Concern over lack of federal oversight in CBD nutraceutical market

Thanks to major internet marketers and retailers, consumers have grasped at CBD products to self-treat a variety of common ailments, including, but not limited to, insomnia, joint pain, chronic pain and inflammation. In May, FDA convened a public meeting to discuss the challenges and approaches to managing this burgeoning stream of commerce.

FDA must provide guidance to industry and local law enforcement when dealing with such issues as the content and integrity of CBD products. But the lack of oversight or action by FDA, it seems, is at the root cause of a proliferation of CBD products, exposing consumers to a panoply of unknowns.

Without application and enforcement of current Good Manufacturing Practices measures applied, who really knows what is in the finished products, or for that matter, the starting materials? Many tested products have been found to have wide variations of CBD content, often in direct violation of current consumer labeling laws, and many also had more THC than would ever be allowed legally.

FDA must assign the personnel and resources—even if it requires an act of Congress and additional resources—to properly regulate the CBD market. Nature abhors a vacuum. And what we have now is very much a vacuum of national regulatory oversight of what could be either a significant contribution, or unfortunate detriment, to human health.

The full version of this article appears in INSIDER's CBD: The certified business of disruption digital magazine.

Mark A. LeDoux is chairman and CEO of Natural Alternatives International Inc. and chairman of the board of directors of the Natural Products Association. 

Learn more about CBD regulation and FDA’s stance from Mark LeDoux during the “DSHEA @ 25: Legal Reform and the Future of the Law” session on Friday, Oct. 18 at 9 a.m., at SupplySide West in Las Vegas.