CANNABIS OIL COMING

It Won't Get You High but Product Said to Be Great For
Arthritis

Coming to a pharmacy near you: a bong in a bottle.

Just kidding. Actually, the Med-Marijuana line of herbal remedies
contains so little of the psychoactive ingredient found in weed, you
could down a whole bottle without feeling the slightest buzz.

"You can take this stuff till hell freezes over and you're not going
to get a minute of euphoria," said Bob Martin, a Calgary life
insurance salesman who recently got the rights to distribute the
hemp-derived remedies in southern Alberta. He said he hopes to start
selling the products in Edmonton soon.

"Health Canada's rules for (over-the-counter products) made from
marijuana specify they must have less than 10 parts per million of
THC, the psychoactive ingredient. Our product has something like 1.5
to two parts per million."

While it won't get you high, Martin claims Med-Marijuana cannabis oil
tablets will help with the rheumatism.

The company hasn't commissioned any product-specific studies on the
effects of Med-Marijuana. Martin insists nutritionists have been
praising the nutritional value of cannabis seeds "for years."

"You could live on cannabis seeds and water," he said. "It has an
amazing effect on arthritis pain. My wife has bad arthritis - she
started taking the product and became pain-free in a matter of days."

One expert in herbal remedies backs up Martin's claim. Paul Saunders
of the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine said hemp oil
contains high amounts of omega 6, a natural anti-inflammatory.

"So it has the potential to help with joint pain," he said. "I haven't
seen the product out here in conservative Ontario, and I don't know
why it's being sold as 'Med-Marijuana' when there's practically no
active ingredient in it.

"Perhaps it's a marketing attempt to flaunt the link with actual
medical marijuana, which does have health benefits."

"Essentially, the name of the product isn't incorrect," said Health
Canada spokesman Christopher Williams. "The name 'hemp oil' would be
more accurate, though."

Martin said the product will be available in all 19 Super Drug Mart
outlets in Calgary this week. He didn't know when it might be
available in Edmonton.