Georgia’s Low-THC medical marijuana program allows patients with a medical marijuana certification the opportunity to legally possess cannabis oil with less than 5% THC.
This type of medical marijuana program is relatively new, with most states favoring more expansive access to cannabis as a medicine. This puts Georgia’s low-THC cannabis oil in a category closer to hemp oil, which has similar characteristics.
And although hemp oil, or, CBD oil, is legal across the United States, Georgia’s low-THC oil is just now on the road to becoming available for patients in the Peach State.
There are differences between hemp oil and cannabis oil though, and in this article, we’ll talk about hemp oil and cannabis oil, and what the differences really are.
What Is Cannabis Oil?
Hemp vs Cannabis
Cannabis oil is simply the extracted compounds from the cannabis plant.
When extracted, cannabinoids like THC, CBD, or terpenes are pulled from plant material and processed into an oil, whether it comes from hemp or cannabis plants.
Hemp plants, which are legal under the 2018 Farm Bill, are cannabis plants designated as having less than 0.3% THC.
Plants that contain more than 0.3% THC are classified as traditional cannabis plants and remain illegal federally.
The major difference between hemp plants and cannabis plants in botany is that cannabis plants yield more total cannabinoids including THC, while hemp plants produce fewer total cannabinoids and larger amounts of CBD.
Is Cannabis Oil the Same Thing as CBD Oil?
CBD is produced by both cannabis and hemp plants, though the yields from cannabis plants are much higher.
There’s no difference between CBD derived from hemp plants or CBD derived from cannabis plants; they’re identical. In fact, essentially every compound or ingredient of the cannabis plant works the same way, except for THC.
Hemp plants simply do not endogenously produce enough THC to cause a psychoactive reaction, while cannabis plants do produce enough THC to cause a “high”.
And since hemp plants are legally capped at 0.3% THC, that puts them in a category quite far from traditional cannabis oil, which can be as high as 99%+ THC.
Though Georgia will limit the total THC content to 5%, there’s no stopping cultivators from producing high-CBD low-THC cannabis oil, which is what we’ll likely see once production is up and running.
CBD Oil vs Georgia’s Low-THC Cannabis Oil
The Difference is Micro-dosing
Although Georgia’s medical marijuana program certainly misses the mark when it comes to an effective psychoactive dose of THC, there may be some non-psychoactive benefits from using extremely low doses of THC.
Studies suggest that ultra-low doses of THC may have therapeutic benefits like improved mood, focus, and pain tolerance, as well as reduced stress and anxiety.
While traditional cannabis might contain a much more effective dose of THC in total, when paired with CBD oil, low-THC cannabis oil may provide both therapeutic and medicinal effects.
Especially for patients who are overly sensitive to THC, low-THC products make a lot of sense. CBD oil won’t contain anywhere near the amount of THC that Georgia’s 5% medical program will allow, and patients may find benefits from micro-dosing THC with these types of products.
CBD Oil vs Georgia’s Low-THC Cannabis Oil
Ultimately, the biggest difference between Georgia’s low-THC cannabis oil and CBD oil will likely be about 4.7% THC, which is not a large enough window to argue how different they are.
In truth, CBD oil and Georgia’s low-THC cannabis oil share far more similarities in their terms of use than they do differences.
The major component is with production because cannabis plants are legal for cultivators to use in order to produce cannabis oil, which means the yields will be much larger and more profits are available within the restrictions of the program.
Cultivators will be able to make low-THC cannabis oil (CBD oil with less than 5% THC) much more effectively, and this will bring cannabis oil to many patients who are unable to find legal counterparts that are safe and tested for consuming medically.
Consumer CBD products are all over the place, and at the very minimum, Georgia’s low-THC cannabis program will allow patients to use products that have been thoroughly tested and approved for medicinal use.
This will take away a large part of the unreliable ingredients and marketing used by some CBD companies and allow patients to access a product that is locally grown and locally produced.
Get Your Georgia Marijuana Card
To qualify for Georgia’s low-THC registry, patients first need to be diagnosed with a qualifying condition for medical marijuana in Georgia. Patients will be able to register with the State to access low-THC cannabis oil with less than 5% THC and see relief with cannabis.
We will be processing medical marijuana certifications as soon as the system is live for Georgia patients.
Reserve your appointment today and get $25 off when we start processing applications!
Feel free to give us a call at (866) 781-5606, and we can help answer your questions about getting medical marijuana in Georgia