SEBASTIAN SHAKESPEARE: Tamara Ecclestone’s husband turns over new leaf with investment in cannabis oil company
He is married to Tamara Ecclestone, heiress daughter of Formula One billionaire Bernie Ecclestone, lives in a £70million house in Kensington and drives a bespoke £200,000 Range Rover.
But, evidently, that’s not enough for Jay Rutland.
The Essex-raised entrepreneur has, I can disclose, just grabbed a piece of the action in the cannabis business, investing in a firm, Apothem, aiming to cash in on the explosive global demand for cannabidiol oil.
Tamara Ecclestone, heiress daughter of Formula One billionaire Bernie Ecclestone, and Jay Rutlan (pictured together) live in a £70million house in Kensington
More commonly known as CBD, the oil — whose use for medicinal purposes was legalised by Parliament last November — is said to alleviate acute suffering in those afflicted by a range of illnesses. The cannabis is grown in Malta and Spain and processed in Denmark.
Rutland, 38, who was banned from the City for trading without ‘honesty and integrity’ the year before marrying Tamara in 2013, vouches for its potency from personal experience.
‘I’ve got Crohn’s disease,’ he tells me, speaking about his condition for the first time. ‘I was diagnosed when I was 30 and had my large intestine taken out.
The cannabis (pictured) is grown in Malta and Spain and then processed in Denmark
More commonly known as CBD, the cannabidiol oil (pictured) is said to alleviate acute suffering in those afflicted by a range of illnesses
‘Even after the operation, you still suffer from other complications. Crohn’s is an awful illness.
‘It can be a lot worse when you have a flare up,’ adds Rutland, who began self-medicating with CBD nine months ago, administering a twice-daily dosage with a pipette. ‘You just put a few drops under the tongue, keep it there for 60 seconds and then wash it down with water. It really helps with the inflammation.’ Cochrane, a leading charity conducting independent research into healthcare developments, has reported that ‘further studies with larger numbers of participants are required to assess the potential benefits and harms of cannabis in Crohn’s disease’.
But Rutland needs no convincing. ‘This is a great product that’s helping people all over the world now,’ he assures me, ‘from children with epilepsy to people with anxiety.’