CBD (cannabidiol) is a chemical compound from the Cannabis sativa plant, indigenous to Eastern Asia. The chemical extract is being used, among other purposes, as a wellness aide in the U.S. CBD can also cause side effects, such as dry mouth, diarrhea, reduced appetite, drowsiness and fatigue.
To assess the awareness among the public to CBD, the company Invisibly used the Realtime Research tool to poll 1,087 U.S. citizens to assess their opinion on CBD. The poll revealed that most people have never tried a CBD product and many do not understand the difference between CBD, and the closely related compound THC, which is also derived from the Cannabis plant.
In relation to this, 58 percent of respondents do not know the difference between CBD and THC containing products. Furthermore, only 64 percent of respondents who have tried CBD understand the difference between the compounds. In addition, 36 percent of respondents who have tried CBD did so without knowing the difference between CBD and THC-containing products. While, 32 percent of respondents who have not tried CBD products still understood the difference between CBD and THC-containing products like marijuana.
It also stands that 62 percent of respondents have never tried any type of CBD product. Here, there was also a degree of resistance to using CBD products, with 53 percent of respondents saying they would not consider using a CBD product for any reason.
Just under 71 percent of respondents who have never tried a CBD product said that they “won’t use any CBD product” while nearly 30 percent of respondents who have never tried a CBD product would consider using it to reduce stress, anxiety or physical pain. 40 percent of respondents who have tried CBD said their primary reason was to reduce stress and anxiety while 17 percent said their primary reason was to reduce physical or chronic pain. 32 percent of respondents who have tried CBD use it for both reasons.
Of the remaining 47 percent of respondents who said they would consider using a CBD product, 24 percent said they would use it to reduce stress and anxiety, 14 percent said they would use or consider using CBD to reduce both stress and physical pain, and 9 percent said they would use or consider using CBD solely to reduce chronic physical pain.
Among those who elect to use CBD products, 40 percent of respondents who have tried CBD products said their primary reason was to reduce stress. This was the most popular reason for trying the products.
Of the respondents who had tried CBD, 14 percent used it in an ingestible form, 11 percent as a topical ointment or cream, and 13 percent had tried it in both ingestible and topical form.
In terms of gender differences, women are the biggest consumers of CBD products (at more than twice the rate of men and non-binary counterparts) and women are using it in both topical and ingestible forms.
