Dosing, drug interactions top FDA’s questions about CBD as review continues

The regulators in charge of U.S. policy on CBD are giving the industry a first look at federal concerns as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) starts work looking at how cannabinoids can be used in food, drugs and dietary supplements.

Dr. Amy Abernethy and Lowell Schiller, who lead the FDA’s new work group on cannabinoids such as CBD, released a statement last week giving the hemp and marijuana industries an important glimpse at where the agency is headed.

The FDA has said for years that cannabinoids cannot be used in foods or dietary supplements.

But light enforcement has led to a proliferation of CBD foods and treatments, with some states giving hemp producers express permission to flout federal CBD limits. The FDA held its first hearing last month to consider a new policy on CBD. No date has been set for a conclusion.

Dr. Amy Abernethy

But Abernethy and Lowell listed four big health questions in their first statement after the hearing. The FDA regulators say they want to know about:

• Safe levels of daily CBD consumption.
• How CBD interacts with other drugs.
• How CBD affects “special populations, like children, the elderly, and pregnant or lactating women.”
• Possible risks of long-term CBD exposure.

The FDA has made no promises about expanding CBD access. But Abernethy and Lowell said in the statement that the FDA is “committed to evaluating the regulatory frameworks for non-drug uses, including products marketed as foods and dietary supplements.”