An explosion of products containing THC
and similar chemicals—some of them in kid-enticing forms such as candy or gummy bears—is sending children to emergency rooms across the country and has federal and state regulators grappling with how to contain it. Many of these products face little to no restrictions, because their creators obtain their intoxicating compounds not from marijuana but from hemp, which Congress legalized in 2018.
Calls to poison-control centers concerning these newly popular hemp-derived cannabinoids boomed over the past several years, from four in January 2021 to hundreds every month of 2022 and 2023 for which there is data, according to America’s Poison Centers. More than half of those calls concerned children. Reports of adverse events from these products to the Food and Drug Administration have also increased.
Marijuana dispensaries have legally sold cookies and other edibles to recreational users for nearly a decade in some states, under tight regulations. But new products proliferated after the 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp, also known as cannabis. The law defined hemp as cannabis plants that have less than 0.3% Delta-9 THC, the most common form of THC in the plants. That definition ended up being a loophole, as entrepreneurs were able to extract from hemp an alphabet soup of federally legal, yet intoxicating, cannabis-derived chemicals.
Methods vary, but often the makers use water, heat or other chemicals to process the hemp and isolate the intoxicating molecules. Now hemp-derived gummies, syrups, vape cartridges and more can be found in smoke shops and gas stations across the country.
Some of the chemicals offer stronger highs than old-school marijuana, while others offer milder ones. A cannabis offshoot known as Delta-8 THC—sometimes called “weed lite”—has proved especially popular for its gentle high, though users can take more to achieve stronger effects.
There are no federal rules governing the products specifically, and some states that have passed regulations have found them difficult to enforce. More than half of the top retailers selling Delta-8 products online offer them in child-friendly packaging, according to preliminary research presented at an American Academy of Pediatrics conference in October.
Federal health officials have accused companies of making Delta-8 products that appeal to children. The FDA and Federal Trade Commission in July sent cease-and-desist letters to six companies offering Delta-8 products that resembled Doritos chips, Cheetos snacks and Nerds ropes, among other items. Online retailers sell Delta-8 gummies, worms and other candies for as low as $1 per piece.
Public health officials worry the intoxicants can be especially dangerous for children. The products can cause nausea and vomiting or make children so sleepy that their breathing is at risk. Nearly 80% of the Delta-8 cases reported to poison control centers in the U.S. between January 2021 and October 2023 wound up in the hospital, according to data from America’s Poison Centers.
Last year in Des Moines, Iowa, five 14-year-old girls ended up dizzy, vomiting and with racing hearts after they bought and consumed colorful Delta-8 gummies, branded as “Death by Gummy Bears,” according to police and FDA records. The girls later told police they didn’t know what they were. One girl was paranoid, repeating she didn’t want to die. They took themselves to their school’s nurse’s office, and two were later treated in the emergency room.
“I don’t think any of them understood what was going to happen to them,” said Melissa Abbott, health-services supervisor at Des Moines Public Schools.
The FDA later issued a warning letter to Northland Vapor, the maker of “Death by Gummy Bears,” after the Iowa students were sickened and a 23-year-old man died after eating the product. The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy sued the company and attempted to block it from selling its goods warehoused in the state, saying the products violated Minnesota rules. The state is still tied up in litigation with the company, and Northland Vapor’s website still points to similar gummies branded “DBG,” for sale online via a sister company in flavors such as lemon bar and birthday cake.
The intoxicating products have gained so much in popularity that regulated marijuana producers and CBD manufacturers have started to see them as a threat and have advocated for more rules around them.
More than half of the states have attempted to rein in hemp-derived intoxicating products over the past several years, banning or adding regulation to them.
“There’s a lot of bad actors out there that are just making it dangerous,” said Marcus Quinn, CEO of Sunmed, a company that offers CBD as well as Delta-8 products in childproof packaging. The company has pushed Florida lawmakers for more rules related to the intoxicating products. “We really want to see reasonable regulation.”
The FDA has warned that the intoxicating products are dangerous to children but has said it needs Congress to pass a new law that would allow it to regulate cannabis products generally.
“This is a serious public health issue, and a solution is urgently needed,” said Patrick Cournoyer, who helps lead the committee studying cannabis for the FDA.
Federal lawmakers have asked cannabis experts and companies to weigh in on possible legislation. Many of those invested in the debate hope Congress will address the issue in the Farm Bill next year.
