If you haven’t heard of Delta-8 THC, now is the time. These products are sweeping the nation and are becoming more popular every day. When compared to the notorious delta 9 found in marijuana, delta 8 has more moderate effects and a milder high. These characteristics have given delta 8 many names like “cannabis lite,” “diet weed,” and “delta 9’s younger cousin/sibling.” As a result of the 2018 farm bill, all hemp-derived cannabinoid products containing less than 0.3% Delta-9 THC had become federally legal, allowing delta 8 to be legal to consume in all 50 states. Since then, over 2,300 cases of accidental poisoning in adults and children have been reported, causing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue warnings about delta-8 products. Now, states are picking up where the farm bill left by taking their own course of action to further regulate delta 8 and other psychoactive hemp-derived cannabinoids.
In states where delta 8 is legal and in some cases where delta 9 and marijuana are illegal, you can find delta-8 THC products lining the shelves at gas stations and corner smoke shops. These products include gummies, tinctures, vapes, topicals, and much more. If these types of products sound familiar to you, that’s because all of these various ways to consume delta 8 are the same as using delta 9 and cannabidiol (CBD). Make sure to not get these cannabinoids confused with each other! CBD is the leading non-psychoactive cannabinoid commonly found in industrial hemp. Delta 8 is like delta 9 in that they are highly intoxicating and psychoactive, especially when compared to CBD.
Some surveys report delta 8 as having the same medical benefits of marijuana’s delta-9 THC without the anxious and distracting side effects. That being said, unlike medical and recreational marijuana grown in legal states, hemp-derived cannabinoid products do not exist in a regulated market, allowing for incredible discrepancies in labeling, potency, and safety among hemp brands.
The unregulated hemp market has yielded low quality companies to enter the space, which have been the root cause for accidental poisoning. The CDC and FDA’s warning about delta 8 sheds light onto the ongoing problem with an industry that has no rules. An analysis published in August suggests that by fully legalizing and regulating cannabis, the United States will be able to reduce the motivation for companies to create harmful hemp-derived products.
One hemp company, however, is trying to be ahead of the curve for regulation by setting their quality standards as high as possible. Mints Brand, a hemp company located in southern California, understands that like the marijuana industry, hemp businesses should also be required to carefully pay attention to detail. Hemp and marijuana are both cannabis, and should be held to the same standards.
A milder experience, but still a ‘high’
Delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active cannabinoid in delta 8 products, has a similar chemical structure to delta-9 THC found in marijuana. The similarities of these cannabinoids cause them to bind to the same CB1 receptors in the brain and endocannabinoid system. Recent research has shown that delta-8 binds less strongly to the receptors compared to delta-9. This observation is the reason behind why delta 8 is given nicknames like “diet weed.”
Both of these cannabinoids are naturally found in cannabis plants; however, delta 8 is found in trace amounts. Since delta 8 is difficult to cultivate through cannabis, hemp-derived cannabinoid manufacturers chemically synthesize delta 8 from CBD.
In January 2022, a survey published by the Journal of Cannabis Research suggests that delta 8 users experience similar benefits as delta 9, including relaxation, euphoria, and pain relief. Some of the side effects in delta 9 were also found in delta 8. These delta 8 users reported having an altered sense of time, difficulty concentrating, or problems with short-term memory. A smaller group of people reported having anxiety or paranoia.
“We found that people who are utilizing delta-8-THC feel fewer negative side effects, and they are using it in modalities that are safer, like vaping or edibles or using topically,” study author Jessica Kruger, PhD, a clinical assistant professor of community health and health behavior at University at Buffalo, said in a press release.
Kruger and her colleague argued in their paper for more research on the risks, benefits, and psychoactive effects of delta 8. “While delta-8-THC appears to have some really big, positive attributes, we need to know more, and we should be cautious with any product that’s hitting the market unregulated and untested,” Kruger said.
