CBDs: a ‘Wild West’ of wild claims

CBDs: a ‘Wild West’ of wild claims

Tinctures, salves, sprays, gummies and caramels are not always what they claim to be

CBD, a compound found in cannabis and hemp, zoomed from obscurity to omnipresence with breathtaking speed.

Relatively unknown just a few years ago, CBD-infused balms, said to help relieve pain and anxiety, now are prominently displayed at CVS pharmacies and Sprouts groceries. CBD shops have opened in Old Town and Pacific Beach, while CBD tinctures, bath salts, vaping cartridges, transdermal patches and other items are hawked at gas stations, farmer’s markets and across the internet.

Claims for these items’s health benefits range from the fraudulent — in July, the FDA warned a Massachusetts company to stop advertising its CBD nostrums as treatments for cancer, dementia and Parkinson’s disease — to the extravagant. A New York firm, Voesh, markets $500 CBD-treated collagen gloves as a way to “deliver an intense dose of moisture and visibly restore skin’s youthfulness.”

Local lab Tests Cannabis for Consumer Safety

Local lab Tests Cannabis for Consumer Safety

SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — The Infinite Chemical Analysis Lab building in Miramar looks like any other chemical lab, but inside the products they are testing are all cannabis.

InfiniteCal tests products for things like potency, pesticides, heavy metals and microbial analysis to make sure the products are safe for consumption and meet state standards.

Josh Swider is the CEO and co-founder. Swider’s company consists of roughly 45 employees, 30 of those are either chemists or biologists. The team tests products for licensed retailers to make sure their cannabis meets the standard for what is allowed by the state.

When it comes to vaping, Swider says their analysis shows that what’s making people sick is when the product is diluted, most recently with Vitamin E or Vitamin E acetate.

According to the CDC, 33 people have died from lung related illnesses linked to e-ciggarettes or vaping products. Most of those samples tested by the FDA had THC. San Diego County has confirmed 22 vape related illnesses in the county.

Although InfiniteCal doesn’t just test products for vaping, Swider says the best thing a person can do is to do their research and make sure they are buying from a licensed retailer. He also recommends asking the business for their certificate of analysis to find out what’s in the cannabis product they’re consuming.

Infinite Chemical Analysis Lab