More Professional NFL Football Players Voice Support for CBD Use as a Pain Relief Remedy

• Several retired players from the NFL presently use CBD to treat their inflammation and pain.
• A researcher from Temple University expressed that additional research with humans, rather than animals, is needed for CBD.

The use of cannabis in nearly every job is frowned upon, especially in the world of professional sports. Considering the substance has been linked to many therapeutic purposes that athletes could benefit from – like reducing inflammation and easing pain – what exactly do the players of the NFL think? NBC Philadelphia recently dove into this top in a segment published on August 28^th.

Speaking with Sarah Jean Ward at Temple University, the news channel learned about the efforts being made to learn more about cannabidiol (CBD) as a solution for pain. Athletes like Rob Gronkowski have turned to the use of CBD from a company called CBD Medic after retiring from football, helping him to heal from his injuries.

Gronkowski recently stated, “I needed to recover. I was not in a good place. Football was bringing me down, and I didn’t like it. And I was losing that joy in life.” At that point during his discussion, he started to get emotional about the experience, apologizing to the crowd.

CBD is a much different compound than THC, which is the psychoactive substance in marijuana. Ward stated, “One of the distinctions with CBD is that it is not associated with producing a ‘high’ or euphoria, having sort of perception-altering effects.” Right now, the problem seems to be the lack of research to support the claims that CBD is an effective remedy. Most of the testing so far has been with animals.

NBC Philadelphia set out to see what other former and current NFL players thought about CBD and cannabis. Chris Long, a former Eagles player, admitted to having smoked cannabis in the past, preceding it with stating that he is “a good person.”

Riley Cote, a former player for the Philadelphia Flyers, stated that CBD has been able to eliminate the pain in his joints, due to the inflammation in them. Cote explained that he didn’t start taking CBD until after he had stopped playing, but admitted that he would’ve taken it during his time with the team, adding that cannabis is “the future of sports medicine recovery,” adding that it is the future of “preventative medicine.”

Regardless of the support that these athletes have for the use of CBD, there are still regulations in place that prevent athletes from using this substance. However, as the FDA determines their own regulations, other professional industries may follow along, like the NFL.