QUESTION:
Are Cannabis Energy Drinks safe or harmful?
ANSWER:
Yes, experts this drink is no more harmful than a cup of coffee, and contains no THC.
SOURCES:
Cannabis Energy Drink distributors, Anne Arundel Community College, professor Shad Ewart, National Spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Libby Mills.
PROCESS:
When you think of pot products – Denver probably comes to mind, so when one of our WUSA9 colleagues came across this Cannabis Energy drink at an outdoor festival right here in DC she got a little skeptical, handing the can over to the Verify team asking, will this thing get you high and is it even safe?
To get answers, we spoke with Cannabis Energy Drink distributors, Anne Arundel Community College, professor Shad Ewart, who teaches a medical cannabis course, and National Spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Libby Mills.
The company told our researchers you can get find these drinks in 100 stores in the U.S., 7 are right here in the District. Since it's imported from Amsterdam, the product had to meet U.S. regulations by the FDA.
Now we know it's been a registered product here in the U.S. since 2016, but what's actually in the can? We looked at the ingredients – you've got caffeine, taurine and sugar. That's the same stuff you'll find in other energy drinks like Monster and Red Bull.
The company told our researchers you CAN get find these drinks in 100 stores in the U.S., 7 are right here in the District. Since it's imported from Amsterdam, the product had to meet U.S. regulations by the FDA.
Professor Shad Ewart, told WUSA9 News, “The hemp seed oil has no psychotropic effect, it doesn't matter how many of these you drink, you will not get high." But the professor said he knows kids might still perceive the product to be associated the marijuana.
“My greatest concern is that kids will assume there is some THC in the product and if they drink a bunch they will get a marijuana high...no marijuana high, but they will have a rapid heartbeat.”
Libby Mills, National Spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics told Verify researchers, “Overall, yes, these types of beverages are no more harmful than a cup of coffee, drinking one cup of some of these cannabis beverages will provide 80-130 mg of caffeine, the amount of caffeine in cup of coffee. Drinking caffeinated cannabis beverages can be a fat free alternative to coffee loaded with cream
Mills continued to explain that while hemp seeds and hemp seed oil are loaded with essential fatty acids – particularly omega-3 fatty acids that can help reduce inflammation and lower blood pressure but it is questionable how much of that oil is in cannabis beverages when there is zero percent fat in the drink. And consumers should note that omega-3 fatty acids in combination with anticoagulant medications can cause a bleeding risk.
So, there you have it, we can verify this stuff is just fine for most heathy adults, not children to drink, in moderation of course like with other energy drink products. Also, don't expect to get much more of a buzz than you would off a cup of Joe.
