Accordingly, the FDA and DEA have concluded that marijuana has no federally approved medical use for treatment in the U.S. In the United States, and therefore, it remains a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law. The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 (“Single Convention”) and the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances (“Psychotropic Convention”) provide for international control of marijuana components. Many of the provisions of the CSA were drafted to comply with these conventions.
The CSA includes drug classification schemes and procedures for adding, removing and transferring drugs between lists that are similar, in some ways, to those of the Single Convention. With respect to drugs that are subject to control under the Single Convention, the CSA requires that the DEA monitor such drugs so that the United States complies with its obligations under the Single Convention. Another comment from a pharmaceutical company currently engaged in the research and development of cannabinoid-related products praised the DEA's efforts to establish a new pharmacological code for marijuana extracts as a means of more accurately reflecting scientific research activities and ensuring more uniform compliance with the requirements of the Single Convention. However, the commentary expressed concern that the proposed definition for the new drug code (that is,The commentary suggested that the broader term “cannabinoids” should replace “cannabinols and cannabidiols”.
The commentary noted that other components of the marijuana plant may have therapeutic potential. The comment further clarified that the broader term “cannabinoid” includes both cannabinol-type compounds and cannabidiol-type compounds, as well as cannabichromene-type compounds, cannabigerol-type compounds and other categories of compounds. As discussed in the NPRM, a new drug code is needed to better account for these materials in accordance with the resulting obligations of the treaties. The Single Convention included “cannabis” and cannabis resin in Schedules I and IV of the Convention, the most stringent level of control in the Convention.
While “cannabis resin” is extracted from “cannabis”, the Single Convention specifically controls “extracts separately. Cannabis extracts are controlled only in accordance with Schedule I of the Convention, which is a lower level of control than that of “cannabis resin”. Cannabis is a natural product, whose main psychoactive component is tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC). The cannabis plant (Cannabis sativa L.) Along with tobacco, alcohol and caffeine, it is one of the most consumed drugs worldwide and has been used as a drug and source of fiber since historic times.
Herbal cannabis consists of the upper part and leaves with dried flowers. Cannabis resin is a compressed solid made from the resinous parts of the plant, and cannabis oil (hashish) is a solvent extract of cannabis. Cannabis is almost always smoked, often mixed with tobacco. Almost all of the consumption of herbs, cannabis and resin is from illegal material.
Cannabis has been claimed to have some therapeutic benefits as an analgesic, and dronabinol is a drug authorized in some countries for the treatment of nausea in cancer chemotherapy. Cannabis-derived products and Δ9-THC are under international control. In many countries, cannabis herb and cannabis resin are formally known as marijuana and hashish (or simply “hashish”), respectively. Cannabis and cannabis resin are on lists I and IV of the 1961 United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.
To date, the FDA has not approved any marketing applications for cannabis for the treatment of any disease or condition and, therefore, has not determined that cannabis is safe and effective for any particular disease or condition. Cannabis containing equivalent concentrations of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) produces less emotional anxiety than cannabis with a dominant THC content. A positive association between anxiety disorders and cannabis use or cannabis use disorders in the general population: a meta-analysis of 31 studies. The greatest interest in the adverse properties of cannabis has focused on its association with schizophrenia, although it is not yet clear if there is a causal relationship between mental health and cannabis.
Imported cannabis herb is formed in compressed blocks of dry brown plant matter formed by the upper part of the flowers, leaves, stems and seeds of Cannabis sativa. In addition, the ACOG points out that there is insufficient data to evaluate the effects of cannabis use on breastfed infants; therefore, the use of cannabis is discouraged during breastfeeding. The FDA's Cannabis Products Committee (CPC) develops and implements inter-agency strategies and policies for the regulation of cannabis products. Cannabis herb imported to Europe may come from West Africa, the Caribbean, or Southeast Asia, but cannabis resin comes primarily from North Africa or Afghanistan.
