Lifestyle: Do You Know Your CBD?

What is CBD?

Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of the active ingredients of Cannabis. It is derived from the hemp plant; though, it is also an essential part of medicinal marijuana. CBD unlike THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) is not a psychoactive compound, that is, it does not cause its users to experience a high.

The World Health Organisation reports that CBD does not exhibit any indication of dependence in users, nor has it caused any health problems. As a matter of fact, many researchers recommend CBD for quite a few health problems.

For instance, CBD has been scientifically proven effective in treating epilepsy, in both children and adults. Some people use CBD to treat conditions like insomnia and anxiety. CBD has also been proven advantageous in treating neuropathic conditions and arthritis.

Apart from this, some doctors prescribe the use of CBD in cancer patients, to alleviate their pain and stimulate diminished appetite.

CBD in different forms

The CBD extract is available in many different forms depending on the user’s needs. Some of the more common forms of CBD are:

Lotions and Creams

CBD infused creams and lotions (topical medication) are available to treat conditions such as joint or muscle pain. Such creams are also applied to treat ailments such as psoriasis and eczema.

Capsules

CBD is also available in capsule form to be used as a medication for seizures, etc. However, the ingestion of a capsule takes longer than direct ingestion, which means it takes longer for the capsule to treat the relevant condition.

Tinctures and Infused Oils

CBD Oils and tinctures, infused with CBD are generally created to be ingested by users. Such products mostly come with droppers so that the oil is put under the tongue with the aid of the dropper. This form of CBD is especially helpful for people who can not swallow pills.

Edibles

Some CBD products are made into CBD gummies. These taste like regular gummies and are sometimes preferred by users due to their taste.

CBD Isolate

This type of CBD is either found in a crystalline solid or powder form, and it has the added advantage of being 99% pure. CBD isolate is acquired using an extraction process that removes all the active compounds.

CBD Isolate extraction

The reason why the CBD Isolate is almost 99% pure CBD with no trace elements has to do with the extraction process. The extraction process is also followed by a refinement process that gets rid of all other unwanteds such as THC, cannabinoids, flavonoids, and lipids.

The entire extraction process commences with washing the hemp with ingredients such as acetic acid, hydrocarbon and a compound of hexane (another extraction chemical). Next comes the winterization process.

Winterization is just another extraction process to further purify the hemp extraction. Under this process, hemp oil is first soaked in alcohol and cooled to separate the waxes from the oil.

Winterization also helps in ridding the hemp oil from terpenes, lipids, and waxes. Next, the solvents are separated from the remaining compound with the use of pressure and heat.

After another separation process, the hemp compound is further purified via distillation so that the product can be made ready for consumption. The final product is of course 99% pure, CBD crystalline.

CBD isolate is odorless and tasteless be it on crystalline or powder. Buyers can mix the CBD isolate powder to their favorite foods and drinks, or even combine with their daily lotions and creams.

CBD Isolate – advantages and disadvantages?

As previously mentioned, the foremost advantage of the CBD isolate is that it is 99% pure CBD and free from all other impurities or extracts. CBD isolate is preferred by many buyers because of its zero THC involvement because they feel safe using such a product.

Consumers who use the full-spectrum CBD products have sometimes faced issues with drug tests, even though they are advertised as safe for use.

Due to its purity, calculating the dosage of the CBD isolate is easy. One can easily use any regular home scale to measure the CBD isolate powder; because with the CBD isolate being pure from all other traces, 1 gram of CBD isolate powder is just that. Consumers need not worry about ingesting any other unwanted compounds.

Another distinct advantage for consumers of the CBD isolate is the fact that it is less expensive than most other versions of cannabinoids produced for commercial use.

The one disadvantage most competitors allege against the CBD isolate is that the rigorous extraction and purifying processes that get rid of all other chemical compounds found within the hemp plant takes away from the benefits of CBD use.

It is argued that all the cannabinoids found within the natural CBD extract work symbiotically to achieve what is referred to as the ‘entourage effect’. This means that removing other elements such as flavonoids, terpenes affects the viability of the entire product.

However, the above-stated disadvantage has not been proven as being 100% accurate, and more research is required to ascertain whether a full-spectrum CBD is indeed more favorable than CBD isolate as far as effectiveness is concerned.

However, those who advocate the use of full-spectrum CBD should be careful to remember that many have raised concerns about the amount of THC present in full-spectrum CBD. The Federal Government requires the CBD to be extracted from hemp so that the final product contains less than 0.3 percent of THC.

Buying CBD isolate

Despite the criticism of having no ‘entourage effect’, CBD isolate is still remarkably popular with consumers because it is highly useful for many ailments and conditions.

When purchasing CBD isolate, it is very important to look for reputable businesses that sell lab-tested (by a third party) authentic CBD isolate. It is also important that consumers compare prices to avail of the best available products based on their budget.

Furthermore, it is also prudent to look at the business’s customer reviews, shipping policies, and after-sale services. Customer reviews can aid a consumer in avoiding shady deals or products.

An inspection of the business’s shipping policies may reveal certain hidden costs that may drive up a consumer’s total cost. Lastly, any good business will always put its customers first and offer good after-sales services.