GuideLive.com: "Dallas juice shop sells hemp 'edibles' like brownies and smoothies ... but you won't get high " October 3, 2017 11:09 79 Comments
This article was originally posted on the GuideLive.com. Thanks so much to author Jeremy Hallock covering this new offering from Roots.
Businesses in Texas can't legally sell marijuana, not for medicinal purposes and not for fun. But one company in Dallas, Roots Juices, is selling "edibles" made with cannabidiol, which comes from the cannabis plant.
Hang on a minute: These are not the same "edibles" you can buy in Denver. Roots Juices' version — which are sold as gluten-free brownies and strawberry muffins — are infused with cannabidiol hemp oil, commonly known as CBD oil or simply CBD. It's hemp without the high.
Whereas marijuana products are derived from plants with high concentrations of psychoactive tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), CBD is extracted from low-THC hemp and is a non-psychotropic, which means you will not have an otherworldly experience, or a chill moment on the couch, if you eat one of Roots' brownies.
After selling CBD products for a few months, Roots owner Brent Rodgers says there has been virtually no controversy.
"There's a few people who won't go near it," he says. "But I don't think they understand the product."
Rodgers says CBD items are so popular that he is adding cake balls and lollipops "in about two weeks." The company, which has two shops in Dallas and two in Atlanta, also sells smoothies and shots that contain CBD. The shop even sells bottles of CBD oil; Rodgers says capsules are coming soon.
He believes CBD is a natural fit for shops with juice blends meant to hydrate, energize and cleanse. "We juice a lot of turmeric and life-changing, very strange ingredients and herbs," Rodgers says. Expanding the shop's offerings to CBD products "just made sense," he says.
He takes CBD every day to treat insomnia. Customers have told him it offers relief from anxiety, depression and joint pain; some give it to their children to help control seizures.
Dr. Jane Sadler, a family medicine physician on staff at Baylor Medical Center at Garland, says she has patients who use CBD oil. Studies have demonstrated health benefits, she says.
CBD "may reduce anxiety, help fight cancer, decrease symptoms of schizophrenia, and even improve social recognition with people who suffer from Alzheimer's Disease," she says. But Sadler encourages people to check in with medical providers because "there is no regulation on CBD oil, and it needs to be developed and approved by the FDA."
Is this legal?
The legal status of CBD is murky. The Food and Drugs Administration has not approved CBD products "for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of any disease." The Drug Enforcement Administration says CBD "falls within the Controlled Substances Act definition of marijuana" and Texas' policy is still progressing.
But Rodgers insists that selling CBD oil is federally legal because it is below the legal threshold for THC percentage in hemp (0.3 percent or less). Several business owners across the country have also subscribed to this assumption and quickly created a thriving industry with hundreds of CBD products, from massage oils to dog treats.
So, how does it make you feel?
Curious about the effects and benefits of CBD, I visited Roots Juices on Oak Lawn Avenue. It was early afternoon and a self-described "powerlifter who enjoys rock climbing" was buying a shot of cold brew coffee that contained CBD oil. She regularly buys CBD shots and says they help with back pain and post-workout recovery.
I drank a CBD smoothie loaded with greens and, for good measure, ate a brownie.
The CBD had no discernible taste or smell, and in minutes I felt something, but certainly not high. With no pain or exercise to recover from, I noticed the anxiety from too many cups of coffee disappear and started to feel more relaxed. The effects were subtle, but positive, and seemed to wear off after a few hours.
As we've reported in the past, Texas is getting ready for when legal weed becomes a local industry. Marijuana is coming to Texas, our Tiney Ricciardi wrote in May. For now, those in the fitness community seem to be finding Roots Juices' hemp edibles as a sliver of what's to come.
I Live In Dallas: "28 Days of Roots Juices" October 3, 2017 10:45 79 Comments
This article was originally posted on the blog "I Live In Dallas." Thanks so much to Neil for documenting his journey of juice cleansing with Roots.
This is the first of three articles I plan to write in order to share my juicing fast journey with you. As with all good anecdotes, I will try and relay this account in an as personal and specific way as possible. I will make it personal because by its very nature it is personal. I will make this account specific for quasi-scientific reasons so it can be duplicated if others choose to do so on his/her path to health.
I will be unpacking this true account of a better, healthier, life in three articles with the last being the final reveal and visual results. You see, with the exception of two meals, I haven't eaten solid food in the past 28 days. I have been surviving (and thriving) off of the cold pressed juices extracted and sold by Dallas-founded Roots Pressed Juices.
