This article is purely informational: Check your local state laws for age requirements for the purchase of CBD products.
CBD is a popular wellness supplement people from all walks of life enjoy. People use CBD to support everything from gentle meditation to recovery from intense boxing sessions.
It’s one of the most versatile tools in the wellness toolbox, and many people would never leave home without it. But can everyone buy it?
CBD’s origins can make it tricky to navigate. Hemp is similar to conventional cannabis, and conventional cannabis is always an age-restricted product.
So, where does CBD fit? Before you buy CBD, you should know how age restrictions might affect your purchase.
What Is CBD?
CBD, or cannabidiol, is a cannabinoid. Cannabinoids are plant compounds produced by the cannabis family of plants, although other plants can produce small amounts of certain cannabinoids. The human body even produces some cannabinoids of its own.
Cannabinoids like CBD interact with cannabinoid receptors throughout the brains and bodies of most living things. Your dog, cat, and even your hamster can use cannabinoids.
When you use CBD, you feed and power the receptors in your body’s endocannabinoid system. These receptors exist in many places and provide a supportive role to most of the important things the brain and body do to keep you well.
That’s why CBD is used as a general wellness supplement. Cannabinoid receptors exist in many places, so CBD has the potential to be broadly useful in so many ways.
What Are the Benefits of CBD?
Although CBD is technically useful for almost every process throughout your body, many people choose to use CBD for a smaller set of holistic wellness benefits. These are the areas where you’re most likely to notice the benefits and effects of CBD in a meaningful way.
Supporting Stress Management
Feelings of stress and overwhelm can make productivity difficult. You know what you need to accomplish — you just can’t get yourself in the right mindset.
CBD works to support the body’s stress management system. A little CBD and a short meditation session might help you get back on track.
Helping You Catch Some ZZZs
Your body has an internal clock that tells you when it’s time to stay awake and when it’s time to go to sleep. This clock, called the circadian rhythm, is easily influenced.
Things like blue light from your phone screen can send mixed messages to your circadian rhythm, making your body and brain believe it’s daytime when it’s 2 a.m. It’s important to support your circadian rhythm around bedtime.
Part of this support comes from common sense practices, like turning off your screens a few hours before bed. CBD can also help to support your circadian rhythm, making it easier for your mind and body to wind down when it’s time to hit the sheets and doze off naturally.
CBD Has Naturally Soothing Properties
CBD’s naturally soothing properties can help to ease tension. Many enjoy these soothing benefits after a hard workout when they crave meaningful rest and relaxation. That’s why athletes gravitate to CBD during training season.
Is CBD Cannabis?
CBD comes from hemp plants. Hemp plants are federally legal cannabis plants. Any cannabis plant that produces 0.3% THC or less by its weight is a hemp plant.
Its tiny concentrations of THC aren’t enough to produce psychoactive effects, so hemp isn’t treated like a controlled substance. The short of it: CBD won’t get you high.
It doesn’t produce the same effects that a drug would. It isn’t a mind-altering substance; it won’t impair your cognition, memory, or motor skills.
Because CBD and weed aren’t synonymous, CBD products don’t have to be sold at a designated cannabis dispensary. They can be purchased online and shipped throughout the United States. You might even spot CBD products in the pharmacy section of your local grocery store, sitting right next to the wellness supplements.
Are There Age Limits on Buying CBD?
The federal government made hemp production legal in 2018, and CBD usually comes from hemp. All hemp-derived products are technically legal to buy, sell, and use on a federal level. Some states have made their own laws about cannabinoids like CBD.
Strictly speaking, there are no federal age requirements for purchasing CBD. No national law on the books states that someone must be a certain age to purchase a CBD product.
Some states have unique laws regarding selling products like CBD oil and CBD gummies, while others keep things open.
How Old Do You Have To Be To Buy CBD in Each State?
In most cases, you have to be either 18 or 21 years old to buy CBD. In a handful of states, there are no age requirements for purchasing CBD products. In states with age restrictions, doctor-recommended or prescribed CBD products are treated differently.
