Medical, industry experts weigh in on DeWine's hemp stance

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) - Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine talked at length Wednesday about the dangers of "intoxicating hemp" products. His Wednesday press conference revealed his stance on THC-infused gummies and other products he believes are being marketed to minors.

Delta-8 THC products are at the center of the "hemp-derived products" controversy at the Statehouse. The lesser-known hemp derivative contains fractions of the amount of the active ingredient in marijuana, THC. 

"The THC in Delta-8 versus a high concentration edible can be in the order of 100 times difference," Dr. Loren Wold of the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center said.

"My lab looks at the effect of inhaled products on the heart, for example. And it's really tough with these types of products because they change so frequently. That you walk in a 7-Eleven and there's a new product that you've never seen on the market before," he added, agreeing with DeWine that further regulation is needed for the products.

Delta-8 THC is relatively new to the market, which makes it much harder for the lab at OSU to get a glimpse of any adverse effects the product may cause.

"It hasn't been around a long time.,” Wold said. “I don't know exactly when it came out on the market, but it's not regulated by the FDA and so it can actually be sold in vape shops or other types of environments that sell these devices.

"A lot of people use them because they want the effect that they anticipate THC will give them, but it's a much less effect than they would get from, say, smoking marijuana,” Wold continued. “They could have significant effects. You know, if a young child, for example, got ahold of it, who knows what could happen if they took too much of the compound. They don't tell you how much to take, it's just that these components are available for sale and so it's really concerning without any regulations in place. I think that regulations need to be in place so that we can then control the distribution or the sale. Which then hopefully we'll be able to better understand the potential short- and long-term implications.”

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not have any regulations for Delta-8 THC products, but the substance has been legal at the federal level since 2018. However, there have been reports of adverse effects by users. It's important to note these instances are all self-reported

"The FDA had around 1,000 or so incidents or adverse events that were reported last year of Delta-8 and the majority of those actually were adults,” Wold said. “What's concerning with these reports is a lot of times these are naive users or ones that are just starting to use these components. And so, we don't know how these could impact someone who has say a pre-existing health condition.”

When Wold was asked if Delta-8 THC products were dangerous for children, he said, "I think, you know, it's hard to say. I would say that any of these components that one is consuming where we don't know the health effects, which we don't with Delta-8. There really hasn't been any large clinical study to look at the true cardiovascular or heart effects of taking this compound. I think it's severely under-reported, because once again, without regulations people don't know how much is safe to actually use."

Bret Worley is President and CEO at MC Nutraceuticals, a company the specializes in production and distribution of THC products like Delta-8. He heard what DeWine had to say about regulating "intoxicating hemp" and he agreed, for the most part.

"I think the governor, and I don't know what the attorney general's stance is, but they probably like the ability to enforce sensible regulations is what I took out of his stance,” Worley said. “I think it got portrayed a little bit negatively. And then I heard about the press conference and I don't think the press conference was, 'Let's eradicate the hemp industry;’ I think it was more like, 'I see a problem and I want the legislation to do something about it' and I totally agree.”

"This is not a harmful product,” he added. “If you overuse something, there can be issues, yes. Will you die? No, so that's the good news. It doesn't have a problem like alcohol or long-term effects of tobacco. I think anyone that thinks a certain cannabinoid is unsafe, I would really challenge that because there would be no proof behind it. I can't point to a Johns Hopkins study on Delta-8 use over the last 20 years because it doesn't exist; can't say that about cannabis, either. I can just tell you that 40 million people have consumed it, and enjoyed it.”

Some states already regulate Delta-8 THC products. In many that have regulations, you have to be 21 to purchase Delta-8. Florida has an age limit set at 18. Worley said these regulations are good for business.

"There needs to be regulations, depending on the state, 18 or 21-plus,” Worley said. “I think his big concern is that children get it. There's you know a second degree of the products that are trademark infringement, which I think is what he presented today in his interview, obviously can't support that. That's already illegal."

That second part is a tactic used by black-market Delta-8 THC product suppliers. They present a product to look like another existing product, often aimed at children. Marketing toward teens, however, is not a new phenomenon.

"Juul was marketing specifically to teens, making their ads look attractive, that it was cool to use and I think we're going to start seeing that with ads for Delta-8 and similar components or similar products because they know they're growing user base are young adults,” Wold said. “I hate to say that you know is this the new wave of vaping pandemic if you will in the youth? But it could be because it's a new, it's a new product.”

Wold said the important thing to take away from DeWine's comments on “intoxicating hemp” products is, "Regulations have to be put in place so that we can control the problem until we really can truly understand the health risks. These are new products. We don't understand the health effects both short and long term."

That's something Worley agreed with.

 "Put guardrails on it, it’s that simple,” he said. “It's a federally legal product that can be sold and consumed alike.”