Since CBD first hit the market a few years ago it has developed into a credible and reputable food supplement available in health stores and many pharmacies throughout the UK and Ireland. But do we understand what strength and percentage we are looking for when we buy CBD? There is still a lot of misunderstanding regarding CBD strength and percentage. In this article, we will try to address some of the confusion.
First, we should clarify what exactly CBD is. CBD can be the broad term used for both;
- CBDa – Cannabidolic Acid and
- CBD – Cannabidiol
CBDa is the raw form of CBD. Once Cannabidolic Acid is heated or decarboxylated, releasing the Carbon Dioxide, it converts to the active form Cannabidiol. When we purchase CBD we are usually looking for the active compound Cannabidiol which has been the subject of so many studies and clinical trials in recent years. The percentage myth explained For simplicity, there are two main types of CBD product
- Raw – Quite thick and dark
- Decarboxylated – Golden and clear
Raw – CBDa
A raw, first extract, from the Hemp plant contains high levels of CBD – both CBDa & CBD. Usually a high percentage of CBDa and low levels of active Cannabidiol, for example;
- 90% Cannabidolic acid
- 10% Cannabidiol
Decarboxylated – 100% active Cannabidiol
*The percentage can differ quite a lot from different species of plant. Once the extract is further decarboxylated we are left with a 100% active CBD oil, a very high quality golden oil;
- 0% Cannabidolic acid
- 100% Cannabidiol
CBD Strength
When you are buying any food supplement or vitamin it will always be referred to by weight. And it is no different when we buy CBD. We monitor our CBD intake in milligrams. So let’s look at the two different products: A raw 500mg with 10% active Cannabidiol would have;
- 450mg Cannabidolic Acid
- 50mg Cannabidiol
A decarboxylated 500mg would have;
- 0mg Cannabidolic acid
- 500mg Cannabidiol
CBD Dosage by Milligram
5 – 20mg a day It has been generally agreed that we should all be taking between 5 and 20mg a day of Cannabidiol to supplement our Endocannabiniod System. Milligrams is the important factor here. Cannabidiol itself does not have a strength. We measure it in milligrams. So understanding the product you are buying is very important to determine your CBD intake. A misleading percentage Legally food products are required to include the percentage of main ingredient made up in the bottle. So a 10ml bottle with 500mg CBD would be 5%. This is NOT a strength. Yet a lot of consumers are misled by this percentage.
In Summary
- Raw CBD extracts have a percentage of Active Cannabidiol.
- Decarboxylated products are usually 100% active Cannabidiol.
- Ultimately our body responds to the weight of active Cannabidiol we take.
Hempful CBD oils are decarboxylated to produce the highest quality Full Spectrum oil with 100% active Cannabidiol. And with Hempful CBD oils you can easily monitor your CBD intake in mgs.