OVER THE COUNTER CBD OILS ARE JUST A WASTE OF MONEY
WITH high- street outlets such as Boots, Superdrug and Holland & Barrett all stocking CBD oils, tinctures and even gummy sweets, sales are booming.
The ingredient is hard to miss – even added to lip balms, make-up, moisturisers and body wash. Some research suggests that as many as 1.3 million Britons are spending more than £300 million a year on these products – with the market expected to be worth £1 billion by 2025. But are t hey simply wasting their money? If they are hoping to boost health, ease pain and improve the skin by doing do, the answer is yes.
CBD oil can cost nearly £10 for a 10ml bottle – roughly 240 drops. In gummy bear sweet form, it’s £1 a time.
Most oils or oil- based products sold online or over the counter contain between two and ten per cent CBD. Experts say much higher concentrations are needed to have any therapeutic effect.
For example, Epidiolex, an epilepsy drug, contains 98 per cent CBD. The oil used by Dr Englund and colleagues in the research on people with mental illness was 100 per cent CBD and nothing else. He says: ‘With some of those over-the-counter products, you would have to drink a whole bottle of oil or more before you would begin to get any benefit at all.’ CBD is poorly absorbed by the body as it can easily be broken down in the gut and the liver. This means only a fraction of what is swallowed – no more than six per cent according to Dr Englund – reaches the bloodstream. CBD products are sold as food supplements rather than medicines and suppliers are careful not to make specific claims. Many instead say i t can ‘ maintain’ health or ‘support wellbeing’ if used regularly. However, experts warn CBD products may not even contain what they say they do on the packet. One study involved testing 30 shop-bought CBD products. Researchers found one 30ml bottle, retailing for £ 90, contained no CBD at all. Half contained THC, making them illegal. And one was so high in ethanol that it would be considered an alcoholic drink. Dr Abdelmoneim says: ‘Lots of people self-medicate with these products but I suspect there’s a huge dose of placebo involved, rather than the products having any real effect.’