9 Tips for Choosing the Best CBD Products

• There are tons of CBD products—here’s how to find the best.
• Which form of CBD is right for you?
• Decide on the best CBD based on what you’re using it for.

6-minute read

CBD Products are SO in Right Now

CBD is everywhere. These days, you can even buy it at the gas station. Most of us have tried CBD products—whether it’s oil, bath bombs, or flower. It’s so ubiquitous that we don’t blame the skeptics. We feel you. But, like with everything, there’s good quality CBD and bad. And we’re here to tell you that the hype over the good stuff is real. You could find CBD helpful for loads of things. There’s a reason WNBA star, Brittany Griner, risked using it. Like so many professional athletes, she relies on it for pain management. Now that she has her freedom back, we’re guessing she might also be turning to it for a better night’s sleep. So, here’s everything you need to know to see if CBD might work for you, too. 

Tip #1: Is CBD legal?

CBD is federally legal in the US, and it’s not intoxicating. It’s produced from hemp plants that can only include a maximum of 0.3% THC—not nearly enough to get you high. If you live outside the US, legality varies. But more and more countries are legalizing hemp products like CBD. If you’re concerned about mandatory drug testing, though, be careful to choose CBD products where all the THC has been removed. Some drug tests can still give you a positive result for THC even at very low levels.

Tip #2: Which CBD Products Can You Trust?

Just because you can buy CBD products from the bodega doesn’t mean you should. You wouldn’t buy your skincare there, right? Wherever CBD has been legalized, there’s an absolute glut of it on the market. Trust us, we’ve tried a gazillion brands. So, we can attest that its efficacy is all over the place. Some do absolutely nothing. While others can be life changing. So, buy from a trusted source. If you have access to a legal dispensary, that’s a great place to find high quality CBD. In fact, we find that CBD with just a little bit of THC works far better than just CBD alone. If you don’t have access to a legal dispensary, read on for the brands we regularly turn to for pain, anxiety, sleep, and skincare. 

What’s CBD and how does it work?

CBD (aka cannabidiol) is a naturally occurring compound found in the cannabis plant. Unlike its more famous counterpart THC, CBD doesn’t produce any psychoactive effects. So, while it might relax you, it won’t get you high. It works with the CB2 receptors in your body. And it’s available in a variety of forms, including oils, edibles, topicals, capsules, and flower. You could use CBD for things like reducing anxiety, relieving pain, improving sleep, and soothing skin.

The ECS and CBD

The endocannabinoid system, or ECS, is a biological system that regulates our bodies’ internal environments. The ECS controls our most critical bodily functions. That means sleep, memory, learning, pain control, temperature control as well as inflammatory and immune responses. There are ECS receptor cells throughout your entire body. CBD and other cannabinoids act like keys to ECS receptors. They unlock them so your body can function at optimum levels. So, CBD could help your body function at its best. And, in turn, that could make it easier for your body to fight off illness. 

Tip #3: What kind of CBD products should you try?

There’s so much CBD out there that figuring out which one to try can be bewildering. Here are the basics.

Hemp Oil

Some hemp oils contain CBD. But the amount of CBD can vary a LOT. So, always check the label before you buy! To start, you want to take at least 2-3mg each dose. So, if the oil doesn’t contain much more than that, look for another brand. That being said, hemp oil does contain many other beneficial compounds like omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins A, D & E for general wellness. 

CBD Isolates

An isolate is a concentrated form of just CBD. It’s the Big Pharma approach. Distill only the thing you want and lose the rest. Isolates have been used successfully to treat specific illnesses, like epilepsy in children. But, even for them, recent research suggests that this form of CBD is less effective than others.

Broad-Spectrum CBD products

Broad spectrum CBD contains all the naturally occurring compounds in cannabis, except the THC has been removed. If you’re concerned about drug testing, this might be the CBD for you. But, if that’s not an issue, keep in mind that THC can be a great pain reliever.

Our Jam is Full-Spectrum CBD

Full-spectrum CBD contains a little bit of everything that’s naturally in the cannabis plant. That includes up to 0.3% THC, as well as other cannabinoids like CBN and CBG and terpenes. These kind of CBD products boost their power with what’s called the entourage effect. 

Tip #4: Look for the entourage effect

The entourage effect is produced when everything in the plant works together to offer you more than just each can alone. You know, it’s that ‘the whole is greater than the sum of its parts’ thing. All the components of cannabis interact with each other to make an even greater impact than any one could on its own.

Tip #5: Pay attention to the Terpenes in CBD Products

Terpenes are the compounds that give all plants their smell. There’s some evidence that terpenes might indeed make a difference in how broad and full-spectrum CBD works. One study suggests that terpenes might be part of what makes cannabis an effective pain reliever. So, terpenes might be able to modulate the effects of CBD. More research is needed, of course. But, in the future, different cannabis strains might be useful for different things.

Tip #6: CBD products for pain

CBD can be consumed in more than one way. That’s thanks to the fact that the ECS and its receptors are in many parts of the body. We love CBD topicals for pain. We have ECS receptors in our skin. They allow CBD products to enter the body without consuming anything by mouth. Cool, right? We find that cannabis topicals are an especially good way for people who are nervous to try cannabis. Oils and tinctures are another great option for pain. You just put a few drops under your tongue. Because the skin is especially porous there, your body will absorb them faster.  But you can also mix into your morning coffee or mocktail for longer, more steady effects.

Tip #7: CBD for anxiety

One of the more common uses of CBD is for anxiety. Numerous studies have shown that CBD reduces anxiety. If you’re a  sufferer, choose your CBD products based on how you experience it. If you’re looking for something to keep you calmer over the long term, go for edibles or tinctures. They’re what you want because when you ingest cannabis, the effects last a lot longer. Try lower doses for daytime and higher at night. But if you’re having a panic attack, you don’t want to wait an hour for the effects to kick in. This is when you might want to try CBD flower. Inhaling will get the cannabinoids into your bloodstream and producing effects almost immediately.

Tip #8: CBD for Sleep

CBD products can be amazing for restful sleep. This is when edibles are the way to go. Or you can just swallow some CBD oil. Eating cannabis doesn’t just make it last longer. The way that your digestive system processes cannabis actually multiplies its effects. So, start with 5-10mg, and see how you feel. Unlike Big Pharma drugs—like Ambien, Valium, or Benadryll—the beauty of CBD is that, for most people, it doesn’t have side effects. No weird dreams. And no morning grogginess. Just blissful rest. And it’s not unusual to take doses of more like 30mg. Just listen to your body.

Tip #9: Our Fave CBD Brands

It feels like we’ve tried a billion CBD products. But there are a few we keep coming back to—because they work every time. Our fave topical, bar none, is Flora Sophia’s 1200mg Full Spectrum CBD Muscle Joint and Nerve Salve. It’s like Windex in My Fat Greek Wedding. Put in on anything, and you’re golden! Then there’s our newest obsession for anxiety: Hmptns Dune Road 1200mg Full Spectrum CBD Softgels. Finally, for sleep, we can’t get enough of oHHo’s New York Full Spectrum CBD Oil. A dropper full and we’re out like a light even during the most stressful times.