CBD - How Not to be a Moron

CBD – What happens when you’re a moron?

cbd moron author

As the world inches closer to total cannabis legalization, there are many who seek to discredit it in one way or another. One recent example comes from a Slate article entitled; CBD: I was a Guinea Pig where the author consumed CBD to excess in order to report the “efficacy” of the cannabinoid.

Here’s an excerpt from the article to put things into perspective for my readers [and be prepared, this is going to be taking the babes to the slaughter].

CBD, which is short for “cannabidiol,” is a non-psychotropic component of the cannabis plant, meaning it will not induce any deep thoughts about Pink Floyd. Instead, it offers many of the claimed medicinal benefits of cannabis with none of the fun of getting high. Though proponents of CBD claim that it can be used to treat a wide range of ailments, the actual science is not nearly so settled. “The only thing for which there is good data is severe forms of childhood epilepsy. That’s it,” said Margaret Haney, professor of neurobiology (in psychiatry) at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Haney, who also directs the Laboratory Research on Cannabis at Columbia, is not anti-CBD. “I’m actually conducting a placebo-controlled study with CBD,” she said. “What I am really creeped out about is the marketing of CBD as a medicine—and that’s really what it’s being marketed for—when there is no good data.” - Source

Let’s talk “Actual Science” first…since the author of the article claims that “Actual science” isn’t too “settled on the medical efficacy” of CBD.

Firstly, we’ll touch on the ECS or the Endocannabinoid System. In 1992, Dr. Lemur Hanes and Dr. William Devane discovered a naturally occurring endocannabinoid called anandamide. This endocannabinoid (or a cannabinoid that our body produces) is very similar in molecular structure to delta-9-THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. Still with me?

With the discovery of this endocannabinoid, researchers were able to identify receptors located all over the body. There receptors in your brain, epidermis and all major organs. It turns out, that these receptors formed a system called the Endocannabinoid system that in turn – helps maintain homeostasis in the body.

What does this mean? Here’s a short list of things the endocannabinoid is responsible for:

Stress Modulation
Cerebral Homeostasis
Regulate Immune System
Energy Homeostasis
Gastrointestinal health
Pain Management
Bodyweight regulation
Emotional Homeostasis
Bone Health

Just so that nobody thinks that I sucked this out of my thumb (ahem Slate Author), here’s the link to the government funded study – GOVERNMENT STUDY HERE!

Oops – Turns out that there is PLENTY of scientific papers on cannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system.

However, as we can see from the Slate article – the author had no idea that he even had an endocannabinoid system. More shocking is that Margaret Haney of Columbia seems to be unaware of these things as well. Since she claims, “The only thing for which there is good data is severe forms of childhood epilepsy. That’s it”…it makes you wonder if her personal biases have clouded her ability to truly conduct scientific research and calls into question her ability to be an authority on the subject

I’m not discrediting her accomplishments; I’m merely saying that she is viewing cannabis and cannabinoid through the lens of pathology, making her not suitable to be an authority on the medical efficacy of cannabinoids. But I digress.

In addition, Margaret, the FDA isn’t the only source of medical information. The Israelis have been studying cannabis since the 1970s - without a political agenda – and are currently the leading authorities on cannabis research. Just call up Dr. Raphael Mechoulam and have a chat with him, I’m sure he’ll set you straight in terms of “good data”.

Back to the Slate cannabis slander.

How the Author totally fucked up his position

The reason I was prompted to write this article is due to the absolute disingenuous nature of the Slate article. It was click-bait at the very least; however, the article may have severe repercussions for people who are actually seeking medical relief.

The author did not use CBD – he ABUSED IT! It’s one thing to test CBD if you’re an insomniac, suffer from withdrawal pangs, or even pain management – it’s an entirely different story when you’re using CBD in everything.

CBD chocolates, coffee, shampoo, lotion, candies…you name it, the author used it all for a period of two weeks and claimed, “To not feel the effects”.

Firstly, it seems that he was expecting to be “high” and approached his analysis through the lens of a “stoner”. CBD will never get you high. In fact, if you are healthy – CBD’s main purpose is to “maintain homeostasis” in the body. In other words, “if you’re not feeling it,” it means you’re pretty healthy.

However, if you were ill, CBD would provide relief to the specific area that you suffer from. Why? Because of the endocannabinoid system. Unlike other medical compounds, CBD, THC, and other cannabinoids, work on “problem areas identified by the ECS”. In other words, if you’re “out of balance, the ECS will correct the misbalance”.

And so, the author abused a medical compound – while being healthy and expecting to experience a high similar to THC – and then claimed that it didn’t work. That it’s all “hype”.

However, how would he know that it didn’t work? Did he conduct a physical prior to the experiment to establish an initial set of data? Did he then monitor his health? His cholesterol levels? Nothing? Just click-bait?

Here’s the only thing that the author did manage to get right – NOT ALL CBD IS CREATED EQUALLY!

If a product claims to have CBD on it, it doesn’t necessarily mean what you think it means. I have written about the different types of CBD products out there, do yourself a favor and read that before buying any CBD product. You need to know what you’re putting into your body and while the FDA wishes to be the “good natured agency”, they claim to be – the ultimate responsibility over your consumption habits lands on you. Do your research, understand what you’re putting into your body and ignore dumb fucks like the author in the Slate article.