Faced with anxiety and insomnia, many consumers may be tempted to resort to "wellness" products with cannabidiol.

But we should not make "therapeutic claims" to these products, said Adelaide Robert-Géraudel, of the magazine "60 Millions de consommateurs", Monday on Europe 1.

DECRYPTION

A trendy substance in wellness stores, cannabidiol (CBD) is found in many creams or oils to help you sleep better or relax.

But is it really effective against anxiety and insomnia?

Invited Monday in the program 

Sans rendez-vous

on Europe 1, Adélaïde Robert-Géraudel, head of the health and cosmetics section at the magazine

60 Millions de consommateurs

, refused to lend therapeutic virtues to this substance because of the existing vagueness.

"In fact, it's not that clear and that's why we don't allow therapeutic claims," ​​she said.

>> Find all of Sans rendez-vous in replay and podcast here

"It's a bit like 'quiet night' herbal teas"

Adélaïde Robert-Géraudel, whose magazine devoted its last issue to this subject, believes that products with CBD can contribute to "well-being".

“It's a bit like 'quiet night' herbal teas, you could say it helps relieve anxiety,” she says.

And the journalist reminds that CBD "is not cannabis".

"In cannabis, there is a psychoactive substance, THC," she explains.

"CBD, in fact, comes from a hemp which is very poor in THC and therefore has no psychoactive effects."

"It is not a narcotic. It is a wellness product that is legal."

However, Adélaïde Robert-Géraudel urges consumers to select products with CBD that they buy with caution.

"What is disturbing for the consumer is that these products are often sold in different doses. We can choose a dosage of 15%, 10%, 5%," she says.

"I found it really weird to see a drug based on CBD and alongside that wellness products whose CBD levels are not regulated at all. Finally, the line between the two is very blurry."

However, "when we look at the instructions for the drug, we discover that is all that it can possibly entail as drug interactions, as risks for the liver," she wonders.

A request to make regulations clearer

For the journalist, the consumer can only try to be "vigilant" by going to the products "where there are the most details on the instructions".

But she believes that the important thing is played at another level: "What we are asking is that the authorities redo really clear regulations. This is how we will have quality products and we will ensure the safety of consumers. I think even manufacturers are asking because the vagueness is not good for anyone. "