Many unanswered questions, concerns about CBD products

The acting head of the Food and Drug Administration launched the agency’s first hearing on CBD products Friday with a laundry of list of questions about cannabidiol, better known as CBD, which is already being sold in pills, tinctures, skin lotions, sodas and dog food.

How much of the cannabis extract is safe to consume daily, he asked at the jam-packed, all-day hearing at FDA headquarters in Silver Spring. How will it interact with other drugs? What if a consumer is pregnant? What is CBD’s effect on children? What happens if someone takes it over the course of years?

Acting Commissioner Norman “Ned” Sharpless said answers to most of those questions are still unknown despite the popularity of many CBD products.

“There are important reasons to generally prohibit putting drugs in the food supply,” Sharpless said. And cannabis extracts like CBD “are no exception.”

During the 10 hours of testimony that followed, hemp growers, start-up businesses, academic researchers and consumer advocates argued about how FDA should regulate the already booming CBD industry. Some demanded strict oversight. Others — especially companies with millions at stake — lobbied for looser regulation.

But the common theme among them all: FDA needs to figure out its rules sooner, rather than later.

Read more at The Washington Post