Frequently Asked Questions

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CANNABIS OIL AND CBD OIL?

Cannabis plants and hemp plants are not the same plants, but they do come from the same (cannabis) family and can therefore both be called cannabis plants. When you read something about cannabis somewhere, it could be about both hemp oil and cannabis oil (marijuana). The largest and most important difference between hemp plants and cannabis plants is the fact that hemp plants contain little or no THC and a lot of CBD. Cannabis plants contain a lot of THC and little CBD. Oil with THC (cannabis oil) can be purchased with a doctor’s prescription at the Transvaal pharmacy in The Hague. CBD Oil is tolerated in the Netherlands and completely legal for sale in most other European countries. However, both components are said to have great medicinal benefits.

As a result, both types of oil are sometimes called medicinal cannabis oil.

DO YOU GET HIGH FROM CBD OIL?

You will not get high from CBD Oil. Cannabidiol does come from the hemp plant but is not addictive, does not have a mind-expanding effect and does not cause hallucinations. THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) is the psychoactive substance that provides a ‘high’ feeling and this is usually only found in cannabis oil. Residual values ​​can also sometimes be found in CBD Oil, but these are so low that you will not notice this.

HOW DO YOU USE CBD OIL?

CBD Oil is taken orally. You hold the drops under your tongue for a moment and then swallow them. The oral mucosa quickly absorbs the active substance. It can also be taken with a piece of fruit or bread, or – if you have difficulty with the taste or intake of the CBD oil – in capsule form.

WHAT IS THE CORRECT DOSE OF CBD OIL?

The dosage of CBD Oil is highly dependent on the complaints for which you use the CBD Oil. Moreover, every person reacts differently to it. So it is mainly a matter of trying it out yourself. Start with a low dose of CBD Oil (for example two drops per day) and slowly build up until you have found an effective dosage for you. It can take a while for CBD Oil to take effect, so give it a few weeks before deciding whether it is something for you. CBD Oil is available in different concentrations, from 2.5 percent to even 30 percent. A lower concentration of CBD Oil is often only used preventively, or used for mild or early complaints.

DOES CBD OIL ALSO HAVE SIDE EFFECTS?

CBD Oil in low concentrations, without THC, generally has no side effects and can be used by almost anyone, as long as the recommended dosage is followed. Use is not recommended for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, as insufficient research has been done into this.

There is a lot of confusion, the words hemp, weed and cannabis are used incorrectly too often. Most people think (wrongly) that they are all names for the same plant. Yet there is a lot of difference: weed will land you in jail and hemp is legal.

CANNABIS

Hemp, weed and cannabis are all words for the same plant species: Cannabis Sativa. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus. At the time, he assumed that there was only one variety of cannabis. We now know that there are three different subspecies: sativa, indica and ruderalis.

Cannabis is therefore the right word for the plant species in all its facets. If you are unsure whether to talk about hemp or weed, the word cannabis is always a good way out. You can think of all kinds of variations: cannabis products, cannabis leaves, cannabis resin, cannabis flowers and so on.

WEED

Weed is a word for female flowers of the cannabis plant. You can buy it in coffee shops that don’t just sell coffee, or sometimes from a dealer that doesn’t sell coffee. Dutch coffee shops have been looking for the tastiest weed to smoke for decades. The best weed generally contains a lot of THC. If you ingest a lot of that substance you will get stoned. Cannabis growers try to grow cannabis plants with as much THC as possible.

Dutch cannabis breeders have been breeding their varieties for decades. Plants with the best properties were crossed with other plants that did very well. We call a variety that has been bred in the Netherlands Nederwiet. There are a few unofficial requirements: the variety must have been bred in the Netherlands for at least three generations. The best individuals must be selected each time and then crossed again.s.

HEMP

Hemp is a word for cannabis plants that serve industrial purposes. You can make all kinds of things from cannabis: rope, jute, animal feed, insulation material, medicines and so on. The cannabis plant has hundreds of possible uses. Approximately 6,000 hectares of hemp grow in the north of the country. Farmers mainly use hemp as a cheap alternative to imported livestock feed.

Just like with Dutch cannabis, THC plays an important role in hemp varieties. But unlike cannabis growers, farmers do not want THC in their plants. Because farmers’ varieties contain so few psychoactive substances, the government does not make a problem with their hemp plots.

MASSIVE MEDIA ATTENTION ABOUT CBD OIL

CBD Oil received massive attention in 2013 when CNN broadcast a now legendary documentary about a three-year-old American girl with epilepsy. Charlotte Figi suffered from severe attacks from her first months of life (up to 200 per week) and (largely) got rid of them with the help of CBD Oil. Since then, people have been looking for good CBD Oil en masse.

GOVERNMENT CONFUSION

There is quite a bit of confusion (badum tss) in the Netherlands because the above terms are used incorrectly. The Dutch government uses its own definition of the word hemp. The Opium Act states that hemp is ‘any part of the plant of the genus cannabis’. But of course, that definition makes it incredibly confusing. You no longer know what people mean when they talk about hemp.

Fortunately, the government does make a distinction between legal and illegal cannabis. Because everyone understands that farmers do not belong in prison. That’s why they’ve come up with a new word for legal cannabis plants: fibre hemp.

The government assumes that industrial hemp is only suitable for extracting fibres, which you can use to make rope, for example. According to Dutch law, hemp ‘that is apparently intended for the production of fibres’ is permitted. Even judges sometimes have difficulty understanding current legislation. Because people who make animal feed or birdseed with cannabis do not have to be punished. But our law nowhere mentions such applications.