# What's the deal with CBD? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 3, 2025, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056 "2025-03-03T04:30:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/1 "2025-03-03T04:30:23Z")
Harrelsen’s Own CBD commercials say this to me: A mother says, ‘When the kids turn… “unholy”, Harrelson’s Own keeps my patience [alive?]."’ To me, a non-user, this says, ‘When my kids are too much. I get high.’ The commercial says to me, ‘If life’s getting you down, get high!’ So what’s the deal with CBD? Does it actually do anything? Or is it a crutch? Or is it a placebo? ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/2 "2025-03-03T04:34:44Z")
I’m sure it varies from person to person, but when I used CBD, it had essentially zero effect. It wasn’t even like melatonin. I couldn’t feel it doing anything. It is not psychoactive like weed, THC, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/3 "2025-03-03T04:48:37Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > I’m sure it varies from person to person, but when I used CBD, it had essentially zero effect. It wasn’t even like melatonin. I couldn’t feel it doing anything. Maybe you need to step up to Heroin AM: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/W-ZdQ0z5cLM/maxresdefault.jpg "Heroin AM - SNL") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-ZdQ0z5cLM) Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/4 "2025-03-03T06:45:50Z")
CBD doesn’t get you high. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/5 "2025-03-03T12:01:23Z")
Here’s a cite that looks both relatively recent and reputable: > **[Cannabidiol (CBD): What we know and what we don't - Harvard Health](https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/cannabidiol-cbd-what-we-know-and-what-we-dont-2018082414476)** > > Cannabidiol (CBD) is an active ingredient in cannabis that is derived from the hemp plant, but it does not cause a high and is not addictive. CBD has been shown to be effective in treating c... > [@](#): > > We need more research, but CBD is proving to be a helpful, relatively non-toxic option for managing anxiety, insomnia, and chronic pain. Without sufficient high-quality evidence in human studies, we can’t pinpoint effective doses, and because CBD currently is typically available as an unregulated supplement, it can be difficult to know exactly what you are getting, or to conduct studies. And, yes, > [@](#): > > One of hundreds of components in marijuana, CBD does not cause a high by itself. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/6 "2025-03-03T12:42:30Z")
I have given CBD it to my Parson (Jack Russell) Terrier either when we are expecting a thunder storm or when fireworks or gunshots are used to celebrate the 4th of July or New Years Eve, and it calms him down tremendously. So much so that he often sleeps for hours, completely unaware of the noise outside. My vet said it’s okay for occasional use. If I didn’t use it, he would be running around the house barking and stressed out until the noise stopped, which could be a few hours. I have it both in chewable and liquid form. I’ve never needed/used it myself. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/7 "2025-03-03T13:13:54Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > I’m sure it varies from person to person, but when I used CBD, it had essentially zero effect. It wasn’t even like melatonin. I couldn’t feel it doing anything. Yeah, the only effect I get at all from CBD is a sensation of greater lightness… …in my wallet. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/8 "2025-03-03T14:04:22Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > It is not psychoactive like weed, THC, etc. > [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > CBD doesn’t get you high. CBD products can contain enough THC to cause the user to fail a drug test. > **[Does CBD Show Up On a Drug Test?](https://www.verywellhealth.com/cbd-oil-and-failing-drug-tests-4580277)** > > Cases of CBD oil users failing drug tests are on the rise. Learn more about why this happens and how to avoid it. > **[Some CBD Products May Yield Cannabis-Positive Urine Drug Tests](https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/newsroom/news-releases/2019/11/some-cbd-products-may-yield-cannabis-positive-urine-drug-tests)** > > Small study concludes that caution is warranted for users of “high CBD, low THC” cannabis products [CBD can trigger positive drug test](https://www.ang.af.mil/Media/Article-Display/Article/2057473/cbd-can-trigger-positive-drug-test/) – Staff Sgt. Tony Harp, Air National Guard I happened to watch an episode of “Contraband: Seized at the Border” last night in which a customs agent tested two incoming CBD products for THC: a pack of gummies and a tub of cream. The cream tested positive for THC but the agent let it slide because it’s not for internal use. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/9 "2025-03-03T14:15:27Z")
Personal experience? It doesn’t do anything for me at the doses I’ve taken. No calmness, no sleepiness, no reduction of anxiety, nothing. I feel I get at least some effect from something like L-theanine, but I’m still trying that one out. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/10 "2025-03-03T14:20:38Z")
My wife is a strong proponent of using topical CBD for inflamation (knee), she’s never tried consuming it. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/11 "2025-03-03T14:35:48Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > One of hundreds of components in marijuana, CBD does not cause a high by itself. Is there any published research on the pharmacology of this? What makes THC non-psychoactive and other cannabinoids psychoactive? ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/12 "2025-03-03T14:39:38Z")
So is it safe to say CBD aligns somewhere with homeopathy? No science to back it up, just a lot of anecdotal evidence? ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/13 "2025-03-03T14:50:38Z")
