CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- From stressed out soccer moms to grandmas in pain more and more people are starting to use Cannabidiol, better known as “CBD oil.”
Proponents say it helps with everything from PMS to arthritis and has all the beneficial effects of marijuana with one big difference, it doesn’t make you high.
There is only one store in the city that only sells CBD oil products, but a lot of stores in the area carry some CBD oil products because they;re suddenly becoming so popular.
Mignon Long is a florist in Plaza Midwood, she’s got 2 children, five grandchildren and suffers from arthritis
“Its pain every day,” she explains, and for a little while she had a little secret.
“I’ve started telling people even my family.”
This summer she started taking CBD oil. “From the first time I tried it, I felt the difference it was within an hour and I felt my pain relieve."
CBD is a marijuana extract that doesn’t have THC, so it doesn’t get you high.
Four years ago, it was legalized in North Carolina for treating epilepsy and though we talked to a number of law enforcement sources there’s no clear answer about whether it's now legal for the general population to buy, sell or use it.
Charlotte CBD is the first shop of its kind in the area, “we sell nothing but CBD products," said Michael Sims, the owner of Charlotte CBD.
All kinds of CBD products from pain cream to dog treats, coffee and tea. Advocates say CBD can help migraines, fibromyalgia, diabetes, epilepsy and more.
"Honestly I was a little apprehensive it sounded like a pseudo medicine," said Nikki Sims.
Sims has a one-year-old and another daughter on the way but said she used to struggle with anxiety and painful menstrual cramps.
“If I didn’t take 10 ibuprofin in a day, I couldn't get through and I don’t have to do that at all anymore.”
More and more people are hearing what CBD oil is, Long heard about it on Facebook.
“Some of the stigma is loosening up a bit. they're beginning to come around," said Long. "I think a lot of people are and I think that’s a good thing.”
So while the law is a little bit of a gray area on a state level we’re told new legislation is in the works to make it easier to access. Federally it is still illegal to use.
