With the rapid upsurge in demand & fame of CBD as a wonder herbal extract of the cannabis plant, the picture of CBD products has seen an influx in terms of more queries, more suggestions & greater acceptance by the people. Credits to the Farm Bill of December 2018, the faith & acceptance of people towards CBD & its products has seen a drastic rise in a short span of time. This should be accounted to the numerous CBD enthusiasts who didn?t lose hope & hung on even when the tides were against them leading to final legalisation & acceptance in the country. However, there is one little confusion which will linger on for sometime until CBD makes its way out of the Schedule 1 Drug category – how much CBD should one take?
Let?s read & find it below!
VARIETY & USAGE OF CBD PRODUCTS
Only one CBD based product has been put under the category of Schedule 5 Drugs & that?s Epidiolex which is prescribed in case of Dravet Syndrome & Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome. For not being on the Schedule 5 Drugs list, CBD products are sold labelled as ?food supplements? & not as ?medicines.? This road was also chosen because ?food? related items are considered safe unless any reported case of them being unsafe rises up to the surface while ?medical? products are not labelled safe unless proven ?safe?. As a food supplement, things get a bit tricky to chart dosage of. Thus there is not much of scientific data on the accurate dosage but based on various brands? own lab tests, the various brands list their dosage based on the products.
Before knowing the answer to the main question on the article, one pit stop should be done to know the various forms in which CBD is available at our disposal along with a touch & go regarding how to consume it. Once that?s done, we shall move forward to finding the dosage. The various types of CBD products have been enlisted as under:
- CBD OIL – It is the most popular CBD product & comes mixed with MCT oil usually or olive oil. The dosage is oral as it is taken as drops directly or mixed with tea, coffee, juice, etc. Some people also mix & process it in honey & take it as either a spoon or two of it or simply by spreading it over bread or toast.
CBD Tincture – Being a tincture, CBD extract is mixed in alcohol. It is also taken in the form of drops either directly or by mixing in some solvent. Usually these drops are taken under the tongue, held for a while & then swallowed, thus being a form of sublingual dosage.
- CBD Capsules – The best form which ensures keeping a track of the CBD content entering our body. CBD oil is infused as gels & put into capsules.The capsules come in various concentration of CBD oil. It is also easy to carry & take without missing out. Of late, water soluble CBD oil capsules are also being seen in the market. The capsule comes in both vegetarian & non-vegetarian coating. Understandably, this is available as oral ingestion.
- CBD Sprays / Spritzers – Here, CBD is pressurized into spray cans & based on the presses, you can take droplets of CBD. Sprays & Spritzers have less CBD content usually compared to other products & it?s also tough to monitor the exact amount of CBD entering your body. Sprays are taken both sublingually & topically based on the product.
- CBD Edibles – Mixing medical science with some fun is what happens here. CBD extracts are infused in edible stuff which is liked by all & hence the weird taste of CBD can be avoided. It is taken orally as day to day items of interest like gums, cookies, brownies, etc.
- Isolates, Wax & Vapes – Giving CBD some air is through this step. This way, CBD can be inhaled as smoke & hence is a good one for those who like to vape & dab. Vape cartridges are available as e-cigarette pens too. Also, refills are available which can be put into the cartridges & puffed along. However, it?s not everybody?s game to handle the way vape cartridges are operated as it involves machine which might breakdown & also the process of refilling isn?t known by all so fluently.
- Oils, Lotions, Soaps, Shampoos: This form is for localised relief & hence topical. CBD extracts are infused in topical oils, lotions, soaps, balms, shampoos, salves, etc & are applied on specific areas of the body for relief & excitation.
FINDING THE CORRECT DOSE
As we know, CBD works with the endocannabinoid system (ECS) to produce the effects. Thus, the purpose of finding the right dose is caught a bit off-guard due to difference in our ECS. While an individual might get relieved by 5-10 mg of CBD per day, the other might require 100-200 mg of it per day. The FDA hasn?t listed any RDI (Recommended Daily Intake) level of CBD since it is still under Schedule 1 Drug & this makes things all the more uncertain.
To find the correct dosage, various factors come into play & they should be kept under consideration:
- Concentration Level Of The CBD Product
Varying products have varying CBD content. Thus, it is essential to buy the product based on its CBD content. As a matter of fact, the CBD dosage should be started from low & gradually increased over a period of time till the perfect relief stage is obtained. - The Weight Of An Individual
The weight always determines the dosage. If the weight increases, the CBD dosage increases, if the weight goes down, the dosage also falls. - The Biphasic Effect
CBD is a biphasic thing. This means that certain dosage level will have certain effect while increased level of it would show considerable differences in the effect. - Consult The Doc
Your doctor is inarguably the best person to consult when you want to determine your dosage. It becomes all the more important when you are on medication since CBD interferes with the working of most pharmaceutical drugs. - Age & Metabolism
Based on our age, CBD dosage matters. An 8 year old will have a lower dosage of CBD compared to an 38 year old. Also, our bodies have different metabolism rates. This in turn might change the dosage between people of similar age since their lifestyle would determine the metabolism which would differ greatly. - The Simple Maths Of Dosage
Based on different products, the dosage varies.
- Capsules: In case of capsules, the dosage is quite clear. Each capsule comes with certain fixed mg of CBD in it. Based on the suggested dosage, the capsule can be taken on the go.
- Oil & Tinctures: This is a one-time math thing but simple even if you?re weak at maths. Simply divide the CBD content in the tincture or oil by the total quantity of tincture or oil in the bottle & it gives you CBD content per drop of serving. Based on that, the number of drops can be decided based on the purpose of relief.
- Topicals: The dosage is simply based on the relief provided for topicals. Here, only one thumb rule works – ?start low & go high based on the results.
- Vapes: Just like CBD oil tincture, noting the volume of the the refill would give us an idea of the total CBD the vape cartridge carries (CBD concentration will be known in refill cartridge). Based on rough estimates by constantly viewing the level of CBD, it can be determined how much CBD went into our system.
- Edibles – The edibles would surely have a listed content of CBD per serving. This way, the number of servings we take will give us an idea of the amount of CBD being administered in our body.
SIDE-EFFECTS OF OVERDOSE
It?s surprising but true that so far there have been no fatal cases in case of CBD overdose upto levels of 1500 mg of CBD/day which is beyond the normal limits by a universe. This gives us a clear idea that CBD is safe even in large doses. So, even if somebody takes more than the recommended level, the effects would be drowsiness, dry mouth (as CBD inhibits saliva secretion) & lightheadedness (due to fall in blood pressure). The most adverse case would be when the user is on other prescription drugs as CBD might interfere with their metabolism in the liver then. This, if continued for long, will lead to increase in liver enzyme levels which is bad for liver health.
CONCLUSION
From the article, we get a clear idea that CBD dose needs some guidance from an expert & a bit of self help in determining the dosage. Also,replicating a person?s dosage having similar height & weight isn?t advisable since other factors also decide the fate of CBD?s effect on your body. Thankfully, even if you go beyond the recommended dose for your body, chances of adversities are rarest of the rare. Hence, the best CBD product should be chosen keeping all factors into consideration, including the relief time expected & the duration of dosage period apart from the other factors listed earlier. Thus, it is a safe product in terms of intake & as per the researches & studies, nobody can overdose on CBD.
