Ban looming as ‘toxic’ cannabis oil is labelled a risk to babies
‘Products may be banned’
PREGNANT women, breastfeeding mothers and vulnerable people should not take cannabis oil, health experts said yesterday.
They warned the popular CBD supplements sold in shops could be toxic to unborn babies.
The chemicals may also be harmful to anyone on medication, said the Food Standards Agency.
Even healthy adults should limit use, advised the watchdog which is working with the Department of health and home Office.
It is so concerned it has given companies selling CBD products until March next year to apply for official safety assessment and approval or they will be banned.
Professor Alan Boobis, chairman of the Committee on Toxicity which advises the FSA, said: ‘My committee has found evidence there are potential adverse health effects from consumption.
‘We are particularly concerned about pregnant or breastfeeding women and people on medication.’
A number of health supplement and food makers have turned CBD into a booming UK market with sales predicted to hit £1billion a year by 2025.
Derived from hemp or cannabis plants, it is said to combat anxiety, pain, inflammation and even epilepsy. It is sold as health drops, vaping liquids and is also in food and drink including sweets and teas.
But the FSA is alarmed none has been through a formal approval process.
At the same time, no producers have been able to demonstrate scientifically that they provide any health benefits.
Animal studies have shown reproductive and foetal toxicity from CBD, which suggests babies in the womb might suffer organ damage.
The Committee on Toxicity said it is also highly likely the chemical would pass into a mother’s breast milk. It said it has been associated with liver damage and could affect how drugs behave in the body.
Other potential side effects include sleepiness, decreased appetite, irritability, diarrhoea, fatigue and malaise.
Advocates say CBD or cannabidiol contains no or minuscule levels of THC, which is the psychoactive substance associated with a drug high.
however, there are doubts about exactly what is in CBD.
And there is some evidence THC levels in supplements are much higher than stated. FSA chief emily Miles said: ‘The CBD industry must provide more information about the safety and contents of these products to the regulator before March 31 2021, or the products will be taken off the shelves.
‘Also, we are advising that CBD could be risky for vulnerable groups and suggest an upper limit of 70mg a day for everyone else taking the product.’
The 70mg figure equates to a maximum of 28 drops of a product that is 5 per cent CBD.
A Daily Mail investigation previously revealed how wealthy North American firms were at the centre of campaigns – some linked to the Tory party – to win legalisation of cannabis in all its forms Britain and europe.
The fears of the FSA echo those of its US counterpart.
The Cannabis Trades Association challenged whether there was a need for a safety assessment process and said most of its members do not have the £300,000 it would cost. It also denied firms were including anything more than the trace levels of THC permitted and said the industry is working on new standards to police this issue.