(The Center Square) – A 600% increase in cannabis poisoning resulting in an emergency room visit or hospitalization of children age 5 and under since 2018 led Missouri Republican Gov. Mike Parson to end the sale of food products with psychoactive cannabis.
For years, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consumers Delta-8 THC products hadn’t been evaluated or approved by the agency for safe use in any context. A report by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services found cannabis poisoning in children age 5 and under requiring hospitalization or an emergency room visit almost doubled in 2021, the first full year of legalized medical marijuana in the state.
“This Executive Order effectively bans the sale of these potentially harmful products in Missouri until such time approved sources can be regulated by the FDA or state of Missouri through legislative action,” Parson said in a statement.
The FDA and national poison control centers are continuing to receive reports of adverse events in patients who consumed Delta-8 THC products.
“They may be marketed in ways that put the public health at risk and should especially be kept out of reach of children and pets,” according to the FDA.
Delta-8 THC has psychoactive and intoxicating effects, similar to Delta-9 THC, which is the “component responsible for the ‘high’ people may experience from using cannabis,” according to the FDA. The agency also reported Delta-8 THC is likely to expose consumers to much higher levels of the substance than are naturally occurring in hemp cannabis raw extracts.
“Thus, historical use of cannabis cannot be relied upon in establishing a level of safety for these products in humans,” according to the FDA.
In 2022, the FDA warned consumers about children accidentally consuming food containing Delta-8 THC. Last year, the FDA and the Federal Trade Commission issued warning letters to six companies for illegally selling food products containing Delta-8 THC. The agencies warned the products could be easily mistaken for chips, cookies, candy, gummies or other snack food items.
Last month, the agencies issued warning letters to five additional companies selling the look-alike products containing Delta-8 THC. Failure by the companies to address the violations may result in federal legal action, including product seizure and/or injunction, according to the FDA.
The products are often marketed with packaging resembling brand-name foods and candies to entice public consumption, especially with young consumers.
“We have seen the negative impacts of unregulated psychoactive cannabis products firsthand,” Paula Nickelson, director of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, said in a statement. “Numerous Missourians have been adversely affected by consuming foods laced with these products. Disturbingly, children in Missouri and across the nation have been hospitalized after ingesting these substances, and this is unacceptable.”
The Department of Health and Senior Services published several documents related to the order, including frequently asked questions about products with CBD.
“CBD is not considered a psychoactive cannabinoid and is not affected by this Executive Order,” according to the department. “Food products are not considered adulterated by the state of Missouri solely because they contain CBD.”
