Just a little more than two months after Validcare released the preliminary results of a study on cannabidiol’s (CBD’s) effect on the liver, the company has announced the release of a separate report on CBD usage among Americans that it simultaneously conducted along with consumer marketing research company Cannabis Business Experts (CBE).
The preliminary results of Validcare’s liver study, commissioned and designed in response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) request for science-based data, showed no evidence of liver toxicity among CBD users. Many of those same research participants have reported increased perceptions of overall wellness with CBD use in the separate study conducted with CBE.
More than 1,400 CBD users from across the U.S. participated in CBE and Validcare’s “CBD Motivations, Use and Benefits Study,” including the 839 users that took part in the liver research. CBE and Validcare’s study. Researchers looked at various information about users, such as their age; sex; weight; the amount and frequency of their CBD usage; perceptions of the cannabinoid’s effect on various symptoms; and interactions with other drugs such as prescription and over-the-counter medicines, nutritional supplements, alcohol and tobacco.
In a press release announcing the report, CBE stated the study answers the question, “How do perceptions of general wellness change with CBD usage?” While those interested in learning those details will need to purchase the report, CBE co-founder Ashley Grace told Hemp Grower that users have reported an improved perception of their personal wellness—-in other words, they feel their wellness has improved since they began using CBD.
“I can share with you that the overall efficacy of the CBD working in that regard is quite remarkable,” said Grace, who was also the founding chief marketing officer of Charlotte’s Web and HempFusion. “It's helping just about everyone at least maintain their status, if not improve. There are very few, if any, observations where things are getting worse for CBD users, which is quite remarkable from a research standpoint.”
The 26-page study is available in PDF form and costs $29,999. Those interested in purchasing it should contact Grace directly at ashley@cannabisbusinessexperts.com.
The following 13 CBD companies sponsored the research: Asterra Labs, Boulder Botanical & Bioscience Labs, Care by Design, CBDistillery, CBD American Shaman, Charlotte’s Web, Columbia Care, Global Widget, HempFusion, Infinite CBD, Kannaway, Medterra CBD and SunMed CBD.
All of the users in the study had previously used CBD, which Grace said the researchers were able to confirm because the users were customers of the CBD companies.
The researchers also found that 12.5% of CBD users in their dataset accounted for approximately 33% of the sales volume in the category. It doesn’t match the business rule that 20% of users make up 80% of the volume, but still, Grace said it was surprising.
“I certainly didn't think we were going to get to 20% of the users making up 80% of the market because it's too new of a category for that to be [the case], but I was shocked that already, there’s such a small group of people making up such a large percentage of the category volume,” he said.
As businesses better understand who those customers are, Grace said they can then make efforts to reach them. They can also change their strategies to reach new clientele.
“Maybe you want to have a strategy that uses different forms, different dosing levels to try to solidify your base among the other folks that are using CBD,” he said.
Regarding the research into people’s reported CBD use alongside other drugs, Grace said, “People that have consumed alcohol and/or people who have consumed tobacco, for example—they use CBD differently than people who have not used alcohol or tobacco. So, there are variations there that are very important to understand if you're in those sectors because you may or may not be having the heavy users in your group.
“There are just different patterns there that are important for people to understand. The other thing that I think is really interesting is, if you're a CBD company, how do you begin to position your products and market your products through either professional endorsements or alignments with sales channels, … messaging, even in your advertisements?”
In addition to the commercial businesses that might have an interest in purchasing the report, such as existing CBD companies, consumer-packaged goods sellers and pharmaceutical providers, Grace said regulators at the FDA might also find value in it.
“If they're looking at something like dosing—I know they've got their answer from the Validcare dimension already with regards to the safety—but if they're looking at further regulation around, ‘Should we put dosing caps on CBD products’ or things like that, this would be good information to look at to see what people are using and where that kind of line might be best drawn, if there ever was a need to draw a line.”