Chronic Pain Sufferers Turn to CBD in Search of Relief

NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Chronic pain is one of the biggest reasons adults seek medical care. However, according to an open survey conducted by The Journal of American Medical Association, almost half of primary care providers (PCPs) are refusing to treat chronic pain in patients. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that chronic pain affects approximately 11% to 40% of U.S. adults. Moreover, the institution noted that chronic pain can deteriorate mobility, severely impacting daily activities. Generally, most patients are prescribed some sort of opioid in order to temporarily suppress their pain. However, the constant use of opioids can lead to dependency and kickstart an addiction. On top of that, the long-term use of opioids results in adverse effects in several organ systems. Additionally, evidence shows that chronic opioid therapy is also associated with constipation, sleep-disordered breathing, and fractures, according to a study published in the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Eventually, the constant use of opioids can also cause significant declines in health-related qualities of life. As a result, many patients have decided to turn towards cannabis as a remedy for their pain. Specifically, many patients are using CBD or cannabidiol, which is a chemical compound found within the cannabis plant, to suppress their symptoms. Normally, most people think of cannabis as a psychoactive drug that stimulates mind-altering sensations, however, CBD is the exact opposite. The psychotropic effects of cannabis are predominantly caused by the THC content, which is usually contained within the marijuana plant under the cannabis family. On the other hand, CBD is primarily derived from the hemp plant, which also falls under the cannabis family, and has been shown to not cause any psychoactive effects on its users. Notably, both CBD and THC offer consumers therapeutic effects, but because of the psychoactive nature of THC, regulators are more inclined to approve CBD use. Consequently, CBD has become more and more ingrained in today's healthcare scene because of its growing acceptance. Furthermore, as a number of clinical trials have claimed that CBD does not cause dependency, medical professionals are much more open to prescribing it to their patients. Nevertheless, industry experts have noted that there is still not enough data from trials to fully understand the efficacy of CBD. As a result, researchers are actively conducting clinical trials to disprove misconceptions about CBD and ultimately commercialize it as an alternative treatment to a number of medications. Now, the hemp-derived CBD market is expected to reach sales of USD 22 Billion by 2022, outpacing the rest of the cannabis market, according to Brightfield Group. Newleaf Brands Inc. (OTC: NLBIF) (CSE: NLB), HEXO Corp. (NYSE: HEXO) (TSX: HEXO), Planet 13 Holdings Inc. (OTC: PLNHF) (CSE: PLTH), MariMed Inc. (OTC: MRMD), Emerald Health Therapeutics Inc. (OTC: EMHTF) (TSX-V: EMH)

The most commonly abused opioids are typically Oxycontin, Vicodin, and Demerol, which are all types of painkillers. The National Institute on Drug Abuse highlighted that the misuse of opioids has drastically increased in recent years. For example, almost half of all the opioid deaths in the U.S. involve a prescription opioid. Some reports have also indicated the misuse of opioid prescriptions can open the door to heroin use. The institution cited a report saying that users switch to heroin because it is cheaper and easier to obtain than prescription opioids. However, a study conducted by Mount Sinai in New York City indicated that CBD reduced drug cue-induced cravings and anxiety in the participants. The study included 42 men and women with a history of heroin abuse who were not current users at the time. Yasmin Hurd, Director of the Addiction Institute at Mount Sinai, mentioned that the findings indicate that CBD holds a significant promise for individuals with heroin use disorder. Hurd continued and noted that a successful non-opioid treatment would greatly add to the addiction medication tool box and also reduce the death toll and healthcare costs. Following the study, Hurd is now actively examining how CBD affects the brain and another one to pursue the development of CBD-based treatments for opioid addiction. "That's the whole issue -- decreasing relapse and decreasing overdose -- that we face right now," said Hurd. "It's very difficult for people to stay off heroin. When people return from rehab and come back home, the environmental cues are very strong." But CBD has promise because "it's very specific," she continued, according to MedPage. "It's not rewarding; it's not methadone or THC. CBD is actually decreasing connections to environmental cues. That's why it is intriguing."

Newleaf Brands Inc. (OTC: NLBIF) (CSE: NLB) is also listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the ticker (CSE: NLB). Today the company announced breaking news that, "and its wholly owned subsidiaries, We Are Kured, LLC ("Kured") and ReLyfe Brand, LLC  ("ReLyfe") are pleased to announce that the Company has entered into an agreement (the "Agreement") with Herbfluence, Inc. ("Herbfluence"). Under the terms of the Agreement, Herbfluence has selected two of the Company's CBD branded products to be included in the initial launch of the Herbfluence marketing platform on Monday, October 28, 2019. Herbfluence is an influencer marketplace for the Cannabis Industry. It is a smarter, simpler approach to advertising cannabis brands through social media influencers.

Tyler Knight, Founder and CEO of Herbfluence states, "Having worked in the cannabis industry as a Marketing Executive for over six years, I have experienced numerous problems marketing cannabis and CBD companies online. Our team developed a streamlined online platform that truly allows CBD, cannabis and ancillary companies to seamlessly find, connect, and communicate directly with social influencers in our industry. The platform will prove to successfully advertise brands online to their desired target market and will receive full analytical data on the marketing campaigns, without the barriers caused by typical digital advertising platforms. As a firm believer in NewLeaf Brands' CBD products, we are confident that we can provide an advertising service through our social influencers that will greatly increase product sales and brand awareness for NewLeaf Brands as a leader in the CBD industry."

