The CBD market is booming and on a path toward remarkable growth over the next few years. In 2021, the market was valued at $5.18 billion, and experts estimate that number is due to grow at a rate of 16.8% from 2022 to 2030.
CBD is a popular go-to for consumers in hope of finding relief for anxiety relief, pain relief, and better sleep. However, with popularity often comes the problem of less-than-quality products hitting shelves. Since the federal government does not regulate CBD, the door is left open for unscrupulous companies to introduce low-quality products to the market, which can often cause side effects or contain toxic chemicals.
Improving knowledge and quality
In the past, it was up to the consumer to research and determine whether the CBD they were purchasing was a quality product. Now, a group of physicians and specialists in family medicine, internal medicine, rheumatology, pain management, endocrinology, and nephrology has been assembled with the specific goal of promoting and educating on quality CBD products.
The Physicians CBD Council has officially launched in October of 2022 its certification program and introduced the Physicians Quality Verified Seal program. This quality seal is an essential step on the path to the industry self-regulating and ridding itself of an onslaught of low-quality, and potentially dangerous, products.
“This is an important first step in advancing safety and quality in the CBD industry, and physicians are at the forefront stepping into an apparent vacuum,” stated Dr. Dung Trinh, founder, CEO, and Chief Medical Officer of Irvine Clinical Research and Cognivue.
The Physicians CBD Council is taking several important steps to disseminate education for consumers, even offering a certification course that allows people to learn about the endocannabinoid system and how cannabis/CBD interacts with it. The group of doctors hopes to highlight the science behind CBD and also maintains a database of published medical research detailing the effectiveness of CBD. When new or relevant information is issued, the database is immediately updated, giving consumers regular access to the latest medically-sound information.
The group also hosts in-person and online educational events to educate both consumers and other healthcare providers on the benefits of CBD use and how to identify quality products, but the quality seal is likely the most critical aspect of the Physicians CBD Council’s work. It gives consumers a way to distinguish safe, high-quality CBD from lower-quality competitors.
“Consumer safety is paramount when ingesting products which purport to be one thing and may perhaps be fraudulent or have unnatural ingredients, such as pesticides, or trace elements of heavy metals transferred into the product from packaging,” explains Dr. Trihn.
Thus far, the Physicians CBD Council has awarded its quality seal to ten CBD products, including NexZol’s Phyto-Zol Transdermal, Overcome’s Active Relief, Potency No. 10’s The Gold Serum, Impact Natural’s Restore, and Element Apothec’s Calm Cool Collected 1500mg Tincture. Products are added to the list regularly, with the entire list accessible to consumers on the Physicians CBD Council website.
Support for CBD from the medical community
The mission of the Physicians CBD Council is to lend credibility and educational support to the world of CBD which, in some ways, is still very much in its infancy. Their goal is to make CBD use safe and accessible for those who may most benefit. They are also working to elevate those CBD brands that have a commitment to providing the highest quality and efficacy products.
“Not only does our council benefit the consumer, but it also benefits the brands and their integrity,” says Helene Blanchette, the Council’s President. “We have seen that honest brands and actors want their products certified to enhance consumer trust. And if the review and testing identifies something foreign in the product, the good brands will take action to remedy the issue and obtain certification. As a neutral entity, we look forward to testing additional products and aiding brands in demonstrating the quality of their products to consumers.”
Low-quality CBD products that contain heavy metals, pesticides, or unknown toxins have fallen through the cracks of a largely unregulated system for some time. The Physician’s CBD Council concerned by the overwhelming need for expert oversight of a growing industry.
CBD brands that take quality control seriously have welcomed the Physicians CBD Council with open arms. “At Overcome, we are thrilled Physicians CBD Council has launched the Certified Physicians quality seal. It provides products and brands who are putting quality first, like ourselves, to rise above the clutter of products that are currently marketed,” said Annie Rouse, co-founder of Overcome and Chief Operating Officer at OP Innovates.
Outside of the cost of the certification, including product testing and registration, the Physicians CBD Council receives no monetary benefit from the sale of the certified products nor do they receive any compensation from the brands that receive their coveted seal. “Based on this independence, the Council can remain an unbiased, neutral, and incorruptible entity,” Blanchette explains.
Going forward, the Physicians CBD Council hopes to continue to disrupt and improve the CBD industry. The FDA is becoming more aware of the dangers of unregulated CBD products and has issued warnings to some companies for false claims and contaminated products.
With the Physicians CBD Council quality seal, the industry as a whole is bound to be safer and better regulated. And considering that 20% of Americans are now using CBD in some form, the Council’s work will help millions of people access and better understand the benefits of CBD.
Source: Jake from The Buzzie
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