Treatment Options for Painful, Recurring Headaches

Posted on: 20 September 2019

With the popularity of CBD oil and other cannabinoid products on the rise, it can sometimes be difficult to understand the benefits of the many available options. There is a wide range of CBD oil products on the market that use a variety of terms to distinguish themselves. With so many choices, it's understandable for first-time buyers to be confused about which products are best for them. Although it is impossible to examine every marketing term that is now being used, this article will explain a few of the basics so that you can make a more informed purchasing decision.

Understanding Cannabinoids

Before you can begin to understand the labels on most CBD oils, you must first understand what cannabinoids are and how they are extracted. Cannabinoids are chemical compounds that interact with the cannabinoid receptors in the brain. If this sounds like a very general description, that's because it is. The term cannabinoid is used to refer to a wide range of chemicals, including CBD (the primary cannabinoid in CBD oil) and THC (the psychoactive cannabinoid in marijuana). Despite being grouped together, the effects of individual cannabinoids on the brain vary significantly.

Cannabinoids for CBD oil are typically extracted from hemp. This is one of the major areas where various CBD products differentiate themselves as well. There are a variety of extraction methods available, and the method used can impact the final product significantly. Most notably, the type of extraction will determine the profile of cannabinoids found in the oil.

CBD Oil Profiles

When discussing CBD oils (or cannabinoid products in general), the "profile" refers to the particular combination of cannabinoids found in the product. A pure CBD oil product, for example, contains only CBD and no additional cannabinoids. Pure products such as this are generally referred to as CBD isolates.

These aren't the only options, however. A CBD oil manufacturer can instead choose to maintain some or all of the original cannabinoid profile of the source plant. This produces a CBD oil which has multiple cannabinoids. Oils of this type are generally referred to as full spectrum oils if they keep the THC intact or broad-spectrum if they remove the THC, but otherwise maintain the original profile. Note that hemp contains only a very small amount of THC, so full or broad-spectrum CBD products do not produce an intoxicating effect.

Are Full or Broad Spectrum Products Right For You?

While there is still some debate within the cannabinoid community about the exact effects of full-spectrum products, it is generally acknowledged that using the full range of cannabinoids found in hemp can often produce even more beneficial effects than CBD alone. This increased therapeutic impact that results from a full profile of cannabinoids is commonly referred to as the entourage effect. If you are trying CBD oil for the first time, it is worth considering a 500mg full-spectrum CBD oil product so that you can enjoy the benefits offered by the full profile of cannabinoids found in hemp.