The 8 best CBD oil brands to buy, based on your personal needs

This article originally appeared on health.com by Ashley Jordan Ferira, PhD, RDN.

Have you noticed that cannabidiols, or CBD, have been blowing up your feeds lately? That’s because of changes in U.S. laws. Specifically, the 2014 and 2018 Farm Bill legislation ushered in a revival of hemp farming, research, and hemp-derived products, including oils containing hemp-derived CBD. As a result, CBD oil has exploded on the wellness market in the past couple of years, and consumers looking for natural approaches to support wellness have taken notice.

If you’re looking to try CBD oil but don’t know where to start, we’re here to help you sort through all your options, including different types of CBD oil, the reputation of brands, and prices. We’ll also look at the best CBD oil based on your particular needs.

Our picks were made with the help of Ashley Jordan Ferira, PhD, RDN, who is a medical advisor at Remedy Review, an independent CBD reviews site. All of the brands recommended here have been vetted through third-party lab testing for quality and safety. It’s also important to keep in mind that CBD products are not regulated by the FDA.

• Best Variety: Green Roads
• Best Value: cbdMD
• Best for Pain: NuLeaf Naturals
• Best for Anxiety: CBDistillery
• Best for Sleep: Charlotte’s Web
• Strongest CBD Oil: Spruce
• Best Full-Spectrum: FAB CBD
• Best THC-Free: Medterra

Before we deep-dive into what separates these tinctures from one another, let’s touch on some common questions of CBD confusion—the “ABCs of CBD,” if you will.

What is CBD?

CBD is a phytocannabinoid, a unique compound found in the cannabis plant. Cannabinoids encompass a large family of plant-derived chemicals, including cannabis bioactives like CBD, THC, CBG, CBC, CBDA, and CBDV (to name a few of the 100+), as well as terpenoids and flavonoids. THC, the first cannabinoid ever discovered back in the 1940s, is the psychoactive chemical in marijuana that induces a high. CBD has different actions in the body and does not provide a buzz.

CBD is an abundant cannabinoid in both hemp and marijuana, which are distinctly different varieties of the Cannabis sativa l. plant species. A major and important differentiator between the two is that federal statutes in the U.S. dictate that industrial hemp must contain less than 0.3% THC, or just trace amounts.

How does CBD work in the body?

CBD and other phytocannabinoids work through a complex signaling system known as the endocannabinoid system. We all have this vast, omnipresent biological framework in our bodies, but most of us have never heard of it.

Not discovered until the 1990s, the endocannabinoid system is the master regulatory system that mediates our physiological homeostasis, or balance. Research has revealed that cannabinoid receptors exist in most of the body. We’re talking about the brain, lungs, muscles, gastrointestinal tract, reproductive organs, cardiovascular system, immune system, spleen, liver, pancreas, bones, and skin—just to name a few areas.

This expansive footprint in the body explains why phytocannabinoids like CBD and THC, anecdotally and via research, have been reported to elicit wide-ranging health effects. Disruption in endocannabinoid tone (whether too high or low) is thought to have a negative impact on health and is linked to certain diseases. Indeed, targeted nutrition therapies like CBD oil phytocannabinoids from hemp can be leveraged to naturally support the endocannabinoid system.

What can CBD help me with?

A small but growing body of cannabinoid research points to CBD’s ability to positively modulate pain, anxiety, and sleep. These are the three areas with the most anecdotal support for CBD in health.

But in addition to these more studied applications for CBD, people buy hemp products to help with their mood, control nausea and appetite, offset the symptoms of migraines, and, through topical applications, treat psoriasis, eczema, and other skin conditions.

All these uses for CBD have some backing in research—either through animal tests or more broadly in the study of cannabis with THC—but it’s important to keep in mind that there is no scientific consensus. CBD works differently for everyone.

How is CBD consumed?

CBD products come in many shapes and sizes. Along with oil, capsules, gummies, and topicals are common CBD delivery forms in the market.

CBD oil is most commonly delivered in a tincture format. To take CBD oil, place the desired dose into your mouth or under your tongue (which is thought to increase absorption amount and speed), holding it there for up to a minute. You can also mix CBD oil into food and drink. Oils are usually offered as full- or broad-spectrum products (CBD plus other cannabinoids from hemp oil) or isolates (just CBD).

Full-spectrum vs. broad-spectrum vs. isolate: What’s the difference?

CBD oil products come in three different formats. Full-spectrum CBD oil incorporates all of the compounds present in the hemp plant, other cannabinoids (including no more than 0.3% THC), terpenes, flavonoids, and essential fatty acids. This full spectrum of hemp bioactives is closest to nature’s design of the plant. It is often discussed alongside the “entourage effect,” a theorized phenomenon that describes the potential synergy that a full array of hemp plant compounds (cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, etc.) may provide. The entourage effect is beginning to be discussed in clinical research applications in, for example, mood and anxiety disorders.

Then there’s broad-spectrum CBD oil. By further distilling the hemp extract to remove traces of THC, broad-spectrum CBD products contain CBD, other cannabinoids that aren’t THC, terpenes, flavonoids, and essential fatty acids. Often referred to as “THC-free,” broad-spectrum products are, simply put, full-spectrum minus the THC.

And finally, there’s CBD isolate. As the name implies, CBD isolate contains just concentrated CBD, with no other cannabinoids, terpenes, or essential fatty acids.

How is CBD dosage determined?

Clinical consensus is lacking on CBD dosing, but generally, the prudent approach is to start low and go slow.

One rule of thumb is to take 1 to 6 mg of CBD per 10 pounds of body weight—so a 140-pound woman might take 14 to 84 mg of CBD. The amount and/or frequency of CBD can be increased over time or spread out through the day.

Dosing for general wellness versus for sleep regulation or anxiety will vary. Anecdotally, CBD users often share that single, higher doses are useful for supporting sleep, while regular and lower doses are more helpful for combating everyday stress.

Can CBD oil be personalized?

Our unique genetics influence how we respond to all kinds of inputs, including the things we consume like food, supplements, and medications—and CBD oil is no exception.

In conjunction with your healthcare provider, the CBD approach can be flexed based on individual results. In the growing age of personalized medicine, healthcare practitioners have an exciting opportunity and unique ability to tailor therapies (including lifestyle strategies) to the individual patient to improve patient care.

How experts determined the best CBD oil brands in 2020:

To identify the best CBD oil companies, the scope was limited to brands using hemp grown in the U.S., where regulations for industrial hemp farming are in place. The transport of international hemp provides several opportunities for potential introduction of contaminants.

Next, independent third-party testing and transparency of lab results were paramount. Batch- and lot-specific results, preferably from the last quarter but definitely within the last year, needed to be available. This lab testing is critical as it ensures that the oil’s cannabinoid concentration accurately matches the label; that the “terpene profile,” or array of plant compounds present in the product, is available; and that the limits for “bad stuff” like heavy metals, pesticides, and microbial contaminants are not exceeded.

All of the CBD product recommendations below are from brands vetted for the quality parameters described above. For each CBD oil brand, our top CBD oil product pick, third-party lab information, and additional quality call-outs unique to the CBD company are provided.

Best variety: Green Roads