CBD Tinctures

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The terms CBD tincture and CBD oil are practically synonymous. In many cases, many manufacturers don’t market their oils as a tincture, but as oil. Due to this, many people who are new to the world of CBD don’t know what a tincture is.

CBD tinctures are generally sold in bottles or vials that have a dropper for doing attached to the lid. Most tinctures are flavored to mask the bitter taste of the CBD liquid.

What Is a CBD Tincture?

When a CBD, or cannabidiol, tincture is made, the producers look for cannabis Sativa or Ruderalis (the 2 species of cannabis that are considered hemp) plants that have a high CDB and low THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) content. This allows for a high yielding as well as a high-quality product. It also is a requirement of US federal law as THC content must be kept under 0.3%. Some producers create unique hemp strains to meet the needs of the customers they cater to.

A hemp plant takes about 4 months to grow to full maturity. Once fully grown, the plant is harvested, and then the CBD can be extracted. Most CBD manufacturers use the entire plant in the process. This gives the widest variety of yields from the cannabinoids.

When using the whole plant method, there are many ways that the oil can be extracted.

The first method if the grain alcohol method. This method sees the hemp plant soaked in grain alcohol. As the plant soaks, the oil and other cannabinoids separate from the plant. Once the alcohol evaporates, all that remains in the CBD tincture. At this point, the oil can then be packaged and consumed.

The next method is the use of carbon dioxide or CO2. In this procedure, pressurized carbon dioxide is forced through the hemp plant to extract the oil. This is done through a series of chambers that catch the oils. The carbon dioxide creates chemical reactions that react to the cannabinoids and cause the cannabinoids to separate. This method allows the manufacturer to choose which cannabinoids are used in their products.

Once extracted, the oil is diluted to meet the needs of the manufacturer’s customers and flavored to make the raw oil product palatable.

Some manufacturers go a step further and create a pure CBD product called an isolate. In this process, manufacturers filter out the plant material and then put the CBD through a “winterization” process that removes plant waxes and residue to create a pure form of CBD known as a CBD isolate. This CBD isolate is over 99% pure CBD and is in a powder form.

While some find that the CBD isolate meets their needs, there are critics of isolates. CBD in a pre-isolate form has other cannabinoids, which critics of isolates argue are beneficial to users and may even help the body process CBD more efficiently when all the cannabinoids work together.

What Health Benefits Do CBD Tinctures Provide?

Hemp has been cultivated for thousands of years. The plant is one of the most versatile agricultural products ever grown. Hemp can be used for food, clothing, paper, medicine, and much more.

The US government was known to plant hemp along rivers in farming communities in the early 1900s to prevent soil erosion.

In the 1960s, CBD was first identified as a part of the cannabis plant. Since that time, studied have been done and have found that CBD can treat ailments in both animals and humans.

In the last decade, the stigma of hemp’s association with marijuana has been lowered. As has the stigma of marijuana itself.

Part of the reason for the change in attitude was the discovery in the 1990s that animals and humans produce and process cannabinoids internally. The system that does this came to be known as the endocannabinoid system (ECS).

The endocannabinoid system is the system that keeps the digestive, nervous, and circulatory systems in the body in check and is a system of neurotransmitters and neuroreceptors that are located throughout the brain, the central nervous system, and the peripheral nervous system.

Research in the last few decades has shown to improve or be completely eliminated with the use of CDB. CBD has been found to help with symptoms of:

And that’s just to name a few.

Dosage

As with any over the counter treatment, figuring out how to take the CBD tinctures can cause some confusion. This is amplified by the fact that the industry is in its infancy and there’s no federal guidance of recommended amounts.

While many websites tackle the benefits of CBD (and there are many), not many of these sites explain how much that should be taken.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not designated CBD as a supplement, as such, they have not created guidelines for dosages.

The result is consumers having to depend on what manufacturers claim the correct dosage is or take the advice of friends or acquaintances who have used the product. But that’s not always the best route.

