worldwide, and many still associate it with peace-loving hippies.

 

CBD is a relatively new product, and although it is extracted from the marijuana plant, it is not to be confused with it. CBD products have flooded the markets worldwide, especially the wellness markets as it’s been effective in treating many common ailments. Knowing the difference between marijuana and CBD is important for parents and the elderly, as it can help them to make informed decisions around them.

 

Here is a look at how marijuana and CBD are completely different, and what that means for the existence of either product in the future.

Historic Use

The starkest difference one can make between CBD and marijuana is in their use. Marijuana has been used in a number of ways, from (unsuccessfully) trying to create a super soldier in the MK-Ultra experiments, to treating glaucoma. CBD however has seen much more specified use, with volumes of journals and anecdotal evidence suggesting its efficacy in treating certain ailments.

Marijuana

To consider the uses of marijuana, one must recognize that this plant has been around for a long time. This has allowed it to become a part of different cultures in different ways, with its use during the Hindu festival of Holi in India, and as an integral component in a Cambodian breakfast soup. More recently, marijuana has been recognized to have potent medicinal properties effective in treating glaucoma, Alzheimer’s disease, and even cancer.

 

It also has a strong tradition of recreational use, especially among young people throughout the modern world. Celebrated for its ability to ‘open the mind’, as it were, to philosophical concepts which might otherwise be deemed irrelevant to the busy modern mind.

CBD

As a component in the marijuana plant, one could argue that CBD has also been used for all of the aforementioned, but it hasn’t been until recent years that we’ve been knowingly using it specifically. Cannabidiol (CBD) was first studied in 1940, and its structure and stereochemistry determined in 1963. Although, as this was only a few years before prohibition started, research came to a sliding halt for several years. 

 

It wasn’t until the mid-2000s that a news story about an infant, Charlotte Figi, who suffered from Dravet Syndrome (a severe epileptic disorder), brought CBD back into the mainstream. Her parents found a supplier of high-CBD and low-THC cannabis, had it processed into an oil, and on giving it to Charlotte, reduced her seizures from 300 a week, to around 5 a month. This has been a catalyst in the research of CBD, and has allowed us to discover just how relevant it is to us in our modern lives.

Legislation

This is where the differences can become complicated, and knowing the laws can ensure you don’t get in trouble when seeking either one for whatever reason.

Marijuana 

Marijuana legalization is growing in popularity due to the realization of its application in the alleviation of so many diseases and ailments. While it is still illegal on a federal level, several states have legalized, or decriminalized its use. Check out this map of marijuana legality by state to see your local laws.

CBD

Pushing deeper it gets even more complicated, with federal law stating that pure CBD oil derived from hemp is legal, but CBD derived from the marijuana plant is not. The ‘Hemp and Hemp-Derived CBD Consumer Protection and Market Stabilization Act of 2021’ which came into effect this year may see further controls put in place to protect the consumer.

Looking Ahead

Even beyond its medicinal value, as an intoxicant marijuana is definitely one of the lesser evils. With countless deaths each year due to drunk-driving, the further legalization of marijuana may see a reduction in harm across the board. As it stands, research is moving forward uninhibited, and both marijuana and pure CBD oil products will likely become more prolific both in our shops and in our lives.

 

Be sure to only purchase those pure CBD oil products which come from suppliers and producers that are transparent about their processes. While black market CBD oil may be cheaper, they may also contain harmful chemicals from backyard processing techniques.

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