Which Hemp Oil to Buy For Better Health & Wellness
Hemp-derived CBD oil can be a good option for a wide variety of health issues.
Having said that, the three most common reasons people turn to CBD oil are anxiety, pain, and poor sleep. But how do you decide which hemp oil to buy and works best for your specific case?
Although most CBD tinctures will provide some wellness benefits, there are certain factors to keep in mind, such as CBD extract type, potency, and the presence of additional ingredients.
Let’s discuss these in more detail to help you choose the right CBD hemp oil for your needs.
A Note on CBD Extract
Before we get into the specifics of the best hemp oil for anxiety, pain, and sleep, let’s quickly talk about the two types of CBD extract: full spectrum CBD or CBD isolate.
Although they both come from hemp, a variety of cannabis with low THC (<0.3%) levels, they contain different compounds.
Full-spectrum extract contains all of the beneficial cannabinoids, terpenes, and other naturally-occurring compounds in hemp. On the other hand, CBD isolate contains only >99% pure CBD.
While both full-spectrum and isolate-based hemp oils are beneficial, full-spectrum products will typically have more potent effects. Keep this in mind when choosing CBD oil potency and dosage.
Which Hemp Oil to Buy for Anxiety
Anxiety relief is one of the most popular, research-backed uses of CBD oil. So, which hemp oil should you buy for anxiety? We all experience anxiety at some points in our lives, but there’s a big difference between minor anxiety, conditions such as social anxiety disorder, and full-blown panic or anxiety attacks.
As such, the first thing you want to figure out is the severity of your anxiety. Someone suffering from mild anxiety can benefit from a product with a low CBD potency (the amount of CBD in one ml of liquid, equivalent to one full dropper).
For example, the Cruise CBD oil from Kif Life contains 300 mg of full-spectrum CBD in a 30 ml bottle (10 mg/ml), which is a relatively low potency. This means taking a full dropper of this oil can be enough to provide subtle anxiety relief.
Meanwhile, if your anxiety is more serious, you will want a product with a medium level of potency (15-29 mg/ml), such as the 500 mg CBD tincture from Island Therapeutics. This product contains 500 mg/30 ml = 16.67 mg CBD per dropper, which will provide stronger effects.
Finally, if you have severe anxiety or suffer from panic or anxiety attacks, you will want to look for a high potency CBD hemp oil (30+ mg/ml). For most hemp oils, this will be equivalent to a product containing 1000 mg or more of CBD in a 30 ml container.
In this case, we recommend going with a high-potency product like the 1000 mg CBD Tincture by CBD Move.
How Does CBD Oil Help With Anxiety?
The reason hemp oil is so good for anxiety is that it works in not one but multiple ways. For starters, CBD supports the function of the body’s endocannabinoid system by increasing endocannabinoid levels. This holistic system helps regulate your mood, emotions, immunity, sleep, pain, and other processes.
Also, CBD has been shown to interact with the serotonin receptor, which also has a role in controlling anxiety, sleep, stress, and other cognitive functions. Finally, CBD interacts with GABA receptors, which lower anxiety by reducing neuron activity.
Which Hemp Oil to Buy for Pain
Much like the case with anxiety, pain can vary from minor discomfort and soreness to the kind of chronic pain so debilitating that it interferes with quality of life. Consequently, you’ll need to find a hemp oil with the right potency to provide the required level of relief.
You can use a similar potency scale for pain: 10-14 mg CBD/ml is relatively low potency, 15-29 mg/ml is medium, and anything beyond 30 mg/ml is high.
If your pain is minor, you can start with a low-potency product like FeelCBD’s Natural Drops and see how you feel.
Meanwhile, if you have severe pain, you should opt for a high-potency CBD oil like Dose’s 1000 mg Lemon Ginger CBD Tincture.
Another thing to keep in mind for pain relief is that oils combining CBD with THC in similar ratios may be more effective than those that only contain pure CBD or full-spectrum CBD extract. This effect has been demonstrated by multiple research studies.
For example, a 2010 study of patients with cancer pain compared to the effects of pure THC and a 1:1 combination of THC and CBD.
Whereas the THC-only group did not experience significant improvements, 43% of patients in the THC:CBD extract group experienced a 30% or greater improvement in pain.
One example of such hemp oil is the Align tincture from Kif Life, which contains CBD and THC at a 1:1 ratio for a total of 300 mg of cannabinoids.
However, keep in mind that THC-rich products will also have a higher chance of causing psychoactive side effects.
How Does CBD Oil Help With Pain?
Researchers have discovered multiple explanations for CBD’s pain-relieving effects. For starters, CBD increases endocannabinoid levels, which reduce pain among many other effects.
Furthermore, CBD interacts with multiple receptors that regulate pain and inflammation, such as glycine and TRPV1 receptors.
Finally, CBD has been shown to increase the levels of adenosine, a neurotransmitter (brain chemical) which controls pain, inflammation, and immunity.
Which Hemp Oil to Buy for Sleep
Similar to anxiety and pain, your choice of hemp oil for sleep will depend on the severity of your issues.
For example, someone who takes a long time to fall asleep might get away with a low-potency CBD oil, whereas a person suffering from insomnia or some other sleep condition would likely need a higher-potency product.
Another thing to keep in mind with sleep-oriented CBD oil is additional sleep-promoting ingredients.
Human civilization has utilized sleep-enhancing herbs such as chamomile, lavender, lemon balm, and spearmint for millennia. As such, hemp oils that incorporate these ingredients can further enhance CBD’s sleep-supportive effects.
For example, the Sleep Drops from FeelCBD contain essential oils of ylang-ylang and spearmint, two herbal ingredients that can promote calm and relaxation and relieve stress.
Since stress, anxiety, and restlessness are often responsible for insomnia and other sleep issues, adding these ingredients to CBD can further enhance its effects, check out CBD vape pen.
How Does CBD Oil Help With Sleep?
The main way that CBD helps improve sleep is by reducing anxiety, so all of the mechanisms described earlier play a role.
This makes sense because anxious and worrisome thoughts are one of the leading causes of insomnia and sleep disturbances.
Furthermore, activation of the receptors that control anxiety, such as GABA, also promotes sleep.
Choosing the Right CBD Hemp Oil
To sum up, the most important factor when choosing which hemp oil to buy for anxiety, pain, or sleep is the severity of your symptoms.
If they’re minor, you can start with a low-potency hemp tincture (10-14 mg CBD/ml). If your symptoms are more serious, a medium-potency CBD oil would work better (15-29 mg CBD/ml). Finally, if you have severe issues, you’ll need to look for hemp oils with a potency of 30 mg/ml and higher.
Also, keep in mind that everyone is different and a dose that works for one person might not be the best for someone else. Always start with a low CBD oil dose, assess the effects, and gradually increase until you start experiencing the desired effects.
