The New York City Department of Health has decided to take away one of the meager methods those who inhabit the city use to mitigate their constant stress. On Tuesday, they announced that restaurants and bars would be banned from serving food and beverages that contained CBD oil.
According to the New York Daily News, the Department of Health is banning cannabidiol because it has not been officially deemed safe for human consumption.
“Restaurants in New York City are not permitted to add anything to food or drink that is not approved as safe to eat,” said a statement from the health department. “The Health Department takes seriously its responsibility to protect New Yorkers’ health. Until cannabidiol (CBD) is deemed safe as a food additive, the Department is ordering restaurants not to offer products containing CBD.”
Now, it’s true that CBD hasn’t “been approved” to be an official food additive, but it is also true that a CBD smoothie often feels like the only beverage on the planet that can calm me down during MTA failures. CBD oil, which is a chemical compound found in marijuana, has been linked to reducing stress and anxiety, and can be put in everything from honey to hand soap.
Unfortunately for fans of CBD-infused iced coffee in the city, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio voiced his support for the Health Department’s decision. “The Department of Health is the gold standard for public health in this country and if they have a concern, I have a concern,” he told Daily News. “I have not had this conversation with them directly but I think they are often at the cutting edge of finding problems and addressing them.”
Bill, I also have a concern, and it’s that I’m never going to be able to buy an overpriced CBD-infused brownie from an artisanal bakery to quell my deep-seated anxieties about climate change and the likelihood of lower Manhattan flooding in the next ten years. Please, just let us have this.
