Cream, oil, tobacco substitute: there are many ways to consume legal cannabis. Alain, a biology student at Unil, prefers to inhale via a vaporizer four times a week. "There's no nicotine, little THC, and none of the physical addiction. The vapo produces little smoke, which preserves the lungs." Consumers of this new type of cannabis are challenging clichés about pot smokers. Top athletes have helped popularize CBD, such as American combat athlete Nate Diaz, who says he uses it as a muscle relaxant, with the product passing anti-doping controls. Alexandre, a student at EPFL, smokes it to improve his sleep and reduce his cannabis consumption. He has gone from one to three joints a day to three CBD intakes a week. "I've only been smoking CBD for two weeks now. I'd tried substitutes before, but there wasn't the taste and smell. Here, you feel it's weed, you retain the pleasure, without the high." In fact, as the FOPH report points out, cannabidiol is not an "intoxicating" molecule, unlike TCH, which is present in large quantities in illegal weed.

"Responsible consumption"

For the 24-year-old from Lausanne, the problem with THC is that it acts mainly on the brain: "CBD, on the other hand, is not psychotropic, it just relaxes the muscles. A plus for concentration, short-term memory and social integration. Alexandre doesn't hesitate to talk about it with those around him, as he sees it as "responsible consumption". Especially as hemp is legal, its origin and quality are better controlled. "It's often organic and traceable, so I can trace the whole production chain and know what I'm consuming." Nicolas Chanussot, President of the Geneva-based Alternative Verte association, stresses the importance of this traceability: "Cannabis is adulterated on the black market. Before, dealers would add fiberglass to make it shiny. With CBD, we control everything." For the past ten years, Alternative Verte has aimed to provide information on the use of medicinal plants, such as cannabis, for therapeutic applications. Swissmedic, which controls the authorization of therapeutic products, prohibits sellers from giving medical advice. The organization states that canabidiol could have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticonvulsant, antiemetic, anxiolytic, hypnotic or antipsychotic effects. But according to the FOPH, "its medicinal effect has not yet been sufficiently proven by research". " https://www.letemps.ch/suisse/2017/03/16/consommateurs-cannabis-legal-cest-plaisir-defonce, (11/12/17)