At this point in the process I feel surreal. I look and feel better, have more energy, am enjoying sharper clarity of mind, and more hopeful about the future than I have been in years. In 28 days, this journey has changed my life, and it's not over yet. This juice fast has put me on a completely new healthier and balanced trajectory.
General Practitioner's Prognosis
A little more than thirty days ago, I went to see a general practitioner for a preventative annual check-up (my day job offers a yearly monetary incentive for doing so). I didn't actually have a general practitioner in Dallas that I thought of as "my doctor," even though I've lived here for twelve years. That reveals to you how often I actually visit a doctor other than emergencies or wisdom teeth extraction.
Unfortunately, my health and diet had always taken a backseat to my career ambitions, insatiable love of food, culture, fun, and variety-seeking. I found an in-network GP in Southlake with excellent online reviews. He asked the reason for my visit of which there were three.
1. General check-up for company $ incentive
2. An odd, unidentifiable, rash on my back (had been there a year)
3. Was about to go on a 30 day minimum juice fast with his blessing
As expected, the doctor told me that I had to do something as far as diet and exercise or I would I have go on cholesterol-lowering medication in less than three months. My vitals were bad. I have the report sent to me via email that I will share a screenshot of in my second article so you can see a before and after comparison.
The Texan Diet
I had the normal Texan diet - ground beef tacos, enchiladas, chicken fried steak, fillet steak, lots of barbecue brisket, boiled shrimp, fried and blackened catfish, daily doses of Coca-Cola, and three-to-four natural sugar-packed cups of coffee a day.
had the normal Texan diet - ground beef tacos, enchiladas, chicken fried steak, fillet steak, lots of barbecue brisket, boiled shrimp, fried and blackened catfish, daily doses of Coca-Cola, and three-to-four natural sugar-packed cups of coffee a day.
According to the clinic's scales, I could see that I weighed more than I've ever weighed in my life. I was fat. This wasn't an opinion; it was a body mass index (BMI) fact. I will embarrassingly reveal exactly how fat I was with before and after photos in the next article.
Sugar Addiction
On top of being fat I was addicted to sugar. This manifested itself through highs and lows throughout the day, and crashing at night, which I had come to believe as just "normal." I quit sugar-laden sodas and coffee cold turkey. The difference between how I felt a little more than 30 days ago and how I feel now is vast.
How Did This Happen?
After seven years of writing about food festivals, Dallas restaurant openings, the State Fair of Texas, and other sensory-centered events, plus eight hours a day sitting in front of a computer for my day job for the last 12 years, it all took a toll.
I've never been what one might call "athletic," but was skinny as a rail as a teenager and was considered "fit" by most arbitrary measures for most of my 20s. The photo to the left of this article was taken three years ago. I typically suck-in for photos. I have to admit I became what you might call "skinny-fat." This is where all fat just goes to the gut, chest, pectorals (moobs). The legs, arms, butt, and thighs don't increase that much. This type of fat placement is more common among men, it seems.
I've never been what one might call "athletic," but was skinny as a rail as a teenager and was considered "fit" by most arbitrary measures for most of my 20s. The photo to the left of this article was taken three years ago. I typically suck-in for photos. I have to admit I became what you might call "skinny-fat." This is where all fat just goes to the gut, chest, pectorals (moobs). The legs, arms, butt, and thighs don't increase that much. This type of fat placement is more common among men, it seems.
I started writing about food and festivals in my late 20s. Now I'm 36. I know all the clichés about lower metabolism when one hits their 30s and 40s, but I decided a long time ago that wasn't going to be me. I wasn't going to let that be an excuse. I wasn't going to be a portly 40-something year-old pot-belled, mostly bald with pony tail, goatee-donning guy driving a leased BMW around Uptown. Yet, here I was on that road.
Four Failed Fasts
In 2012, I watched the documentary Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead. This doc had a profound effect on me. It was a released in 2011, written, directed, and centered around Australian business man Joe Cross. Joe had an autoimmune disease at the beginning of the film, weighed 310 lbs, and needed a change. The film chronicles Joe's personal mission to regain his health through a 60 day juice fast and road trip across the United States. He ends up losing more than 80 pounds over 60 days and his autoimmune disease healed itself.
