Exploring the power of CBD in elite athletes

A leading CBD manufacturer is leading the race in discovering the potential of the cannabinoid for sports performance and recovery.

Global cannabis company, Brains Bioceutical is working with professional athletes to investigate the potential of CBD in sports medicine and recovery.

Brains – and its UK subsidiary BSPG Laboratories – is one of the few companies producing CBD as an Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) for medical treatments, research and development and clinical trials.

It recently launched the ALTIS / Brains Bioceutical Living Lab facility in the US – a state-of-the-art, athletics-training facility – that evaluates the power of CBD API in elite athletes.

The company claims to have reached a level of purity with its products – which are completely free of THC – that athletes can experience the benefits of CBD without concern for violating doping regulations.

This summer Brains was an official sponsor of the Detroit Brawl at the Legendary Kronk boxing event in the US, while here in the UK, BSPG Laboratories is said to be in talks with a number of Premier League football clubs about the prospect of supplying players with CBD products to aid their recovery.

“When used in combination with other therapies, there is evidence to show that CBD does help the body recover more quickly and in terms of a sports injury that may help decrease the time out required for recovery,” said Dean Billington (pictured) chief scientific officer at BSPG Laboratories.

“This can’t be what’s called the placebo effect, as these people are showing real physical improvement.

“Now that CBD has been taken off the banned substance list by the World Anti-Doping Agency, athletes are potentially able to benefit from CBD products.”

However, many are wary of CBD products, which often still contain trace amounts of THC, with a number of studies warning that CBD products could contain higher-than-stated levels of THC and lead to positive drug tests.

Last year US triathlon athlete Laren Goss was banned for six months after testing positive for THC. Goss had been using a topical CBD product to treat a musculoskeletal injury.

“Almost without exception, all of the products on the market contain trace amounts of THC, which for athletes is an absolute no-no,” continued Billington.

“We’ve had our sample tested by the World Anti-Doping Agency and a number of laboratories in the UK, which have confirmed that it doesn’t contain any banned substances and most importantly no THC.”

Billington believes partnerships with professional high-profile sports organisations such as Premier League clubs, would help them generate the clinical data on the efficacy of CBD and reassure other athletes about its safety.

“CBD and the cannabis industry in general has a huge legacy to overcome,” he said.

“We are certainly starting to see a greater interest from sports such as boxing, but the challenge with a lot of professional athletes is that obviously, they do not want to take something until it’s proven to be safe. But you can’t generate the data until people are willing to try it.”

Billington added: “The clinical trials need to be done and the evidence evaluated, but providing we are generating the data to show the benefit and it is done in the right way, these clubs have huge influence which in the long-term could be a good thing for the industry.”