Whoopi, 60, today announced the launch of a line of products infused with marijuana to help soothe menstrual cramps
By MIRANDA BRYANT FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
Outspoken marijuana fan Whoopi Goldberg today announced she is launching a new line of products featuring the drug that claims to help women who suffer from menstrual stomach cramps.
The 60-year-old actress, businesswoman, comedian and television host from New York, who publicly supports marijuana use, told USA Today period pain is ‘not a joke’ and that she wants to help those who suffer from it.
Whoopi says that her product, which is released next month, is for people who ‘don’t want to get high high’, but instead simply want a way to relieve their period pain in a calming and relaxing way.
It will only be available in California to people with medical marijuana cards due to the federal ban on the drug.
The View co-host launched the brand, Whoopi & Maya, with Maya Elisabeth, founder of Om Edibles, an all-female-run medical-marijuana cannabis company in California.
By entering the marijuana industry, one of America’s fastest growing, Whoopi is following in the footsteps of rapper Snoop Dogg, who backs Leafs by Snoop, and the family of late singer Bob Marley, who joined a cannabis company to make Marley Natural products.
Whoopi said although joint-smoking is ‘fine’, the majority of people cannot do it before work and function.
‘For me, I feel like if you don’t want to get high high, this is a product specifically just to get rid of discomfort,’ she told Vanity Fair.
‘Smoking a joint is fine, but most people can’t smoke a joint and go to work.’
‘This, you can put it in your purse. You can put the rub on your lower stomach and lower back at work, and then when you get home you can get in the tub for a soak or make tea, and it allows you to continue to work throughout the day.’
Goldberg, who has previously spoken about her use of medical marijuana in a column for website The Cannabist, started using a vape pen after she stopped smoking cigarettes and could not smoke joints anymore and found it gave her ‘relief’ from her glaucoma-related headaches.
Dismissing those who claim period pain is a ‘niche’ product, she said she was inspired by her granddaughters who get cramps.
She said: ‘Hey, this niche is half the population on the earth. This seems to be people flippantly blowing you off, which is what you get whenever you start talking about cramps.
‘They weren’t thinking how you target this. I have grown granddaughters who have severe cramps, so I said this is what I want to work on.’
‘I want to go nice and slow with this. I don’t want this to be a joke to people. It’s not a joke to women,’ she told USA Today.
The marijuana industry is one of the most rapidly growing in the US, according to research, increasing year-on-year by more than 30 percent.
California is expected to pass a ballot measure later this year that would legalize recreational use of the drug which currently needs a doctor’s recommendation.
Elisabeth told USA Today: ‘I’m excited for people to feel comfortable using cannabis.’