10 Day Fast
In 2013, I went on two five day juice cleanses in a row via Roots Juices. They were a relatively new company in Dallas and the only one that I knew of that offered cold pressed juices in the form of a regimented cleanse. However, I cheated. I learned later on that the body has to come to a faux starvation state in order for it to dip into fat reserves for energy before weight loss can start. It doesn't happen if you alternate juice and food. Most of our energy is received though daily in-take of carbs, sugar, and other fast energy consumables, but when those are removed your body moves to the pantry.
DIY Second Try
In 2015, my girlfriend and I tried juicing on our own. We did it successfully for around two weeks. We might have lost three or four pounds max. In this trial I learned that there is a huge difference between juicing with a cold press (masticating) juicer versus juicing with a run of the mill blender or centrifuge juicer. Cold press juicers extract 40 - 50 times more nutrients and a lot more juice. A NutriBullet® doesn't do the job.
Intermittent and Water Fasting
YouTube is riff with stories of intermittent and water fasting. If you aren't familiar, intermittent fasting is eating all you want, but only during a small window of time. Basically, it's consuming just one meal a day at a certain time to get your body used to using the energy more efficiently. Water fasting is only drinking filtered water and consuming no actual food or juice. Needless to say, these are two tough options for those with less than optimal self-control or someone that gets invited to restaurant openings and festivals. Under stress, they were downright impossible for me. I failed at both.
The Light at the End of the Tunnel - Roots Juices 30 Day Fast
The light at the end of the tunnel came when I contacted Roots Juices and struck a deal for a 30 day juice 
fast for myself and my girlfriend. Full disclosure, it was not free or even close to it because of my publisher status. I did get a discount, but it wasn't any sort of discount they haven't given on special occasions. We combined it with their Labor Day special and paid for two 30 days fasts upfront. Cold press juicing is not inexpensive for the business owner, or customer. However, it works! It's one of the fastest, most efficient ways to lose weight without being miserable or even hungry.
With a cold pressed juice cleanse, you not only lose weight, you turn your whole health profile around. We did alternate juices with Topo Chico Mineral Water, which is approved and is one of the only other liquid products Roots sells that isn't made in-house.
Roots Juices Founder Brent Rodgers is a true Dallas entrepreneurial success story. When I did my original 10 day cleanse in 2013, their only location was on Oak Lawn. Now they have a second store in Lakewood, and two more stores in Atlanta, Georgia.
More Details & What to Expect
Their prices are extremely fair when you consider that every 16 ounce bottle has up to three pounds of fruits and vegetables that have been extracted. Their plans or "cleanses" are setup as Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3. One can stay on Level 1 indefinitely, if he/she choses, or move onto the others in sequence. They typically get more green and spicy the higher you go.
You drink six bottles a day, which equates to 18 lbs of fruits and vegetables. Would you be able to physically eat 18 lbs of fruits and veggies in one day? I wouldn't, but I have been drinking 18 lbs worth of juice every day for 28 days. They offer 1 day, 2 day, 3 day, and 5 day cleanses.
The 30 day fast (or ten 3 day cleanses, however you want to look at it), is off the menu. Since it's extremely fresh, it's best if consumed within five to seven days, but even better within three. This keeps the optimal amount of nutrients in-tact. Each of the six juices had a day are consumed in a beneficial sequence, with sort of special dessert juice at the end of Level 1 and Level 2 ("Health Nut" made from almond milk).
I will get into a lot more detail in my second article where I will recommend some insider juice fasting tips that helped me get through 28 days and my favorite juices. The reason I am not spilling my beans here with my results is I have decided to go another 17 days! That's right it will be 45 days in all. Plus I have to make another trip to the MD. He's going to flip when he sees the improvement in my chart.
What's Next
In my next article I will reveal my before and after photos, share a video so you can get a better look, show my new cholesterol levels, vitals, tell you what happened to that rash I had the doctor look at, and more.
Good Morning Texas segment May 16, 2015 06:12 47 Comments
Watch our appearance below on Good Morning Texas discussing our Cold Pressed Juice Cleanse.
We were honored to have been featured on the “Social Radar: What’s Hot in the New Year” segment on Good Morning Texas! Bri Crum of Plan B PR talked about our juice cleanses and some individual cold pressed juices. They spoke about the importance of pressed juice and why our delivery service was so great. They also mentioned that we are newly offering free shipping all over the state of Texas.