The Popularity of CBD Amongst Millennials
August 30, 2020
There is a movement amongst millennials characterised by a turning away from pharmaceuticals in favour of more natural remedies. According to the Arts and Sciences Faculty at Yale University, Millennials have, in fact, been labelled the most “health conscious generation ever” so it makes perfect sense that their quest would expand to the Hemp and CBD Industry. After all, it’s natural plant based food with health benefits having whole plant origins that have paved the way for some of the most modern pharmaceutical developments so it’s not a surprise that younger generations have come full circle.
Why the Shift?
Pharmaceutical Abuse for Pain Management
In recent times we have seen the consequences of pharmaceutical opioid abuse for which millennials are particularly at risk. Pharmaceutical opioids may be analgesics, are prepared semi or fully synthetically and constitute prescriptions for pain management and relief. In the U.S. statistics provided by the Center for Disease Control concluded that 70% of overdose deaths reported in 2018 can be attributed to opioids. Opioids are known to incite co-dependency and, in other words, offer scary prospects to its Millennial users. It’s for this reason guided by their health-oriented consumer habits that Millennials are more likely to look towards products containing Cannabidiol (CBD).
According to data collected by Gallup, an American analytics and advisory company, 14% of U.S. adults use CBD-based products with 40% of adults polled using CBD specifically for pain relief.
Risk of Prescription Medication Interaction
We have also seen the risk involved from medication interaction which can easily go unchecked by physicians with the existence and invention of so many new pharmaceuticals. Physicians are encouraged but not required to stay up to date on emerging drug safety risks with the UK General Medical Council citing such undertakings purely as “Good Medical Practice”. According to Chemical and Engineering News Publication reporting on research obtained by J.P. Morgan, the [U.S.] FDA (Food and Drug Administration) in 2018 approved 59 new drugs for mainstream usage as opposed to the average 20-25 per annum, with the increase expected to sustain high levels “for the foreseeable future.”
While this might be disconcerting news for those Millennials juggling multiple prescriptions, the good news about CBD is that there’s generally only one interaction to worry about.
Can CBD Replace Your Prescription?
Though research is ongoing and has shown promise in terms of its anti-anxiety, antipsychotic and neuroprotective properties, CBD is not designed to replace any prescription medicine and more research is required before such claims can be adequately supported. The goal of CBD is, rather, to work in conjunction with your body and pharmaceutical regime in order to maintain Endocannabinoid System (ECS) functionality through ensuring homeostatic balance. Full Spectrum CBD is entirely plant derived from whole-plant hemp extract instead of being lab-synthesised, an option with natural origin that often appeals to health-conscious Millennials.
CBD Results Vary- And That’s Good!
The ECS is responsible for a myriad of essential biological processes and CBD interacts with each one of them uniquely. A concept that attracts the likes of Millennials is that, unlike medicines which are designed to focus on one area of treatment within the body, CBD acts on a larger biological scale. Are you familiar with the medical ideology ‘treat the whole person not the symptom’? Millennials are allured by CBD because instead of addressing the symptoms of a singular physical concern like prescriptions are intended to do, Cannabidiol addresses the body as a whole since it interacts with specialised receptors found in all major internal systems. The fact that CBD users achieve such varied results confirms that our bodies and the ways in which our bodies require ECS regulation remain individual.
Natural Alternatives in the Beauty Sector
Many CBD manufacturers are aware of the shift towards chemical free and organic factions driven by millennial consumer trends, so CBD being organically derived and the products in which they are incorporated, like Hemp Balm, fit nicely into this niche. According to Capitalmind, one of Europe’s largest independent corporate finance advisory firms “organic beauty is the sweet spot” from a global market perspective based on financial gains largely due to the support of Millennials. Mostly attributed to the wealth of accessible, collective wisdom available to them with the expanse of digital technology (for this reason Millennials are also referred to as Digital Natives) millennials more than other generations are characterised as well-informed consumers. They represent an age group known for disregarding traditional brand loyalty and, instead, seeking out green products, in every sense of the word.
Influence of Social Media
There are over 10.6 million #cbd tags on Instagram alone and Instagram is only one of 7 social media platforms which Millennial “Digital Natives” now consort before making purchases. Hollywood actresses Emma Roberts and Minka Kelly both promoted CBD-infused products on their respective Instagram feeds, all the while providing targeted advertising to their accumulative 14,693,000 followers. Whereas brand heritage has been traditionally been established over time, celebrities with the help of social media appear to have replaced that calculated approach with nothing more than their reputation. And Millennials are buying it.
Conclusion
Millennials currently make up the largest generation ever to exist and their consumer tendencies have been shaped by various factors including the advancement of digital technology, the revealing of ecosystemic peril through more widely available information, the rise of social media, a shift in consciousness away from synthetic living and a return to more natural roots in terms of health and self-care.
According to a global nielson online study, consumers stand united in their willingness to pay extra for sustainability. While 66% of global consumers are willing to pay more for sustainable goods, a whopping 73% of Millennials support the cause. And nothing is more sustainable than hemp!