As many social media platforms restrict paid cannabis and CBD advertising, Herbfluence has developed a marketing platform where the cannabis and CBD brands can communicate with social media influencers to negotiate online promotions. Herbfluence currently has hundreds of social media influencers, whom have over 20,000,000+ followers on Instagram online.

"After meeting Tyler Knight, I immediately wanted to get our CBD brands involved. I have been in the cannabis and CBD industry for over seven years now, and I know how hard it is to market CBD and cannabis brands online. The Herbfluence platform is truly an industry game-changer, and I couldn't be more excited about the opportunity to work with Tyler and the Herbfluence team", said Benjamin Martch, CMO of  NewLeaf Brands.

ABOUT NewLeaf Brands - NewLeaf Brands, Inc. is an innovative Cannabidiol ("CBD") lifestyle Company. Through the Company's wholly-owned subsidiaries We are Kured, LLC, Drink Fresh Water, LLC, ReLyfe Brand, LLC and TeaLief Brand, LLC the Company's main business activities encompass the development, marketing, and distribution of CBD products (including vaporizer pens/cartridges, hot/cold tea, softgel capsules and beverages) throughout North America, South America, and Europe. In addition, NewLeaf Brands, Inc. has extensive retail and cultivation land investments in Oregon, USA. For further information about NewLeaf Brands, please consult the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com or visit the Company's website at www.NABrandsInc.com. For further information about We Are Kured, please visit their website at www.wearekured.com.

For our latest "Buzz on the Street" Show featuring Newleaf Brands Inc. recent corporate news, please head over to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xrk-1BBoMzM

HEXO Corp. (NYSE: HEXO) (TSX: HEXO) is an award-winning consumer packaged goods cannabis company that creates and distributes innovative products to serve the global cannabis market. HEXO Corp. recently announced that its dried flower cannabis products are now available to Ontario consumers, after finalizing terms with the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS). HEXO now adds nine of its dried flower offerings in both 3.5g and 15g SKUs to the OCS, including the Company's award-winning Helios dried flower, which was named Best Sativa at the O'Cannabiz 2019 Industry Awards. "We are thrilled to increase our offering at the OCS," said HEXO Corp. Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, Sebastien St-Louis. "Apart from being our nation's most populous province with the highest demand for cannabis products, the Ontario marketplace is among the most competitive—and we are rolling out high quality products to which we believe Ontario consumers will strongly gravitate."

Planet 13 Holdings Inc. (OTCQX: PLNHF) (CSE: PLTH) is a vertically integrated cannabis company based in Nevada, with award-winning cultivation, production and dispensary operations in Las Vegas. Planet 13 Holdings Inc. recently announced that it had launched a new beverage brand, Elysium, a refreshing THC-infused line of low-calorie flavored sparkling water. "Elysium marks our first step into the exciting THC beverage space. We've created and perfected a sparkling water beverage based on both customer demand and market trends. This low-calorie refreshing drink with zero added sugar was designed to be a fast-acting alternative without the guilt, the perfect micro-dosing beverage," said Bob Groesbeck Co-Chief Executive Officer of Planet 13. "Our expanded production facility will enable us to increase production of our top selling TRENDI line and begin production of Elysium and our highly anticipated edibles lines Dreamland Chocolates and HaHa Gummies. Customers will be able to watch these brands being manufactured behind glass. Increased sales of inhouse brands will drive margin expansion and ultimately shareholder value."

MariMed Inc. (OTCQX: MRMD), a multi-state cannabis operator, is dedicated to improving the health and wellness of people through the use of cannabinoids and cannabis products. MariMed Inc. recently signed a definitive agreement to license its market leading brands and products, Betty's Eddies™ and Kalm Fusion™, to Tropizen of Puerto Rico. Additionally, MariMed will become a licensee to manufacture and distribute Tropizen's unique tropical products, Pique hot sauce and Real Fruit Gummies in the six states that MariMed serves in the US. The companies are in final review of production requirements to set launch dates for each product by territory. "MariMed's Product Division intends to expand its distribution of its cannabis brands to all legal states," stated Bob Fireman, MariMed Chief Executive Officer. "This new territory expansion is the next step in executing our strategy to focus on branded products that deliver real benefits to patients and consumers combined with thoughtful ingredients and great flavors people can enjoy. We are very excited to deliver our leading brands to the patients in Puerto Rico and partner with such an excellent organization in Tropizen."

Emerald Health Therapeutics Inc. (OTCQX: EMHTF) (TSX-V: EMH) is a Canadian licensed producer of cannabis products focused on differentiated, value-added product development for medical and adult-use customers supported by novel intellectual property, large-scale cultivation, extraction, and softgel encapsulation, as well as unique marketing and distribution channels. Emerald Health Therapeutics, Inc. recently fulfilled its first shipment of premium cannabis products to the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC) for the adult-use market. This first shipment consisted of Emerald's high potency SYNC 25 CBD oil and White Rhino cannabis flower, two of Emerald's best-selling products in other markets. "We are pleased to have the opportunity to serve customers in Nova Scotia," said Riaz Bandali, Chief Executive Officer of Emerald. "The NSLC was looking for popular cannabis products to broaden their offering. Our quality products provide the attributes they were looking for and having access to this new market further expands Emerald's distribution and adult-use consumer reach."

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