For me, taking CBD alone has never provided any effect at all. However I have noticed that CBD will prevent THC from making me feel too high, if all I want is the muscle relaxation/sedation. Obviously those who are seeking that dissociating buzz will want to be aware of that. There are people who insist there’s an “entourage effect” with cannabis where it doesn’t work correctly unless all 99 cannabis molecules are taken together. In my opinion that’s just stoner physiology driven by an ungoverned industry that’s looking for ways to profit off byproduct distillates that are minimally active (if at all). Though I will say that I like [RSO](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_Simpson_Oil) (a whole plant extract) better than any other edible I’ve tried, so maybe there’s something to it. Honestly I think a lot of the CBD craze is driven by the cannabis industry trying to monetize distillation byproducts that aren’t worth much, and also to help normalize the “weed is medicine” rationale for legalization. It’s unlikely that we’ll ever know for sure unless some of the legal barriers to scientific research are lifted. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/14 "2025-03-03T15:35:12Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > For me, taking CBD alone has never provided any effect at all. However I have noticed that CBD will prevent THC from making me feel too high, if all I want is the muscle relation/sedation. > Obviously those who are seeking that dissociating buzz will want to be aware of that. I’ve heard that the supposedly calming effects of CBD can take the edge off the ‘paranoid’ feelings some get from a THC high, of which I’m one. I wish I could take THC and the buzz would have a relaxing effect on me, but it ramps up my ‘what-if thinking’ and increases my anxiety. So I got some gummies that are supposed to be a 1:1 ratio of CBD to THC. I still get too high and paranoid to enjoy the buzz if I take one 10mg gummy. A half is ok. It’s funny though- when I’d get high as a kid, I’d get paranoid about getting busted or people knowing I’m high. Now as a rapidly aging adult, my paranoia when I get high is about stuff like possible health issues or whether my retirement fund is doing well enough 🙄 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/15 "2025-03-03T15:41:11Z")
> [@solost](#): > > I still get too high and paranoid to enjoy the buzz if I take one 10mg gummy. A half is ok. That’s exactly the same for me. I haven’t bought gummies in a few months, but I would either buy 5 mg doses or take half a 10 mg. Sometimes a 10mg would be fine for me; sometimes not. So I stick with 5. I also tried ones that are 1:1 and 1:2 of THC and CBD, and I’m not entirely sure whether I feel a difference or not from straight THC. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/16 "2025-03-03T15:53:21Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > So is it safe to say CBD aligns somewhere with homeopathy? No science to back it up, just a lot of anecdotal evidence? Not really. Homeopathy is provably bunk from first principles; actual experimentation is totally unnecessary. CBD is more like the thousands of other “natural products” / supplements touted as helpful for this or that condition. In the absence of _controlled_ experiments we can’t say yeah or nay. Nay is statistically more likely if we have no Bayesian prior to bias the results the other way. Now the vast _uncontrolled_ experiment of all the people consuming all the CBD-containing stuff of whatever purity and provenance does prove one important and now-reliable result. We now know the stuff is not promptly fatal at even high-typical dosages, and any serious harms are long-term in manifesting. So it’s got that much going for it at least. For what little that’s worth. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/17 "2025-03-03T16:29:45Z")
> [@solost](#): > > I’ve heard that the supposedly calming effects of CBD can take the edge off the ‘paranoid’ feelings some get from a THC high, of which I’m one. I wish I could take THC and the buzz would have a relaxing effect on me, but it ramps up my ‘what-if thinking’ and increases my anxiety. That’s specifically what I was alluding to, for myself. CBD helps reduce those feelings. Taking CBD alone does absolutely nothing for me, but I am famously high-tolerance and high-appetite for any given psychoactive substance. I couldn’t possibly get high on less than 25mg of THC, so normies probably shouldn’t generalize my experience to theirs. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/18 "2025-03-03T16:52:51Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > So is it safe to say CBD aligns somewhere with homeopathy? No science to back it up, just a lot of anecdotal evidence? No. It’s licensed for use in certain forms of epilepsy - which requires proof of efficacy. So not homeopathy, but whether this means that it’s doing anything much when used as a supplement for - uhhh - wellness, that’s another thing. > In the United States, the FDA has indicated only one brand of prescription cannabidiol called Epidiolex for the treatment of seizures associated with Dravet syndrome, Lennox–Gastaut syndrome, or tuberous sclerosis complex in people one year of age and older. [Wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabidiol#Epilepsy) As an aside, I don’t know how posters are using CBD, but the same cite states this: > The oral bioavailability of cannabidiol is approximately 6% in fasting state and 36.5—57.3% in fed-state. So if it has no effect when you take it on an empty stomach, maybe that’s not a big surprise. j ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/19 "2025-03-03T17:35:21Z")
For me it’s usually been after or with a meal. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2025, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056/20 "2025-03-03T17:43:29Z")
Throw my anecdote on the pile that CBD does nothing for me. No sleepiness, no pain reduction, no anxiety management. I have friends who swear by it, but based on the specifics of who those people are, it just reenforces the idea that’s it’s a placebo. They’ve all fallen for similar fads in the past. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-cbd/1015056.md?page=2)