- Alabama - Anyone can buy CBD
- Alaska - 21 years old
- Arizona - Anyone can buy CBD
- Arkansas - Anyone can buy CBD
- California - 18 years old
- Colorado - 18 years old
- Connecticut - 18 years old
- Delaware - 18 years old
- Florida - 18 years old
- Georgia - 18 years old
- Hawaii - 18 years old
- Idaho - 18 years old
- Illinois - 21 years old
- Indiana - 21 years old
- Iowa - Anyone can buy CBD
- Kansas - 18 years old
- Kentucky - 18 years old
- Louisiana - 18 years old
- Maine - 21 years old
- Maryland - Anyone can buy CBD
- Massachusetts - 18 years old
- Michigan - 18 years old
- Minnesota - 18 years old
- Mississippi - 18 years old
- Missouri - Anyone can buy CBD
- Montana - 18 years old
- Nebraska - Anyone can buy CBD
- Nevada - 18 years old
- New Hampshire - 18 years old
- New Jersey - 18 years old
- New Mexico - 18 years old
- New York - 18 years old
- North Carolina - 18 years old
- North Dakota - 18 years old
- Ohio - 18 years old
- Oklahoma - 18 years old
- Oregon - 18 years old
- Pennsylvania - 18 years old
- Rhode Island - 21 years old
- South Carolina- 18 years old
- South Dakota - 18 years old
- Tennessee - 21 years old
- Texas - Anyone can buy CBD
- Utah - 21 years old
- Vermont - 18 years old
- Virginia - Anyone can buy CBD
- Washington - 18 years old
- West Virginia - Anyone can buy CBD
- Wisconsin - 18 years old
- Wyoming - 18 years old
How Old Do You Have To Be To Buy CBD Internationally?
A few other countries have legalized hemp or cannabis-derived CBD. When traveling internationally, where can you expect to purchase CBD abroad? Here, we will cover a few.
Canada
Canada has some of the world’s most relaxed laws surrounding cannabis and hemp. Conventional cannabis is fully legal for adult use throughout Canada, and CBD products throughout the country can be derived from hemp and cannabis.
Throughout most of Canada, anyone aged 19 or older can purchase CBD products. The provinces of Alberta and Quebec allow adults 18 or older to purchase and use CBD products.
The United Kingdom
The UK’s CBD laws aren’t very clear. There is technically no age restriction for the purchase and use of CBD products.
Many CBD vendors have worked together to create an unofficial rule that people must be at least 18 years old to buy CBD products, but the government doesn’t enforce this rule. It’s technically possible for anyone to purchase CBD products from vendors that don’t voluntarily participate in this unofficial rule.
Mexico
The official age for purchasing CBD products in Mexico is 18, but since the country legalized most cannabis products, the laws aren’t strictly enforced. It’s not unusual to purchase CBD in Mexico without any age restrictions.
Australia
Australia’s laws require people to obtain a prescription from a doctor for CBD. It can’t be purchased over the counter. Anyone 18 or older can request a CBD prescription from their doctor.
Are There Restrictions on Buying CBD Topicals?
If you’re walking down the beauty or personal care aisle and you see a CBD-infused lip balm or bubble bath, there are almost no enforced age restrictions on those products. Anyone can purchase them or order them online without showing proof of age.
CBD-infused topical products don’t work the same way as oral CBD. Topical CBD only works to support skin health. They don’t reach your internal cannabinoid receptors in your body or brain, so their use generally isn’t restricted.
Can People Under 18 Use CBD?
In states where the sale of CBD products isn’t age-restricted, it’s technically legal for people under 18 to use CBD. Even though nothing prevents teenagers from buying or using CBD, they should still talk with their doctor before they start.
CBD isn’t known to be dangerous to adults or children. While it isn’t possible to fatally overdose on CBD, it may still cause unwanted side effects. It’s a good idea to bring it up with your child’s pediatrician (or your doctor, if you’re a teen) before using CBD.
No matter how old you are, it’s probably not a good idea to vape CBD. The long-term effects and safety of vaping haven’t been fully evaluated. There’s no reason to vape CBD when we know that CBD oil and gummies are highly effective.
In Conclusion: CBD Age Laws Can Vary Quite a Bit
CBD age restrictions vary from state to state and country to country. There is no officially accepted standard. In some places, there is no age requirement at all.
Pure Relief ships our broad-spectrum CBD gummies throughout the country. If it’s legal for you to buy and use CBD in your state, we’ll gladly send you a bag of our yummy CBD edibles.
Sources:
Hemp Production and the 2018 Farm Bill - 07/25/2019 | FDA
Canada's Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation Law | MPP