Houston officials find spiked CBD being sold in stores

The Associated Press

5 years ago

File - In this Aug. 28, 2019, file photo, a man exhales while smoking an e-cigarette in Portland, Maine. The U.S. government has refined how it is measuring an outbreak of breathing illnesses in people who vape, now counting only cases that are most closely linked to electronic cigarette use. Health officials on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2019 said 380 confirmed cases and probable cases have been reported in 36 states and one U.S. territory. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, File)

HOUSTON (AP) — Products promoting the cannabis extract CBD are sold all over Texas, but they don’t always contain what they promise.

James Miller at the Houston Forensic Science Center says people are using CBD to sell illegal drugs. Last year alone his lab found dangerous synthetic marijuana in about two dozen CBD vape samples.

The Associated Press gathered the results for an investigation into how some operators are capitalizing on the CBD boom by substituting the cheap street drug for real CBD.

That practice has sent dozens of people nationwide to emergency rooms. Unlike CBD, synthetic marijuana gives an intense high.

In all, lab testing shows spiked vapes or edible products marketed as CBD in at least 13 states.

Industry representatives acknowledge spiking is an issue, but say many companies are reputable.