Google searches for CBD have skyrocketed in recent years

CBD products are widely advertised as a treatment for a plethora of ailments, and a new study finds that Google searches for such items have also skyrocketed recently. Looking at data between January 2004 and April 2019, scientists found that although searches for CBD products were relatively stable during the first decade of the study period, they increased by 126% in 2017 compared to 2016, and 160% in 2018 compared to the previous year. There were more than 6 million searches last April, which outnumbered searches for other health terms including acupuncture and meditation.

At the same time, a new report outlines the global use of different drugs — including cannabis — and finds that in Canada and some U.S. states, CBD products are used to treat medical conditions “in the absence of evidence of their effectiveness and safety.”