CBD Oil is the buzzing product everyone is talking about. Oddly, you can buy it in the UK but it can’t be produced here. Because it is not a pharmaceutical, there are no real regulations governing its sale and no reliable data on format and dosage either. Some of this you can work out for yourself but how can you find the best and purest oil and ensure you are not eating, vaping or smearing on your skin something that is essentially useless, perhaps even downright dangerous? Follow our handy six tips to help you source the best and safest oil products – brought to you by Hempura (https://www.hempura.co.uk)/
- Go organic – what this means is buy the oil which has been extracted from organic hemp which is the Cannabis plant which supplies this substance. The hemp plant has been used for centuries to rid the soil of impurities and toxins because hemp roots are famed for drawing these out of the ground. Organic hemp must be grown on earth that has not been treated with harmful and toxic pesticides so the plant is essentially clean of these. The British Hemp Association can tell you more about this interesting and ancient plant and how it grows
- Opt for full spectrum – most people think that going ‘pure’ is the way to go with plant extracts so no contaminates or undesirable external influences. CBD oil works differently and you almost to think of the reverse. CBD is just one of around 100 active elements found in hemp – there are terpenes, approximately 100 other cannabinoids, and flavonoids. CBD does not do so well if you isolate it and use it on its own so avoid products that describe the contents as ‘isolate’ and seek out ‘whole plant’ or ‘full spectrum’ instead. There is nothing wrong or harmful with isolate but it is generally considered less effective in isolation
- Check out the extraction process – for pure, uncorrupted Oil look for products which contain CBD extracted using the CO2 method. This uses carbon dioxide to split the oil from the hemp plant. This is often termed, ‘supercritical’ and yes, it is important, but what this really refers to are the CO properties of both a liquid and a gas state. Just know that there different methods to extract the oil and some are undesirable resulting in a tainted finished product
- Third-party lab test results – unfortunately, a largely unregulated area such as the sale of Oil, is ripe for exploitation and deceit as everyone tries to get a piece of the action. So mislabelling is a real problem, basically, the product not matching what it says on the packaging. This either means you are wasting your money and will have little more than the placebo effect or, there are things in there that you really don’t want to be taking. A report from the Centre for Medical Cannabis revealed a worrying level of completely inaccurate labeling from products available in the high street. Check your purchase has independent lab test results before you part with your money
- Go for maximum bioavailability – bioavailability refers to how the body can utilize a substance so this really means how the human body can uptake the product. CBD oil drops have good bioavailability because they can be popped under the tongue and pass via the capillaries straight into the bloodstream. Say compare that with gel capsules which the stomach needs to digest, breakdown and then absorbed across the gut wall, a slower process. Think about how you want to take your CBD oil and what is the best mechanism to benefit your needs
- Good old peer review- use a solid site or raise a question on social media. Companies which sell oil are not allowed to make any claims about potential benefits so do your homework first
