What is Cannabidiol?
Many marketed over the counter for an increasing range of medical conditions, often with a wide range of quoted benefits. More and more people are experimenting with these products, over 250, 000 in the UK in 2018.
Cannabidiol known as CBD for short is legal, but is not available on prescription and as yet there are no long term studies on its clinical effectiveness or risks. Legally these products must contain less than 0.2% THC, Tetrahydrocanabinol the psychoactive chemical found in street cannabis.
Some over the counter products contain more THC than others and the trend is upwards towards the legal limit, and there are calls to increase this level further.
Are there any risks associated with taking Cannabidiol?
What no one has looked at is the long term or heavy use effects of these CBD products on the potential absorption of THC. THC is fat soluble, it can be absorbed through inhalation but also the gut and through the skin.
Can Cannabidiol CBD give you a positive drug test for THC?
Over the last 12 months we have been made aware of several positive THC drug test results in individuals using only legal products. These results have been obtained using not only ultra 25ng THC urine tests but also standard 50ng test kits used in many workplace screening tests. This may have implications for police roadside drug driving tests
Use and exposure is likely to grow rapidly over the coming year, both political and public perceptions towards the claimed benefits have become more positive, so expect to see this become an increasingly common mitigation to a positive THC drug test.