US Pharmacopoeia Position on Products Containing Delta-8 THC

The US Pharmacopeia has released a commentary expressing potential safety concerns and the need for quality control of products containing the Delta-8 THC cannabinoid that are gradually flooding the market.  

The editors of the specialized electronic edition of national cannabis growers are confident that our dear readers and listeners will be interested in information from the representatives of the pharmacopoeial market of the most highly developed country in the world. We are sure that the goods that appear on the territory of our country, which include this cannabinoid, can pose a threat to health, therefore, the information of our American colleagues must be borne in mind in cases when there is a desire to purchase any synthetic cannabinoids.

Certain provisions of the Law on Agriculture adopted at the end of 2018 removed the hemp plant from Schedule 1 of controlled substances. However, Delta 9 THC (the main psychoactive component of Cannabisa) remained on the list. Since only Delta-9 THC is banned in the United States, the country is allowed to isolate and develop other cannabinoids. 

Cannabidiol is the first drug-free cannabinoid to be commercialized primarily because the plant contains the maximum amount of it. Therefore, there is already a significant amount of research confirming its therapeutic effects. 

Delta-8 THC is being commercialized without adequate scientific research and sufficient information about its quality and therapeutic properties. "These products can pose a public health hazard due to the intoxicating effect of Delta-8 THC at high levels of concentration and potential quality issues in the final product."

The document notes that the overwhelming majority of everything that is currently on the market is produced synthetically. "Products labeled as containing Delta-8 THC are highly likely to be synthetically obtained, as obtaining them naturally is considered economically impractical given the low concentrations of this cannabinoid in the hemp plant." Most often, Delta-8 THC is obtained by chemically altering the cannabidiol molecule, which makes the quality of the final product extremely questionable (the process involves the use of strong acids and powerful catalysts, which in most cases leads to the formation of undesirable and / or uncharacteristic plant by-products and impurities) ... 

“Little is known about products labeled as containing Delta-8 THC so much that the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a separate document describing the already known problems associated with their use. Depending on how these kinds of goods are produced, they may contain impurities harmful to the human body, which are not found in the hemp plant itself ”.

“Products containing Delta-8 THC are currently ubiquitous throughout the United States (gas stations, shops, the Internet). They are sold without any precautionary warnings, giving consumers a false sense of safety. ” 

Commentary of the specialists of the Association "Ukrainian technical hemp"

The independent scientific non-profit organization US Pharmacopeia (USP, USA) has published a commentary expressing potential concerns about the safety and the need to control the quality of products containing the Delta-8 THC cannabinoid, which are gradually flooding the market.