As CBD is currently flying off the shelves, a flood of new brands have taken over the market making it challenging to find the right CBD product for you. Here at Hemped we can aid you in finding the best CBD product that suits you by starting with the basics and understanding what CBD is and its many forms.
CBD is the second most dominant ingredient derived from the cannabis plant, doesn’t contain any psychoactive components, and is known to offer many health benefits for issues such as inflammation/pain, anxiety, and insomnia. Legal CBD is extracted from the dried and cured hemp flower (a cannabis plant that contains less than 0.3% THC). The compound is later processed into three different concentrate forms, full spectrum, broad spectrum distillate, or islote.
Full Spectrum
Full spectrum CBD is a thick, dark oil that contains everything that naturally exists in the plant. Like cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, and all other plant matter. Using as much of the whole pant that is possible has been found to contain many benefits. It is believed that everything works better together but because it is made with the entire plant, it may contain traces of THC, as well as have a stronger taste and priced higher than other CBD products on the market. Note that full spectrum oil may be a liability to those who need to be THC-free.
Broad Spectrum and Distillate
Broad spectrum is basically CBD without any THC, but still containing most of the other constituents in hemp. It is first extracted as full spectrum oil, then undergoes additional refinement in order to become the broad spectrum we know and love. It is also made by starting with Isolate and adding cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids back in. Both ways end up with a honey-like concentrated substance with at least 80% CBD content. Making it contain all the cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids that are naturally present in the cannabis plant, except THC.
The biggest benefit of broad spectrum is that it allows consumers to completely avoid any THC, without having to eliminate the entourage effect. That being said, it may not contain the complete benefits that full spectrum CBD offers to users.
Isolate
CBD isolate is pure CBD. The way it is made is by continuing the refinement process used for broad spectrum until only the pure form of CBD in solid crystalline or powder form is left. One of the biggest advantages of isolate is that it does not contain any THC. It also offers the highest concentration of CBD possible (usually over 99% pure). This means that even one gram of isolate can carry around 990mg of CBD. But there is also no possibility of experiencing the entourage effect with Isolate.
Unfortunately, many studies have shown that full and broad spectrum are still more effective overall the Isolate. However, CBD isolate could be the perfect fit for you if you suffer from pain/inflammation and definitely has a massive important place in the CBD market.