As we come close to the end of the first quarter of 2023, CBD remains to be (understandably) still on the mind of both retailers and customers, both here in the UK as well as a growing number of markets around the world. 

With the global market predicted to be worth $59.3 billion by 2030, it's interesting that there's still so much uncertainty around CBD as a product and the vast array of benefits it can have for people. 

Despite these healthy predictions for the market - CBD products exist in a sort of legally and logistically grey area. As Scott Sinder, NACS general counsel and a partner at Steptoe & Johnson LLP, said: “The disconnect between what’s legally required and what’s being done could not be more stark,”. 

Something that adds to this ongoing grey area, at least from the eyes of the customer, is the number of 'CBD Myths' that have been perpetuated ever since the cannabinoid started hitting the shelfs? Does it get you high? Does it make you sleepy? Will it show up on a drug test?

We're going to take a look at some of the more common myths surrounding CBD, ands the questions that people may have about the compound because of them.

Myth: CBD is not psychoactive and doesn't get you 'high'

Truth: It is psychoactive, but it isn't intoxicating.

A common thing said about CBD is that it isn't psychoactive, and while the effects it has on the body are very different to it's psychoactive counterpart THC, it technically is still psychoactive itself. CBD offers many of the benefits that THC offers, but without the 'high', and this, when put as such, leads people to draw the conclusion that the reason for this lack of 'high' is also a lack of it being psychoactive. 

Dr. Nick Jikomes, principal research scientist for Leafly, says that definitions are important here as 'psychoactive' means “a substance that affects the mind or behavior;” and intoxicating means “to excite or stupefy, especially to the point where physical and mental control is markedly diminished.” She, among others, compares CBD to beer and coffee: “CBD is psychoactive but not intoxicating,” he said. “THC is psychoactive and intoxicating.”

Myth: You will notice the effects of CBD immediately

Truth: You won't always. 

Many people think that because of how close as a compound CBD is to THC, that it will work similarly in terms of the time it takes for the effects of the compound to take hold. This isn't true at all - most forms of CBD will take much longer to take hold in your body and work with your endocannabinoid system to give your body benefits - usually either more than an hour or not fully until used repetitively over the course of a few days to a week. 

There are forms of intaking CBD, such as vaping it or using it as a topical on your skin, that will have a quicker effect than most. These ways of using it do however have the shortest lived effects, offsetting the fact they are also the fastest to take hold in the first place. 

The time it takes for CBDs effects to take place also depend on the individual as well as the method of consumption, as people's bodies and endocannabinoid systems (the nervous system that CBD works with) are all different. 

However, as shown over on Open Access Government, the industry has been developing new methods of consumption for CBD and Symtomax has developed a new Oral Tab which, when placed on the inside of the user’s cheek, can offer either an instant dose of cannabinoid, or a timed release over a few hours.

Myth: CBD will make me sleepy.

Truth:  Not directly, no. 

Sometimes, because of CBDs known effect on diminishing both anxiety and subsequently helping one become more calm and relaxed, people have said that it makes you sleepy. While it is a sleep aid because of these things, CBD itself doesn't make you feel tired and sleepy.

High doses of CBD can be sleep promoting, but it is not a sedative. Moderate doses of CBD are actually energising, specifically helping with alertness and focus. 

So in essence, to answer the question of whether it makes you feel sleepy you need to understand how CBD actually works within the body and the factors that affect how your body responds to it. 

Myth: People should only take CBD when they are ill or too address a problem

Truth: CBD is good for everyone, and not just used in conjunction with an illness.

CBD can have an amazing effect for nullifying illnesses or diseases. There are both medical studies and case studies, a growing amount in recent years, that point toward it helping with cancer, heart disease, IBS, glaucoma, acne, seizures and epilepsy, and chronic pain among many others. 

This doesn't, however, mean that it can't be used for people who are void of such illnesses and diseases, considering how CBD works with our body and the endocannabinoid system and how it can help balance it to greatly help in keeping your body and mind healthy. Our endocannabinoid system is benefitted by CBD (as explained our previous article on it), and the system itself regulates many things in our body such as appetite and digestion, metabolism, mood, learning and memory, motor control, sleep, cardiovascular system function,  muscle formation and skin and nerve function. 

By using CBD we help balance these things on a day to day basis, and so without there being a specific need for CBD for one particular thing - using it can be greatly beneficial to our bodies and minds and our ability too use them correctly.