CBD is legal almost everywhere, and THC is rapidly experiencing decriminalization and legalization in many places around the U.S. With greater availability of legal weed, researchers are uncovering all sorts of benefits to using the drug, such as healthier BMI, better lung capacity, lower stress, reduced pain, increased libido and more. As a result, athletes have taken to using CBD products — and to a lesser extent, THC — to aid in training and recovery.
However, before you rush out to get your hands on any CBD you can find, you should know that not all CBD is created equal. CBD is utterly unregulated; while the FDA struggles to get a handle on this booming market, many unscrupulous CBD sellers are presenting products that aren’t as they advertise. Plenty of CBD products don’t contain the amount of CBD on the label, and some lack any CBD whatsoever. Worse, CBD products can contain all manner of toxic ingredients, from formaldehyde to propane to heavy metals like lead and arsenic.
You can use CBD safely, but only if you know more about the individual product you hope to buy. Here are a few key questions to guide your buying practices, whether you are getting medical marijuana in Oklahoma, California or New York.
Where Was the Hemp Grown?
The cultivation of hemp for CBD is a relatively new phenomenon in the United States, and for many years, CBD was sourced from hemp farms outside the country in places like Spain, Portugal, Ukraine and Korea. Even today, many CBD products continue to utilize international suppliers, which helps keep costs low.
Unfortunately, the problem with buying CBD products that derive from crop grown overseas is you can’t be certain what else those products contain. Both the U.S. and Canada have strict regulations for hemp farmers, in terms of what kind of seed they can grow, how they can tend their fields, how they can harvest their crop and more. The result is a much higher-quality CBD product that you can trust.
If a CBD product isn’t explicit with regard to where its hemp is grown — either on the product itself or on the producer’s website — you should seek a more transparent CBD product.
How Was the CBD Extracted?
Getting CBD out of hemp isn’t easy. The extraction process requires complex machinery, and many of the cheapest extraction methods rely heavily on liquid solvents, like butane, propane, isopropyl alcohol or ethanol, all of which can be toxic if not properly removed from the final CBD product. Though many manufacturers do take pains to thoroughly clean their extracted CBD, there is always a chance that some amount of solvent will remain, tainting the product in some way.
There are cleaner extraction processes which you should prefer, if you can manage a slightly higher CBD budget. CO2 extraction and vapor distillation rely more on temperature and pressure to strip plant material, which means the final product ends up being pure and rich in both cannabinoids and terpenes.
What Spectrum Is the CBD Product?
Aside from extraction processes, there are three types of CBD product:
Full-spectrum CBD. Full-spectrum CBD products contain every cannabinoid, terpene and essential oil present in the hemp used to produce them. As a result, full-spectrum CBD does contain THC — but usually only trace amounts, which are unlikely to get you high. On the one hand, this allows CBD to benefit from the entourage effect; on the other hand, it could cause you to fail drug tests that look for THC.
Broad-spectrum CBD. Broad-spectrum products are a bit more refined than full-spectrum options, usually filtering out THC and other cannabinoids while maintaining CBD and some terpenes. While broad-spectrum products might be a bit safer with regards to THC content, they also tend to have lower CBD potency, as some CBD does get washed away in the refinement process.
CBD isolate. As the name suggests, isolate is only CBD, pure and simple. Because isolate contains no terpenes or essential oils, it doesn’t carry any of the aromas or flavors of marijuana, and its extremely high potency provides intense effects to those requiring CBD for medical treatment. However, isolate is incredibly expensive and sometimes difficult to find, so it isn’t worthwhile for most CBD users.
In addition to paying attention to the spectrum, you should look into how much CBD is present in each serving of the product. This will help you better manage dosing, keeping the good effects flowing.
Are There Other Ingredients?
Rarely do CBD products only contain cannabinoids. Even CBD oils often contain extra ingredients like stabilizers and preservatives to keep the product useful for longer. You might notice that in CBD edibles, like gummies, manufacturers add artificial colors and flavors to make the snack more palatable. Typically, it is wise to choose the most natural CBD products available to you, but if you don’t have bad reactions to certain artificial ingredients, they aren’t inherently injurious to your health.
Just as you might not enjoy every type of soda or brand of clothing, you shouldn’t expect every CBD product on the shelves to be the exact same. By asking the right questions and doing the right research, you can find CBD products that are good for your mind, body, soul and pocketbook.
