As defined by US federal law, non-psychoactive hemp (also commonly termed "industrial hemp"), regardless of its CBD content, is any part of the cannabis plant, whether growing or not, containing a ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of no more than 0.3% on a dry-weight basis. Certain standards are required for legal growing, cultivating, and producing the hemp plant, but there are no federal standards for quality being enforced in the hemp industry. Certain state regulations are in place, but vary state to state. For instance, the Colorado Industrial Hemp Program registers growers of industrial hemp and samples crops to verify that the dry-weight THC concentration does not exceed 0.3%. Side effects
Research indicates that cannabidiol may reduce adverse effects of THC, particularly those causing intoxication and sedation, but only at high doses. Safety studies of cannabidiol showed it is well tolerated, but may cause tiredness, somnolence, sedation, diarrhea, or changes in appetite as common adverse effects with the most common being somnolence and sedation. Side effects of CBD are dose related. Epidiolex documentation lists sleepiness, insomnia and poor quality sleep, decreased appetite, diarrhea, and fatigue. Low doses of cannabidiol cause DNA damage in human-derived cell lines. Recently published data also suggest that cannabidiol is a carcinogen. Potential interactions
Laboratory evidence indicated that cannabidiol may reduce THC clearance, increasing plasma concentrations which may raise THC availability to receptors and enhance its effect in a dose-dependent manner. In vitro, cannabidiol inhibited the activity of voltage-dependent sodium and potassium channels, which may affect neural activity.
In New Zealand, Sativex is "approved for use as an add-on treatment for symptom improvement in people with moderate to severe spasticity due to multiple sclerosis who have not responded adequately to other anti-spasticity medication. "Epidiolex is an orally administered cannabidiol solution. It was approved in 2018, by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treatment of two rare forms of childhood epilepsy, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome, and seizures associated with tuberous sclerosis complex. In the US, it is approved in these indications for patients one year of age and older. Chemistry
At room temperature, cannabidiol is a colorless crystalline solid. In strongly basic media and the presence of air, it is oxidized to a quinone. Under acidic conditions it cyclizes to THC, which also occurs during pyrolysis, but not during combustion (smoking). The synthesis of cannabidiol has been accomplished by several research groups. Biosynthesis
Cannabis produces CBD-carboxylic acid through the same metabolic pathway as THC, until the next to last step, where CBDA synthase performs catalysis instead of THCA synthase. Isomerism
Pyrolysis
In the typical operating temperature range of e-cigarettes (250–400 °C), 25–52% of CBD is transformed into other chemical substances: Δ9-THC, Δ8-THC, cannabinol and cannabichromene as predominant pyrolysates. From a chemical point of view, CBD in e-cigarettes can be considered as a precursor of THC. History
Efforts to isolate the active ingredients in cannabis were made in the 19th century. Cannabidiol was studied in 1940 from Minnesota wild hemp and Egyptian Cannabis indica resin.