Recovery is a huge part of training and preparation for any competitive athlete. For years, many competitors have faced this part of their regimen without an all-natural resource to aid their bounce back.
Competitive athletes have had to avoid products such as cannabidiol (CBD) in the past because leagues and governing bodies have been slow to recognize their value as a natural pain reliever with possible anti-inflammatory benefits.
The world is finally changing now with a huge step forward recently taken with the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill in the U.S.
The change to federal law made hemp legal as well as products derived from it such as cannabidiol as long as the hemp is the Cannabis sativa L variety with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis.
The Farm Bill amended the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to provide for state and tribal regulation of hemp production. In all, it amended or repealed parts of seven laws, including amending the Controlled Substances Act to remove hemp.
It is likely to lead to changes in perception and rule-making in the sports world regarding athletes’ use of CBD products such as Aethics™ CBD Activated Whole Hemp Performance Drop and Aethics™ Muscle Rescue Lotion.
The sports world is just one sector of life where hemp and CBD products appear poised to make a profound impact.
Hemp products were lumped together with marijuana for years because they’re both versions of the Cannabis sativa L. plant. All Cannabis was bad Cannabis went the thinking. But the legalization of marijuana and medical marijuana has led to the realization for many that hemp and its derivatives have been widely misunderstood and underutilized in modern society.
Hemp and CBD products contain extremely low levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the chemical responsible for the psychoactive effects of marijuana.
CBD doesn’t get you high. It also doesn’t come with the possibility of addiction that so many athletes and others have experienced after first being prescribed opioids for pain relief by medical professionals.
There are plenty of athletes using CBD
The World Anti-Doping Agency permits the use of CBD and the BIG3 became the first American professional sports league to allow the use of CBD products by its athletes in 2018.
It does help athletes recover from workouts and competitions and the aches and pains associated with pushing themselves to their limits. It is cited by many users as a source of relief from a variety of ailments and conditions.
Already there are plenty of athletes using CBD products because their experience and peers tell them it works. They see and feel results.
The World Anti-Doping Agency permits the use of CBD and the BIG3 became the first American professional sports league to allow the use of CBD products by its athletes in 2018. It seems a wider embrace is inevitable from the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and NCAA with the historic passage of the Farm Bill.
There is still work to be done for sure. Leagues, organizations and governing bodies likely will be in the headlines in the near future as they explore how to make a tool like CBD available to their athletes now that the federal government has embraced hemp with legalization.
“At a time when farm income is down and growers are struggling, industrial hemp is a bright spot of agriculture’s future. My provision in the Farm Bill will not only legalize domestic hemp, but it will also allow state departments of agriculture to be responsible for its oversight”
– Mitch McConnell –
