For the span of human history people have not only used plants to derive basic nutrients but have also used them in various ways to treat, prevent, and alleviate symptoms of many common diseases and ailments. As science has advanced our ability to identify the underlying agents of these benefits, plant-based medicine has evolved into a multi-billion dollar industry.

Many of these compounds and the plants that produce them have often been restricted in their use, or made illegal given their potency and psychotropic properties. Cannabis Sativa is probably the most ubiquitous of these. The unintended, and unfortunate consequences of making this plant illegal was that the wide range of highly beneficial compounds produced by it were excluded from human consumption because of their association with the psychotropic THC.

Of the many other cannabinoids present in Cannabis, cannabidiol or CBD, has created the most interest from a pharmaceutical and human health perspective. With Cannabis and its products becoming legal again in many countries and states within the USA, we can once again begin to explore and benefit from its ability to support human health and nutrition.

Dr Richard Watson