Cannabidiol, or CBD, has more Google searches per month than any other health product, according to a new study by the University of San Diego. The study revealed that an average of 6.4 million searches are made for ‘CBD’ every month in the USA.
It was revealed that the term was more searched than ‘exercise’, ‘meditation’, and even ‘marijuana’. Researchers included both the term ‘CBD’ and ‘Cannabidiol’ – the full name of the Cannabis compound, to determine the results.
Cannabidiol is a derivative of the Cannabis plant, which is found in both hemp and marijuana. It has gained global attention as a health product in recent years for its potential health and therapeutic qualities.
Since 2016, the number of products incorporating the ingredient, as well as users and awareness has drastically increased. However, before this, few people had heard of the compound or its potential benefits.
In 2019, it has been estimated that up to 14% of Americans have used CBD in some form. In the UK, this number is slightly lower, according to a study by the Centre for Medicinal Cannabis. It claimed that up to 11% of UK adults have tried CBD.
However, in a market that has been seeing such a dramatic rise, these numbers – published in August and June, respectively – may already be out of date.
This recent study, published in JAMA Network Open, has found that CBD is enjoying vast popularity on Google. The number of searches for the ingredient surpassed ‘meditation’ by over three times; ‘acupuncture’ by seven-and-a-half times; and ‘apple cider vinegar’ by five times.
One of the researchers from the University of San Diego, Dr. Alicia Nobles, explained:
“Consider this one example. For every two internet searches for dieting in the United States we found there is one for CBD!”
It also received 63% more searches than ‘vaccination’; 60% more than ‘exercise’; 13% more than ‘marijuana’; and 12% more than ‘veganism’.
People consume CBD in the hope that it will aid the treatment of conditions including anxiety, pain, and sleep disorders. In the US, the only FDA-approved use for CBD is in the treatment of seizures. However, research in other areas has been on the rise since the passing of the 2018 Farm Bill, which legalised the cultivation of Hemp at the federal level.
