American mixed martial artist Michelle Waterson is on a strict diet and exercise regimen — she works out four times a day. She has a busy home life in Albuquerque with her husband, seven-year-old daughter, two dogs and a cat. Plus, she has a robust social media following.
After a long day of workouts, family life and business meetings, she relaxes and recovers by eating a gummy bear, made with hemp-derived CBD.
CBD, short for cannabidiol, is one of 113+ phytocannabinoid chemicals in industrial hemp plants. The plant extract is different from THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the cannabinoid associated with marijuana’s intoxicating properties, as CBD does not produce a high effect. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), CBD products are legal if they contain less than 0.3 percent THC. Therefore this allows industrial hemp CBD products to be shipped nationwide.
Mainstream adoption
“CBD and cannabinoid products have been around for centuries,” says Chase Terwilliger, CEO of CBDistillery, a Colorado company that’s been producing hemp-derived CBD for three years. “Just recently in the past 10 years, it’s started to become part of the wellness communities’ daily regimen.”
CBD has gone mainstream, making its way into food, drinks and wellness products. The Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018, which removed hemp from the Controlled Substances Act — effectively legalizing industrial hemp on a federal level — paved the way.
“It was a bipartisan effort to say: ‘Hemp is not marijuana. Hemp, CBD, can provide benefits to our citizens,’” says Terwilliger. “That was huge for us.”
Relaxed and recharged
Waterson credits the CBD gummy, which also has melatonin, with helping her, “recharge my body and reset my mind.”
“Taken in the evenings, CBD, especially the nighttime CBD gummies, allows me to rebalance my body after a long day of training so I can enhance my recovery,” says the 33-year-old, who has been taking the 30mg THC-free gummy at bedtime for months. “These products work for me and are crucial to my daily regimen. If I don’t have a good night’s sleep, my body isn’t fully recovered and then I go back into training not at 100 percent, which can be dangerous.”
She also uses other CBDistillery products like the tinctures — liquid extracts taken under the tongue. Recently while training, Waterson got a black eye and used a CBD cream on it.
Waterson, has a warrior attitude inside and outside the octagon. Also known as “The Karate Hottie,” she was ranked the No. 1 women’s atomweight fighter in the world from 2013-2014. Currently she’s ranked No. 8 in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC’s) strawweight division.
Wellness overall
“CBD has a lot of benefits,” says Nic Smith, Pharm.D of Smith Pharmacy in Little Chute, WI. “According to the World Health Organization’s Critical Review Report dated June 2018, CBD has a ‘good safety profile,’ meaning it has not been shown to have negative side effects except in rare instances when mixed with certain pharmaceutical drugs.” He further explained, “As always, we recommend checking with your medical care provider if you are taking prescription medication, are pregnant or breastfeeding.”
Smith’s pharmacy has been selling CBDistillery products over the counter for more than a year. He says a typical dose of a CBD tincture starts at 15 mg a day.
He advises patients to read labels and consult a pharmacist when choosing CBD products. Not all products are the same. Many companies like CBDistillery have QR codes on their products so users can scan the code and see the laboratory breakdown of ingredients.
Many consumers like Waterson who use CBD praise its restorative qualities. “CBD has given me the confidence to know I am training at 100 percent,” she says.
Terwilliger is pleased Waterson likes the CDB products for her recovery and training regimen. “She’s such a great example of how beneficial this product could potentially be for certain individuals.”
