Want to Love Your First CBD Purchase? Do These 3 Things Before You Buy
If you’ve spent any time reading reviews from people who have tried CBD, you’ve probably come away with the conclusion that the results sometimes seem fairly mixed. Surveys suggest that most CBD users are very happy with their experience. However, you’ll also see some reports from people who have tried CBD and found that it didn’t really seem to do anything for them at all.
Needless to say, you definitely want to be in the first group when you finally take the plunge and try CBD for the first time. There is much research that still needs to be done on CBD. Although studies suggest that it could have a wide range of potential benefits, most of those studies aren’t large enough or sufficiently controlled and therefore can’t be considered conclusive yet. Therefore, the only way to know whether CBD will benefit you is by trying it for yourself. You definitely won’t experience a benefit, though, if the first CBD product that you buy isn’t a good product or isn’t the right one for your needs.
In this article, we’re going to help you get off on the right foot with your first CBD purchase. If you want to love CBD from the start, these are the things that you need to do before you buy.
Understand What Type of CBD You’re Buying
Before you buy any CBD product, the first thing you need to know is that CBD oil comes in different forms. If you don’t understand the difference between the different types – broad-spectrum vs. full-spectrum CBD, for instance – you’re going to end up with something that doesn’t meet your needs at all.
There are three common types of CBD oil. We’ll summarize them here, but it’s worthwhile to spend a bit of time researching the differences between the three types to ensure that the product you buy is perfect for your needs.
• Full-spectrum CBD oil is a direct extract from the original hemp plant, and it contains all of the same compounds as in the original plant. The most plentiful compound is obviously CBD, but full-spectrum CBD oil also contains a wide array of terpenes and minor cannabinoids. The benefit of full-spectrum CBD oil is that it’s a completely natural herbal supplement made from a whole plant. You’ll get it all here, and you may even find that one of the minor cannabinoids in full-spectrum CBD oil is just as helpful for you – perhaps even more so – than the CBD itself.
• Broad-spectrum CBD oil is a minimally processed CBD oil created with the intention of selectively removing trace THC from the product. All hemp strains – even the industrial hemp strains used for CBD production – contain some THC, even if it’s just in trace amounts. For most people, that’s completely fine. CBD oil can contain trace THC and still be entirely legal, and you won’t get high from CBD oil regardless of how much you use. However, some people are nervous about consuming THC even in trace amounts because their employers require them to take drug screenings. CBD companies create broad-spectrum CBD oil using fractional distillation, which selectively evaporates the THC out of the mixture while leaving most of the other cannabinoids and terpenes intact. It’s a good choice for most people who have to undergo drug screenings.
• CBD isolate is pure powdered CBD, and it’s extracted from hemp distillate through a lengthy process of filtering, refinement and fractional distillation. CBD oil made from CBD isolate doesn’t contain any of hemp’s minor cannabinoids, which may be a drawback because you may find that those minor cannabinoids actually enhance the effect of the CBD. On the other hand, CBD isolate contains no detectable THC and should have no chance of triggering a positive result in a drug test.
Know Where the Hemp Is Grown
Hemp is one of the world’s most popular cash crops. It isn’t just grown for CBD; it’s also grown for its sturdy fibers and nutritious seeds. Hemp can be used in the production of biofuel, and it can even be made into a durable construction material. Before you buy a bottle of CBD oil, you’ll want to confirm the origin of the hemp because it isn’t safe to assume that it was grown in your own country.
China is the world’s biggest hemp growing nation. That’s potentially problematic because heavy metal pollution of the soil is a serious problem in many of China’s growing regions. One of the greatest benefits of hemp as a cash crop is that it isn’t just an incredibly useful plant; it can also help to remediate soil by drawing heavy metals and other pollutants out of it. You wouldn’t want to buy CBD oil that’s contaminated with heavy metals, though, and you also want to be absolutely certain that you’re consuming a product made from hemp grown according to organic practices. For those reasons, it’s very important to know the origin of the hemp before you buy any bottle of CBD oil.
Download and Read the Product’s Batch Test Results
A CBD company may tell you that its products are made from domestic organic hemp – and while it’s generally unlikely that a company would lie about such things, you’re not required to take their word for it. There are laboratories around the world that can analyze just about anything to determine its constituent components, and many of those labs are set up specifically to serve the needs of the hemp industry. These days, it’s an almost universally accepted standard that CBD companies need to send their products to outside labs for testing and publish the results for the public to see.
A good CBD company always sends product samples to labs for testing, and the test results will always show exactly how much CBD and THC a product contains. Some companies, however, go even further by having labs check for trace pesticides, heavy metals and other undesirable contaminants. You have the right to know what you’re putting in your body, so you should always download and review the batch testing results before buying any bottle of CBD oil.
