FDA Warns Company Selling CBD Oil
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has published a warning letter it sent in September 2019 to a company selling cannabidiol (CBD) oil as a dietary supplement. “This product is labeled as a dietary supplement; however, it cannot be a dietary supplement because it does not meet the definition of a dietary supplement,” the letter stated. “Under those provisions, if an article (such as CBD) is an active ingredient in a drug product that has been approved [], or has been authorized for investigation as a new drug for which substantial clinical investigations have been instituted and for which the existence of such investigations has been made public, then products containing that substance are outside the definition of a dietary supplement. There is an exception if the substance was ‘marketed as’ a dietary supplement or as a conventional food before the new drug investigations were authorized; however, based on available evidence, FDA has concluded that this is not the case for CBD. FDA is not aware of any evidence that would call into question its current conclusion that CBD products are excluded from the dietary supplement definition [], but you may present FDA with any evidence that has bearing on this issue.”
Meanwhile, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) reportedly held a press conference demanding that FDA implement safety regulations for cannabidiol (CBD). “Right now there are no guidelines, no rules of the road, no guidance for consumers to know what’s healthy and what has side effects,” Blumenthal is quoted as saying.
