What are the benefits of CBD  and is it the magical elixir that will save us from our anxiety?
A cannabis derivative called CBD  short for cannabidiol  has been zealously appearing on menus at coffee shops and cocktail bars in New York City and beyond. Flower Power Coffee, Van Leeuwen ice cream, By Chloe and an Astoria bar called Adriaen Block have all recently introduced CBD-infused items on their menus, promising all the chill of weed with none of the high. CBD oil is one of the latest health fads to enter the zeitgeist (theres a long list of these  ranging from medically sound advice to questionable things like avoiding carbs for eternity). For an extra $2, you can get 15 milligrams of CBD added to your cold brew (or matcha or tea) at Patent Coffee, the first Manhattan coffee shop to provide CBD, Emily Williams, the stores general manager, said in a phone interview. The shop advertises CBD as a boost with benefits; an easel outside the storefront highlights the supplements supposed superpowers, which include pain and anxiety relief. I tasted Patents cold brew with and without the tincture, which has a slightly earthy, if not totally tasteless flavor. The shop uses CBD from a brand called Tru Organics, which can be purchased online starting at $69 for a 1-ounce bottle and squirted into just about anything. People are ordering cold brew with CBD oil for an extra dose of chill. While CBD is derived from the cannabis plant  the same one thats used to produce marijuana  its not an intoxicant, meaning it wont get you stoned. CBD is just one of the many of cannabinoids found in cannabis  THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, the one responsible for the high, is another. The type of CBD thats legal in states where weed isnt is typically derived from hemp, a cannabis plant that has very minimal traces of THC. CBD as a wellness remedy  Williams, of Patent Coffee, said she first learned about CBD and how it might help diffuse her own anxiety after she saw how cannabis impacted her husband, who procured a medical marijuana card from the city of New York per his doctors recommendation. At the time, her husband was on five different prescription medications, and with the help of marijuana, was able to get off of all of them. The biggest thing he was able to go off of was morphine  most of the other drugs were meant to counteract the side effects of morphine, she said, explaining that the medications contributed to other side effects. The sign in front of Patent Coffee Kate Bratskeir/Mic  Williams chose to start taking CBD  figuring the lack of THC meant it wouldnt disrupt her ability to work  and believes it has helped her manage her anxiety. I start my day with 30ml and then half way through the day, I take another 15ml, she said. She introduced CBD to Patent Coffee on April 20 and said the interest has only surged since. Being in New York, this is where everyone wants to try everything to be healthy besides going to the gym, she said. Williams said she sees the same patrons every day get their supplement put in their morning beverage, and new, curious customers regularly. Being in New York, this is where everyone wants to try everything to be healthy besides going to the gym.  Despite there not being much substantial proof surrounding CBDs benefits (more on this later), Ron Silver, chef and owner of Bubbys restaurants in Manhattan recently launched his own line of cannabis edibles called Azuca. Silvers products include a range of sweeteners and syrups that he said will kick in within 15 to 30 minutes because of how the ingredients are metabolized. Azuca CBD products are available in New York; Azuca with THC will be available in Massachussetts in September, with plans to expand to multiple states in the coming months. CBDs benefits, as told by marketers  Marketers are giving CBD the ultimate health halo treatment. And sure, theres something particularly wellness-y about taking an expensive potion to get back into balance, as Cannabis Feminist Jessica Assaft told Well and Good. Dirty Lemon, a beverage company that adds different, trendy supplements to its formula, launched a CBD-infused formula in July. Zak Normandin, CEO and founder of the brand, said that Dirty Lemon is at the forefront of wellness trends and provides its customers with functional ingredients, citing previous Dirty Lemon beverages that included charcoal and collagen. Normandin said the benefits [of CBD] include relief from chronic anxiety, stress management, decreased muscle and joint pain, acne reduction and improved sleep quality. The product also contains l-theanine, he added, a therapeutic ingredient found in tea that is known to improve cognition, heighten alertness and promote tranquility. Research around l-theanines benefits is murky, and while it has shown to promote calmness when consumed in its natural state  namely in black tea  more research is needed to show its impact as a supplement. This all sounds great  and perhaps an easy avenue for self-improvement  but none of the claims are evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration, as the back of Dirty Lemons bottle reads. And this brings us to the science behind CBD: Theres little research on the effects of CBD, and much of the support for the supplement is anecdotal rather than journal-based. This doesnt mean that CBD doesnt work, just that claims should be substantiated by medical experts before we all go buying CBD-infused everything. The back of a bottle of Dirty Lemon +CBD Kate Bratskeir/Mic  Research had been prohibited all these years, Joel Stanley, the founder and chairman of CW Hemp, a Colorado-based hemp company that recently collaborated with Moon Juice to create special wellness drinks, said over the phone. In the next decade, well have a lot more answers to so many of the questions [around CBD]. Early research has identified CBD as a possible treatment for conditions like high blood pressure, physical pain and anxiety, but many of these studies have minuscule sample sizes or are observed in rat subjects, rather than human ones. There are glimmers of progress in this field: Earlier in 2018, the FDA approved Epidiolex, an epilepsy medication made with CBD shown to help treat specific types of seizures in children. Epidiolex is the first prescription medication with CBD to gain such approval in the U.S. There are nuances surrounding CBD and its effectiveness. Najeeb Hussaini, a board-certified family physician who evaluates patients to see if they qualify for medical marijuana at NY Medical Marijuana Associates, said in a phone interview that CBD is certainly not known to cause any beneficiary affects by itself. Hussaini stressed that CBD does have properties that contribute to physical and mental pain relief, but in order to reach the bodys pain receptors, it requires some dosage of THC to get into the bloodstream and kick in. Ultimately, [in order to reach] the pain receptors you need to target, the chemical has to attach itself to the THC receptor in order for it to work, he said. CBD by itself  I dont even know if it really goes anywhere if you ingest it.  Whats next for CBD research  ProjectCBD, a nonprofit working to promote research into the medical uses of CBD, writes on its website that scientific studies have established that CBD and THC interact synergistically to enhance each others therapeutic effects. They add that despite the misconception that THC is the bad cannabinoid, and CBD is the good cannabinoid, the two work best together. As ProjectCBD writes, extensive clinical research has demonstrated that CBD combined with THC is more beneficial for neuropathic pain than either compound as a single molecule.  One ability we have now is that anecdotal evidence is becoming more meaningful to the scientific community, Stanley, the founder of CW Hemp, said. At this point for marijuana and for hemp, the anecdotal evidence is hundreds and thousands. People are saying, This is working, and finally we are studying it because we know theres something there. As for these anecdotes that support using CBD in a more recreational sense, one staffer at Esquire described the supplement as giving her all the upsides of a glass of wine, but without the fear that youre going to accidentally tell your co-workers something embarrassing.  As a consumer, its important to pay attention to where the product comes from and how its being tested. Just like with any health trend, certain companies will hop on the bandwagon to make a quick buck without paying close attention to the products actual effects. Youre always going to see the green rush, with companies that are coming in and its just about making money on something popular and the companies dont really care about the active ingredient, Stanley said, adding that this happens in almost all vitamins and supplements. Hussaini, the doctor, remains skeptical. If anecdotally its giving people good feelings, sure, Hussaini said, lingering on the fact that CBD alone hasnt been shown to be properly absorbed by the body. [The CBD] isnt going to jive, he said. Over-the-counter stuff tends to basically be gimmicks and theyre certainly not going to be effective in my medical opinion.  Check out episode 14 of Mic Dispatch above  only on Facebook Watch. 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