CBD comes in many different forms and doses, so what is the best form for you? Let’s go over the most popular ways to consume your CBD.
Smoking
Smoking hemp is one of the oldest and simplest ways to get CBD into your body, and can be done in a variety of ways. The easiest way to smoke hemp flower is from a pre-roll. These consist of hemp flower that has already been ground up, packed, and rolled into a paper cone that you can smoke, similar to a cigarette. These may be found and purchased individually, or pre-packaged in a group similar to a pack of cigarettes. You can also do this yourself using your preferred raw hemp flower and using either rolling papers or cones. This can be a time consuming process for some, which is why pre-rolls are popular.
You may also choose to smoke it out of glass, also known as a water pipe. There are virtually limitless variations but they all function in the same way. You pack the hemp flower in one area, light it and then inhale through the mouthpiece. Inhalation of CBD will have the quickest onset, as it passes through the lungs directly into the bloodstream. Conversely, this also means that it will have a shorter duration in the body compared to other methods.
Edibles
CBD (and also Delta-8 THC) edibles can come in many different forms. Most common are gummies, chocolate, and other assorted forms of candy. CBD can also be cooked or baked into just about any other form of food you can imagine. The amount of CBD in each edible will vary from product to product, so you will have to pay attention. One pack of gummies could have 30 gummies at 10mg/gummy, whereas another might have 10 gummies at 30mg/gummy. Without paying too close of attention, it may seem like the 30 count bag is a better deal, because it has more gummies. However, they end up having the same amount of CBD overall because one is more potent than the other. Edibles will have the slowest onset time to be active in the body, since they have to go through the process of digestion before getting into the bloodstream. This also means they will have a longer duration in the body than other methods.
Oils
Oils/tinctures are most commonly applied under the tongue. The CBD is absorbed through the mucous membrane in the mouth and then into the bloodstream, bypassing the digestive process. After applying the oil under the tongue, you want to let it sit there for about a minute or so. The longer the better, as you will absorb more of it. The remaining amount you swallow. You get a moderately quick onset through sublingual absorption, and then a moderately long duration from the remaining amount that you swallow. Compared to smoking/inhalation and edible forms when it comes to onset and duration times, sublingual administration splits the difference and falls right in between the two. The amount of oil, or volume, you would use will depend on the concentration of the oil and the amount of CBD you are trying to take. The higher the concentration of CBD in the oil, the less amount of oil you will need to hit your targeted amount of CBD. For example, most CBD oil comes in a 30mL bottle. The bottle typically lists the total amount of CBD contained inside the bottle. A 600mg CBD oil would come out to 20mg CBD in 1.0mL. If you were to move up to a 1200mg CBD concentration, 20mg CBD would be met at 0.5mL. Oils and tinctures do not have to be limited to just being applied under the tongue. Oils can be added to just about about anything. You can add it to smoothies or milkshakes, you can also use it to make your own edibles as well. You can also apply the oils externally. It is not uncommon for people to use CBD oil as a moisturizer on its own, or to add it to their own lotions, or even use it as an ingredient in their own homemade lotions, creams, and balms. Oils and tinctures are probably the most versatile form of CBD, and because of that they are the most widely used by consumer