Some delta-8 products low quality
Under the 2018 farm bill, Delta-8 THC products are unregulated at the federal level. In May 2022, a California federal appeals court ruled that delta-8 THC is legal under the farm bill. In a quarter of the states like Montana, delta 8 has been banned. Every state is facing the challenge of picking up where the federal government left off, and is taking delta 8 and other psychoactive cannabinoid regulations to their own state laws. This inconsistent regulation is a leading cause as to why hemp companies also face the same amount of inconsistency. Finding a reliable hemp brand has become more difficult than ever before.
“When you have unregulated products being sold at gas stations, head shops, grocery stores – outside of a [cannabis] dispensary setting – the products tend to become dangerous because there’s no oversight on how they’re made, what the ingredients are, and if they’re sterile,” said Shanna Babalonis, PhD, an assistant professor in the Department of Behavioral Science at the University of Kentucky.
Although the process in manufacturing delta 8 is publicly available in scientific literature, the application requires careful practice.
“The problem is that the chemists aren’t always very good at what they’re doing, especially when they’re doing it in an unregulated way outside of the purview of the FDA or state oversight,” Babolonis said. “So what’s happening is there is sometimes also delta-9 in those products and there are byproducts of the chemical synthesis in those products – and some of that can be dangerous.”
At Mints, producing delta 8 is no joke. All Mints Brand products are lab tested at third party testing facilities for potency and contaminants including other cannabinoids, pesticides, bacteria, and heavy metals. These testing locations are all registered with the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), and follow all regulations set by medical and recreational cannabis programs.
Mislabeled delta-8 products and adverse reactions
In December 2021, a study conducted at the University of Rochester Medical Center found almost all of their tested delta 8 product samples contained contaminants ranging from delta-9 THC to heavy metals. Out of the 27 delta 8 products analyzed, none of them met the potency stated on their labels, and contained byproducts including delta-9 THC and heavy metals such as lead and mercury. Mislabeling hemp products does not stop at delta 8. As long as the hemp industry remains federally unregulated, all hemp-derived cannabinoid products face the possibility of contamination.
In September 2021, the CDC issued a health advisory notifying of the increased amount of potential dangers and adverse effects related to delta 8 products. In May 2022, the FDA followed suit by releasing their own warning about delta-8 THC.
“It is important for consumers to be aware that delta-8 THC products have not been evaluated or approved by the FDA for safe use in any context,” the agency said in its announcement. “They ma be marketed in ways that put the public health at risk and should especially be kept out of reach of children and pets.”
The FDA alone has received over 100 reports of accidental poisoning from delta-8 THC products. These symptoms include:
- hallucinations
- vomiting
- tremors
- anxiety
- dizziness
- confusion
- loss of consciousness
Delta-8 poisoning: Children at higher risk
According to the FDA, national poison control centers received over 2,300 cases of accidental delta-8 poisoning within the year’s time between January 2021 and February 2022. Over two thirds of these cases required medical attention, and one out of every ten people required critical care. Although over half of these delta 8 poisoning cases were adults, majority of teenager and children cases were a result of unintentional exposures.
These child and teenager cases may be due to the presentation of some edible products as appearing like ordinary snacks or candies.
“What’s especially risky is that [delta-8 products] often come in a really appealing jar or bag of gummy bears, with no child blocks or warnings,” Babolonis said.
“We know that when kids consume delta-8 in high quantities, it’s very serious for them. Kids may need to be incubated in the ICU when they overdose on this or any THC chemical.”
In contrast, an analysis published in August now suggests that accidental delta-8 THC poisoning cases are actually decreasing in states where recreational cannabis is legal.
The bottom line
Whether or not recreational cannabis is legal in your state, there is probably a vendor for hemp-derived delta 8. The ease and accessibility to these products come at a cost, and that is the risk of accidental poisoning from a sketchy hemp business.
Fortunately, there are companies like Mints Brand that are going above and beyond to provide high quality delta 8 and other hemp-derived products to the market. By taking the rules and regulations set by recreational and medical marijuana programs in legalized states, Mints Brand is able to maneuver the hemp industry with the same standards. Not only are their products safe to consume, all of their product packaging are also labelled to keep out of reach of children. Safety and quality are the foundations of Mints as a company in order to provide you the best hemp-derived products possible.
