What to look for when buying cbD…  without getting ripped off!

By Dr. Barry Morrison

Shopping for CBD can be like trying to pick your next vacation spot from a list of locations on a random travel site…you never know what you are getting. We need to remember that our health is too valuable to guess with and it must be taken seriously. The reality here is that there are some wonderful hemp brands out there. Creating legitimate and potent medicinal products. However, there are many others out there who are outright shady with very little if any CBD. But, “How do you tell the difference when buying CBD?”

 As a Dr. who has been working with and recommending CBD for my patients since 2013. I’ve got a few tips that’ll help assure you what to look for when buying CBD to keep your purchase on the right track. This is very important in keeping it safe, effective and help take some of the guesswork out of what to purchase.

 

  1. Don’t buy your CBD on Amazon or the Big Box Discount Stores

Believe me, I love Amazon. I get things like office supplies, dog food, toothpaste and toilet paper from Amazon…things I can’t buy locally. But please don’t get your CBD there…it’s a fiasco. When it comes to yours and your family’s health, realize that CBD products are completely unregulated. So, if you’re ingesting something that possesses the potential to significantly impact your health, then you want a safe source with full traceability.

Start with is a healthcare provider that is knowledgeable in recommending CBD. Get to know the brand they suggest, where they’re sourcing their hemp from, what’s their extraction method, and a little about their production facilities. Yeah, it’s a lot of work, and doesn’t sound like a lot of fun. But this is an important step for your health. Keep in mind you want your hemp-based medicine to be a thoroughly researched purchase so you know exactly what to look for when buying CBD.

 

  1. Research brands and look for transparency

Again, when it comes to buying CBD, you don’t want to cut corners for a bargain. So much goes into the creation of this product, and if you’re putting a new substance in your body — don’t you want to make sure it’s a clean, plant-based medicine, without toxic substances that may even counteract the desired effects you’re looking for? Take a look at their website and if it doesn’t help you understand why it’s a good, safe brand than, get in touch with their customer service. They should be happy to answer all your questions.

Second, they should have a good “about” page where you can find where the company is based, where the product is being processed, etc. A true legit CBD company is committed to CBD education, so they should have a blog or at least a landing page that directs you to educational resources. And lastly, they should be willing to provide a COA for buying CBD, which I’ll speak about a little later.

 

  1. Don’t buy hemp seed oil when you want CBD oil

A lot of the “here today and gone tomorrow” brands out there use confusing language on purpose. Here’s the thing, if you want a great moisturizer or something to cook with, hemp seed oil is great! It’s cheap, it’s abundant, and it’s full of omega-3 fatty acids which are wonderful for the skin and cooking. But, it’s not CBD oil. If you’re looking for a medicinally based product, then you want CBD oil, not hemp seed oil. This is where being able to read and interpret a label comes in handy when buying CBD!

  1. Aim for USA-grown hemp

While you’re carefully reading that label, make sure you look for USA grown hemp. Look for hemp from the state of Kentucky, where it’s been a native crop. A lot of hemp unfortunately comes from China. The concern is that hemp is a bio accumulator and absorbs a lot of heavy metals and nuclear fallout. The United States isn’t the only safe place to get hemp-derived product. USA sourced hemp is a great rule of thumb for those interested in transparency and limiting your research.

  1. How is the CBD Hemp oil extracted?

Some extracting techniques use high heat and/or toxic solvents which are dangerous, unsustainable, and prevent from extracting the full complement of nutrients from the plant. This causes the solvents to be left behind in the finished product leaving it unclean and impure.

Instead, you need to look for a technique known as CO2 Super Critical Fluid Extraction with state-of-the-art equipment. This process simply compresses harmless Carbon Dioxide (CO2) causing it to be processed in extremely cool conditions. This avoids any harm to the heat-sensitive nutrients such as the acids, enzymes or vitamins.

Therefore, it’s considered a non-toxic solvent and when added to the nutrient rich hemp it liberates the entire phytonutrient treasures of CBD and other cannabinoids in a totally pure extract after the CO2 is released and recycled. In this pure form the body can more easily digest and assimilate for use by the body. So, it is my opinion that the CO2 Super Critical Fluid Extraction process is the preferred method of extraction to look for which typically assures a good quality CBD.

 

  1. Ask for a COA when buying CBD

Want to make sure there’s actually CBD in your CBD oil? Again, due to this being an unregulated industry, the truth can be trickier to come by. Verify the quality, potency, and safety of your product. What you want to look for is no heavy metals, pesticides, solvents, or nuclear fallout. At the same time look for the amount of CBD per serving and don’t just go by the amount of CBD in the entire bottle. Also request a COA.  Any reliable, trustworthy brand should be willing to provide a COA for your exact product and batch.

 

  1. Is your CBD is an Isolate, Broad-Spectrum, or a Full-Spectrum

When you’re new to CBD — and even if you’ve been using it for a while, reading labels can be quite confusing. And the thing is, there are no exact parameters for these brands to label CBD products specifically and accurately, so many brands are just doing their best, the good ones, that is. However, there are a few things you can keep in mind.

For instance, “Isolate” means just CBD, no other flavonoids, terpenes, or cannabinoids. Some people prefer to have this isolated compound to get the pure effects of CBD.

Others may prefer the more synergistic or “entourage effect” of all those plant compounds in product like a broad- or full-spectrum product. Broad-spectrum will give you more cannabinoids and plant compounds that enhance the effects of CBD, but with no THC.

Full-spectrum will have those same compounds, but less than 0.3-percent THC, which is the legal limit for it to be considered “THC free” even though there are trace (and we mean trace) amounts.

  1. Work with a cannabis expert 

Different delivery systems of CBD such as transdermal patches, tinctures, and vaporizers can have completely different effects. They all aim to do the same job, create homeostasis but the way these methods go about it, and the duration and speed of effects, all come down to delivery — and it varies quite a bit. For instance, vaporizing has quick delivery of CBD to your body but it’s a short-lived relief compared to a tincture, which is slow to provide relief but longer lasting. To choose the best product for your body and your specific ailment or health need, it’s important to consult with a cannabis expert. If your doctor isn’t versed in CBD, you can always consult with me online. Again, this is going to involve more work for you, but it’s so critical — and well-worth it…

To understand what I recommend for my patients and also use myself check out https://cbdproonline.com