Daniel Perez Vidal shares how his background in investigative journalism and his father’s health battle with cancer gave him a start in the CBD industry.
Daniel Perez Vidal began his career as an investigative journalist, before moving into research at a university. He believes that his background gave him the perfect mindset for entering the CBD industry.
As an investigative journalist, he was used to researching stories and searching to discover the truth. This was a great skill to have when it came to learning about cannabinoids.
“As a journalist, you learn so much about people,” said Daniel.
Later on, when I was teaching at university, I often felt academic research relied too heavily on existing knowledge. With journalism, you have a critical mind and don’t take things at face value. Sometimes in academia, that is forgotten and students appreciate the skill and are quick to learn.”
He added: “As an investigative journalist, we created the most incredible stories. It teaches you that you need to be faithful to the facts and present them as they are. People need to be able to make their own choices, but you can sleep better when you know you have presented something as objectively as possible.”
From journalist to health researcher
When Daniel’s father became ill with cancer in 2008, he started to research alternative therapies, including cannabinoids. This led to eight years of wellness and health research which culminated in the educational website, For the Ageless. The site offers a range of information on everything from taking CBD to building a tolerance and how to make your own edibles.
Daniel began by examining areas of his father’s life from diet to sleep or exercise. He wanted to find possibilities that could empower him to make positive changes.
“My father was given an impossible prognosis where there wasn’t much hope. As I was working at a university, I decided to do more research into how I could help him,” Daniel explained.
“That investigative journalism drive started again and I began to look into lifestyle changes he could make.”
He added: “It was really hard with a parent because of the emotional attachment. I had to step back and allow him to make choices. I was truly stressed, not just by the illness but the internal conflict of wanting to share so much and the whole emotional rollercoaster.”
Daniel’s drive to share information led to the creation of For the Ageless. As time moved on, it developed into an online shop where customers could find CBD products and other wellness items.
“One night in the hospital, I thought if everything he is doing works out then I promise I will put this on a website,” he said.
“It started as an informational resource then became a store as it is now. Cannabis was a way of opening up a new path for someone who was in trouble. It allowed him to make new choices and find a way out on his own.”
Health battles and family support
It wasn’t just Daniel’s father who went through the changes but the entire family too. They saw it as not just a way to support him but also to join him in his journey.
“Diet was an absolute life change and I insisted that we all, as a family, go through that change as a way to be with him,” said Daniel.
“We all tried cannabis too. It was a rollercoaster which was difficult to monitor as we were just learning but we were certain this is when he felt better in his body and his mind.
“There was a spiritual shift at some point. One of the most powerful things about your health is to ask yourself the right questions and make changes. Once he did that, everything seemed to go right. Whenever he found an answer, he made a step forward like he was undoing a mess or detangling variables.”
Consuming cannabis also allowed Daniel’s father to open his mind and relieve some of the memories he had experienced as a younger man. He initially found cannabis an intense experience, although soon began to look forward to the peaceful mindset it gave him. He also became more affectionate and wanted to share things with the family.
Daniel also became interested in the organic movement. He began to research where it came from and what effect it could have on public health.
“A lot of research was being done in the UK proving that organic was the way to protect someone when they have a chronic disease. The last thing they need is more toxins in their system. Cannabis is a bio-accumulator which reflects the air, fertiliser or pesticides used where it is grown.”
Daniel started working with a small grower in the Czech Republic called Biopurus who specialised in organic oils. It was one of the first brands that he worked with before working with Biobloom in Austria. He was drawn to the family business and the handmade style of the products.
“Biobloom are extreme in that they don’t even allow machines to go into their fields. Everything is done by hand and made in a riverbed between Austria and Hungary. It’s a family tradition for them and they are extraordinary as they have been triple organic certification. They even have the biodynamic association stamp from the UK which is really hard to get.”
For the Ageless and medicinal mushrooms
The website has also been one of the first organic and CBD stores to focus on medicinal mushrooms. The site sells a combination of lion’s mane, reishi and cordyceps as capsules. Medicinal mushrooms in combination with CBD is poised to be one of the biggest wellness trends for 2022.
“As they are fermented, those little capsules have more than 100 microbes in each yet they look so simple,” he said.
“They have a lot more power than the two teaspoons of regular mushroom powder.”
But Daniel is concerned about the threat that is facing the CBD industry. He worries that our choices may be restricted by changing regulations unless consumers become advocates for the products. He believes that CBD and cannabis are just part of the pathways that patients can use to get their own health back on track.
“The threat that CBD is undergoing right now means that we may end up with the possibility of there being no more full-spectrum products. It could mean the worst possibility of only synthetic cannabinoids or isolates being allowed. CBD could lose its main purpose if we sell something synthetic,” he said.
“I’m happy to advocate for full spectrum and organic. If that door closes then we are ready for it, although I pray that won’t happen. We want to keep developing the educational side of things so that people can figure out their own health paths. People need more research, more tools and information.”
