‘IT’S UNSAFE – IT CAN CAUSE LONG-TERM DAMAGE’

DR LERATO DIKOBEKALANE, PSYCHIATRIST

Dr Dikobe-Kalane from Pretoria is wary of the inhalation of CBD oils because of the potential damage to the lungs and longterm effects on the nervous system.

It doesn’t help that the market is not properly regulated.

“There are a lot of distributors who claim to be distributing pure CBD, but there may still be some THC in it,” she warns.

THC is the part of the cannabis plant that makes you high.

As CBD is very new in the local market, not many companies or distributors have certificates to distribute it and to prove that what they are distributing is in fact pure CBD.

Another danger of vaping – and not only CBD, but any substance – is the damage to the tissue of the lungs. “You inhale the oil vapour and it stays in your lungs,” Dr Dikobe-Kalane says.

“There have been cases of people who have lipoid pneumonia, which is caused by microscopic droplets of oil.”

The danger of vaping is you are giving your lungs prolonged exposure to these microscopic oil droplets, which will cause severe damage over time.

Dr Dikobe-Kalane says CBD has medicinal uses, but mainly it’s used as a topical anti-inflammatory for people with inflammatory diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis or multiple sclerosis.