This article was originally published by Sara Tipton at Ready Nutrition.

The use of CBD and products containing it have been on the rise, and with that comes government intrusion in the form of regulations. However, regulating the CBD market will only result in the creation of new products.

With the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill which is decades late, if you ask me, hemp-based CBD cultivation will become legal nationwide. According to Well and Good, industry experts believe this will clear up the current confusion around the hemp plant’s legality, making retailers, scientists, and manufacturers more comfortable working with it. Additionally, it will pave the way for a tidal wave of research, product innovation, and distribution of hemp and other CBD products.

Cannabidiol – or “CBD” – is one of over 100 compounds found in cannabis sativa plants (including hemp) that belong to a class of naturally occurring, biologically active chemical constituents called cannabinoids. It’s a non-intoxicating compound in hemp and cannabis plants that can be credited with relieving anxiety, insomnia, pain, and inflammation.

Already, hemp and cannabis compounds can be found in everything from food, skincare, and mascara. “A lot of [beauty and supplement] brands are aligning with the CBD [trend] without actually using CBD,” says Anna Duckworth, co-founder, and editor-in-chief of MissGrass, an elevated lifestyle shop, and publication for women and cannabis. The applications seem endless! To put the desire for CBD into perspective, the market for hemp-based CBD could top $22 billion by 2022, according to cannabis industry research firm The Brightfield Group. In contrast, turmeric, another plant ingredient with lots of hype surrounding it, raked in $11 billion in the United States in 2017.  That is leaving the door wide open for cannabis and CBD enthusiasts to conduct more research and create products that will benefit everyone.

Of course, there’s the flipside.  With government regulations comes the inevitable silencing of certain claims about CBD oil – even though the evidence exists to back up those claims.  Various brands have been called out for using hemp seed oil and calling it “cannabis oil”—when, really, this part of the plant contains negligible levels of cannabinoids. Hemp oil is often made from the flowers of the hemp plant, not the seeds, that contain the most CBD.  That should improve anyway, as hemp is still a valuable holistic and natural remedy for many ailments, but a distinction needs to be made clear as to whether the product is CBD oil or hemp oil.

But even if the government more heavily regulates CBD products, you will see companies skirt those regulations, bypassing them via loopholes.  There will still be products made using workarounds. But that could result in less effective products too. Hopefully, regulations are eased up on and not tightened when it comes to CBD so we can get more studies done and see more beneficial products.

Women can expect to start seeing CBD oil in more makeup and skin care creams, and hopefully soon, some menstrual and other “women’s issues” products. CBD protein powders, pain-relief patches, and vaporizer pens are also filtering into the market, and there’s a growing number of brands combining CBD with other herbal ingredients to make a truly natural medicine that’s as unique as the user! Pet CBD blends will also become more popular as people look for a less expensive and more natural alternative to pet care.

There is honestly little to complain about when it comes to this increasingly popular trend! As it grows, the CBD industry will go increasingly organic with a focus on sustainability and eco-friendliness. Plus, with all the new products, the market will expand and so will competition that always results in lower prices at a better quality.

While there are still those out there who say “there’s just not enough research out there to trust CBD,” the outlook for studies and creation in 2019 is truly a positive one!  Soon there will be enough research out there on CBD that you won’t be able to get through it all.  More good news comes out about the compound every day and it’s helping a lot of people!

“The more people you have looking at this and trying to crack the code, the better,” says  Laurel Myers, Prima’s COO. “We’ll learn more, know more, and it will hopefully help broaden the impact on people’s lives.”