The correct dosage of CBD, much like any other supplement or prescription depends on a number of factors. These include:

  • The potency of CBD
  • The person’s weight
  • The person’s body chemistry
  • The condition the person is treating
  • How severe the condition is
  • If the person is affected by other conditions
  • How long the person has been taking CBD

Dosages depend on a number of factors and should be tailored to the individual. Some of the factors that should be considered include:

  • Body weight and condition severity – Many substances that a person ingests affect the person by their size. The same is true with CBD. Depending on the severity of the condition, CBD dosages of 1 milligram to 6 milligrams for every 10 pounds the person weighs.
  • Start low – As with any substance that enters the body, there will be a reaction. While CBD has been proven safe to the human body there are side effects. One of the most common side effects is fatigue. The key is to start low and ramp up to acclimate the body to the CBD. This should be done until the pain or condition has subsided and the user is able to function without fatigue.
  • Consult a physician – Anytime a new health regimen is started, a doctor should be consulted. Some doctors may not have much experience with CBD and some may discourage patients from it based on old stigmas, so users may need to find a CBD friendly doctor if that’s the case.
  • The Mayo Clinic – The Mayo Clinic is a world-renown medical research center. They have recommendations on CBD usage based on research, publications, and expert opinion. They have some of the following suggestions:
    • Chronic Pain – 2.5 to 20 milligrams of CBD daily.
    • Epilepsy – 200 to 300 milligrams of CBD (orally) daily.
    • Huntington’s Disease – 10 milligrams of CBD per kg of body weight daily for six weeks.
    • Sleep Disorders – 40 milligrams to 160 milligrams of CBD.
    • Schizophrenia – 40 to 1,280 milligrams oral CBD daily.

It’s important to know that most tincture droppers hold 1 milliliter of CBD, so when dosing, keep that in mind.

Finding a CBD Tincture Supplier

Most people stick with what they know, and while that may be what most people are inclined to do when purchasing CBD tinctures, that’s not always the best plan.

Stores and websites that specialize in CBD (or in states where it’s legal CBD and marijuana) are the best choices to purchase CBD products.

The reason for this is that big chains such as Walgreens and Target won’t have the expertise to discuss the product in an effective manner. In the case of a website, many specialized CBD tincture websites have a chat, email address, or even a phone number that allow the store to be contacted.

It’s the difference between going to a fast food restaurant and a fancy steak house. The goal of the fast food restaurant is to serve customers quickly and get them on their way. A fancy steakhouse will be able to tell customers all about the food, have a great atmosphere, and want the customer to enjoy their food and time there. While the steakhouse will cost more than the fast food restaurant, the quality of the experience makes up for the price.

The same is true for CBD tinctures. Specialty shop owners generally get into the business because they have a passion for CBD and the health effects it provides. They’ll definitely charge more than a drug store chain, but the quality of the product and the education they provide makes the experience worth it.

These owners become experts because they live and breathe CBD, so they keep up with how CBD works and what it can help with. They also look for the best products and the latest trends in the industry. This is important because the CBD industry is new and is changing rapidly, so these owners need to keep up or they could conceivably lose their business.

These businesses depend on their reputation to build a customer base. A regular CBD customer can generate a lot of revenue for a store, so it’s in their best interest to make sure their suppliers are top notch. Most astute owners will audit their suppliers on a regular basis by requesting the supplier to provide their latest third-party, independent test results.

If you’re buying online from a retailer or even a manufacturer, it is recommended by the FDA that anyone purchasing CBD request the latest third-party testing results. And they should be recent. Results from a year ago aren’t recent. Most companies spend thousands of dollars each month to have independent third-party testing done.

When a manufacturer or supplier does third-party testing they’re not just trying to verify that their product is pure. They’re trying to verify the ratio of ingredients in the product. Incorrect product mixes will lead to incorrect dosages for users. That’s why they test to find mistakes that may happen in the manufacturing process. The product needs to be consistently checked for contaminants and quality.

Conclusion

Anyone who has tried CBD oil at some point has used a tincture. The tincture is the most common CBD product on the market. It’s convenient and is among the least expensive way to take CBD.

There’s a drawback to CBD tinctures and that is the accuracy of the dosage. The dropper does hold 1 milliliter of liquid, but there’s always a little bit stuck in the tube. So when a user takes CBD, they may not be getting the full dosage that they expect.

Despite this drawback, tinctures are an easy way to get started and to continue to use CBD.