Buying CBD For The First Time
The popularity of CBD has skyrocketed over the past year and every day it seems like a new company is coming out with its brand of CBD products. CBD comes in many applications such as CBD lotions, CBD gummies, CBD capsules, CBD vapes, and CBD smokable flowers. CBD oil or tincture seems to be the most well known. If you’re like me, I am interested in trying CBD Oil, but in an industry with so many brands and competition, how do I know which one is the best for me? Am I looking for CBD that helps with depression, anxiety, or stress? This blog is about what I have learned to help you make the best decision for yourself when considering adding CBD to your health regimen.
CBD Oil is not a one size fits all product and there are many different types of CBD Oils and dosages. There is what’s called Broad Spectrum Oil and Full Spectrum Oil, some oils contain trace amounts of CBD which will show up on a drug test and others contain no THC or 0.0% THC, there are flavored and unflavored or natural oils, and pricing varies.
Broad Spectrum Oil vs. Full Spectrum Oil
If you were to get in a fight, but could only use one finger to fight with, you might do a little damage but overall you would be at a disadvantage, this is like Broad Spectrum CBD Oil. Broad Spectrum means it only contains CBD and no other cannabinoids like CBC, CBG, CBN, or THC. Broad Spectrum CBD Oil generally costs less than Full Spectrum Oil due to the fact it is limited in how much relief it can provide with only one cannabinoid, (CBD). Cannabinoids tend to feed off each other, amplifying the other making it have a greater effect on your body, this is known as the “Entourage” effect.
Full Spectrum Oils contain CBD as well as other cannabinoids to provide one with the Entourage effect. Full Spectrum Oil would be the equivalent of using all five of your fingers to make a fist, and that’s more powerful than just one finger. Generally, THC is one of the other cannabinoids in a Full Spectrum oil. If you take a drug test for your job, Full Spectrum Oils could cause you to fail your drug test. However, there are some companies, like Koi CBD, that make a Full Spectrum CBD Oil with 0.0% THC. Even though they have taken the THC out, you still get the Entourage effect due to the other cannabinoids like CBN, CBC, CBG, etc. This is called the Koi Prizm Formula. It’s great for people who suffer from anxiety or pain but are worried about testing positive for THC on a drug test. Koi’s 0.0% THC Prizm Formula has solved that problem for you while allowing you to receive the benefits of a Full Spectrum CBD Oil.
CBD Dosages and How They Vary
CBD oils mostly come in a 30ml size bottle with a 1ml dropper inside. CBD Oils range from 500mg, 750mg, 1000mg, up to 5000mg, and any number in between. However, it is important to look at the CBD amount per dose per bottle because it can vary. For example, My friend and I were comparing two different 3000mg CBD Oils. One Bottle was made by Purple Valley CBD and the other bottle (who’s name I won’t mention) was rated as one of the top 5 CBD Oils for 2020. The Purple Valley 3000mg bottle retailed at $175, whereas the Top Selling 3000mg retailed at $145. What a Deal Right? Wrong! After further investigation, we found out a full dosage of the Top Selling brand provided only 49mg of CBD per dose, and a full dose of the Purple Valley provided 99mg of CBD per dose. You would have to buy 2 bottles of the Top Selling CBD brand, a $290 cost to equal the same amount of CBD in one bottle of Purple Valley’s 3000mg CBD bottle, a $175 cost. The reason for the difference is even though they were both 3000mg bottles, the top-selling brand had been diluted with more carrier oil than the Purple Valley and therefore provided less CBD per dose even though they were the same 3000mg bottle. This is a small cost-cutting strategy the average consumer would easily overlook when shopping for a CBD oil that could cost them big.
Do CBD Oils Have Guarantees?
Every CBD company promotes its product as “The Best”, however very few offer a guarantee on their product so buyers beware. I have heard many times someone says the product didn’t work and the retailer or company says we can’t return the product if you’ve opened the product and broken the safety seal on it. What a cop-out, how are you supposed to know if the product actually works if you don’t open it? However, this trend is changing as the industry evolves. R&R Medicinals stands behind their products by offering a 30-Day Risk-Free Trial (Guarantee) on all their products. If you purchase one of their products from a retailer and your expectations aren’t met, as long as you have your receipt and are within that 30-day window of the purchase, the retailer will return your purchase back to R&R for a full refund. Now that’s good business.
Retail vs Online Shopping for CBD
The majority of CBD sales happen online, it’s convenient, discrete, and they offer great deals. However, in 2017 a University of Penn Study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, (JAMA), showed that nearly 70% of all cannabinoid products sold online are either over or under labeled regarding their contents. This could potentially cause serious harm to consumers. The landscape of CBD Retailers is full of individuals who know just enough about the product to sell it to you, but not the product itself. When shopping for CBD products look for a reputable company that has a history of doing good business and has great reviews. If you are at your local CBD retail store determine if they are trying to sell or educate you on the CBD product. What’s the difference you might ask? One who is trying to sell you a product will provide information on the product. On the other hand, one who is trying to educate you on the product so that you can make the best decision for yourself might ask questions about your individual situation, like what would you use CBD for, is drug testing a concern for you, and explain how CBD would react with other medication you might be taking. This information will allow the retailer to know your individual situation better and provide the best possible CBD products for you.
I hope this small bit of information based on my CBD experiences can help assist you in your journey of discovering what CBD oil is best for you. I leave you with the famous words of Entertainer Willie Nelson, “The biggest killer on the planet is stress and I still think the best medicine is and always has been cannabis.”
