CBD products have become incredibly popular in recent years. Whether you’re in in places like gas stations, smoke shops, or convenience stores, they’re difficult to escape. Here are five things you should know before picking up your first CBD product.
CBD can be used for many different purposes. There are plenty of reasons you may be considering trying CBD. It’s effective at treating a wide array of symptoms and disorders, like social anxiety, insomnia, depression, inflammation, and chronic pain. There is even some evidence it can slow down the growth of cancer cells and reduce seizures.
Unlike THC, CBD is not psychoactive. Although derived from the same plant, CBD will not leave you feeling intoxicated or “high”. CBD works on different receptors in your brain, so you will still be clear-minded and able to work, drive, and go about your day as normal.
It’s legal in all fifty states. While products containing THC are banned at a federal level, CBD products are lab-tested before they can be approved for sale. As long as THC makes up 0.3% of less of the product, then it is legal to sell, consume, and possess in all fifty states.
It comes in many different forms. CBD can be consumed orally in a gummy or dosed capsule, sublingually via a tincture, applied topically in a balm, or even via transdermal patches specially formulated for extended-release. The form that you will want to choose will depend on what you are using it to treat and how quickly you want it to work.
If you’re treating sore muscles after a long workout, a balm applied directly to the skin will be most effective. Dosed capsules are convenient and discrete, especially if you’re looking to take advantage of the long term, anti-inflammatory effects of CBD. If you’re taking it to for anxiety, placing a few drops of CBD tincture under your tongue is the quickest way to get it into your bloodstream.
You should consider the entourage effect. CBD products can be labeled “CBD Isolate” or “Full Spectrum” and it’s important to know the difference between the two. A product labeled “CBD Isolate” only has CBD as the active ingredient. It has been highly purified and contains no other compounds. Meanwhile, a “Full Spectrum” CBD product contains other components derived from the same plant.
These non-psychoactive components, called terpenes, are shown to potentiate the effects of CBD and maybe a good fit for someone trying to treat chronic pain or severe anxiety.
And there you have it. Before you decide to take the dive into CBD, keep these five points in mind!
