Did you know that, according to SingleCare’s 2020 CBD Survey, the percentage of Americans who have used CBD products online was 33%? Additionally, 45% of CBD users increased their use of it since the COVID-19 Pandemic began.
If you’re a CBD user or new to this naturally-occurring chemical, you may need tips for shopping for CBD products online.
After all, when you’re using a product that goes into your body, you want to make sure that you’re selecting a product that’s safe for you and buying it from a reputable company.
Otherwise, you might have to worry about buying a product that could not give you any of the benefits you expect from CBD.
Or, worse, you could end up buying a product that might not even have CBD in it at all, but that has negative health effects.
That’s why we’ve put together these tips for shopping for your CBD products safely. By following them, you can find the right CBD for you and know that it’s safe to take. Read on to learn more.
1. Understand Product Extraction
In order to experience the best benefits of CBD, you need to buy your CBD products from a company that uses the best product extraction processes. The quality of CBD, a naturally-occurring cannabinoid in cannabis, can vary depending on the process.
This is because, when the oil is extracted, the structure of the CBD itself can be different depending on how the oil is extracted.
When CBD is being made, someone has to apply pressure on the cannabis plant, so that the trichomes open. When this happens, it secretes the CBD oil. The company gathers the oil, puts it in a bottle, and sells it to customers.
If the company uses heat to extract the oil, then it’s possible that there are residual butane oils in the CBD.
Even though butane isn’t dangerous, the quality of the CBD will be lessened if it’s in it. Even if the company removes the butane, the CBD has already been impacted by its presence.
Some companies use ethanol or C02 for the extraction process. This is a much cleaner process, so the CBD is of higher quality.
When you’re looking at CBD product websites, check that they use this process. It’s best to buy from these sites.
2. Do Your Online Research When Shopping for CBD Products
Because CBD is such a popular product, many people want to make money from taking part in the industry. Unfortunately, this means that many fake and scam companies are going to start cropping up, trying to take advantage of CBD users everywhere.
Many of these companies will sell CBD products that are fake, which means you won’t experience any of the wanted benefits.
Worse, they might sell fake CBD products that cause disastrous health effects. Some of these companies use a synthetic marijuana form called Spice, which can cause strong intoxication.
To watch out for these companies, you need to your online research. First, visit the company’s website, looking at every page and making sure it has a lot of information.
If they only list their products and prices but don’t talk much about the quality of their CBD and where it comes from, this is a red flag.
Look at online customer reviews. These will help you find out if products have been happy not only with the CBD products but also with shipping times and customer service.
When reviewing these reviews, look at many and analyze them as a whole when you’re done. Are they all good, all bad, or somewhere in the middle?
Are any of the customer complaints alarming? If so, then you may not want to buy from this company.
3. A Word of Warning
Keep in mind that some scam companies will have a website that looks good, fake social media profiles, and fake reviews. Many companies use the guerilla marketing method of paying for fake reviews to make themselves seem legitimate these days.
To deal with this problem, you will have to do a little extra research. Visit CBD websites that are reputable, such as the Leafly website. There are also bloggers who specialize in reviewing CBD products who you can trust.
You can also visit CBD forums, where regular CBD users review companies and products.
The best way to get reliable reviews is through word of mouth. If you have a friend or family member who uses CBD products, ask them about the online companies they recommend.
4. Know What You’re Looking For
When you’re shopping online for CBD products, you need to know what you’re looking for. There are many types of products out there and different types of CBD (for example, some may be a hybrid mixed with THC or another cannabinoid).
By knowing what you’re looking for, you’ll be able to use CBD more safely. Even though there isn’t anything inherently dangerous about CBD, you should be informed about how to use it in a way that’s personally safe for you.
I. CBD, CBD/THC Hybrid, and Delta-8
First of all, you want to think about whether you want to buy a CBD product, CBD/THC hybrid product, or another type of cannabinoid product such as Delta-8. Once you’ve chosen which one you want, you can look for companies that specialize in that specific product.
If you want many of the benefits that come with the cannabis plant, but you don’t want any high at all, then you should buy CBD products that only contain CBD (usually, there’s a tiny amount of THC in them).
This way, you can alleviate your anxiety before a big work meeting without having to worry about having a residual high.
However, if you want to have psychoactive effects, then you might want to consider a CBD/THC hybrid. Many products come with a mix of both of these chemicals, giving you the benefits of each.
There’s also Delta-8. This chemical has many of the same benefits CBD has, such as reducing the inflammation in your muscle tissue, helping you with nausea and sleep, and speeding up your metabolism.
However, because it’s similar to THC in some ways, you can also experience some pleasant psychoactive effects.
You’ll feel a slight buzz and your mood will be improved. However, you won’t experience paranoia or anxiety while on Delta-8.
If you’re interested in learning about how Delta-8 compares to CBD, you can learn more by reading about the differences between the two.
5. Choose Your Product
In addition to deciding whether you want to use CBD, a CBD/THC hybrid, or Delta-8, you need to decide how you want to take your product. There are many options available when taking CBD, such as drops, edibles, capsules, and creams.
While there isn’t a difference between how safe each of these is, you do need to make sure you take the proper CBD dosage when you’re taking them.
If a website doesn’t have information on this, it probably isn’t the safest place to buy from.
I. Drops
Taking CBD in drop form is one of the most common ways to take it. When you do this, you can ingest the chemical by taking it sublingually. You can also put it into a drink—a tea, for example. Remember to start slow and build up your use, since this is safer.
II. Edibles
If you want to enjoy something sweet while taking your CBD, you should try out edibles. These include products such as chocolate, gummies, and candies. To make sure that you’re buying products that are safe, check that websites list all the ingredients in them.
This way, you can make sure you’re buying products that are safe for you if you have allergies.
Additionally, a company that’s transparent about what products they sell is safer to buy from.
III. Capsules and Creams
One of the easiest ways of taking CBD is by ingesting it in capsule form. Review the website’s reviews to make sure that these capsules don’t contain any unwanted surprises. Additionally, you can use creams for alleviating muscle pain or as part of your skincare routine.
6. Read the Consumer Report
One of the best ways to make sure that you’re buying from a safe CBD seller online is by going through the consumer report for the product. If the product is certified for medical and recreational use, then you can feel safe purchasing it.
Of course, you’ll still want to check out the site for any red flags as we covered before, just in case they claim to be selling a safe product but are replacing it with something else entirely.
7. Understand Pricing
When you’re looking for CBD products, understanding pricing is as important as reading the labels on products. If the price on a website is too high, then you’ll end up paying more than you should. But, on the other hand, if it’s too low, this is a red flag.
This could be a sign that the product is of lower quality or even fake.
As a rule of thumb, CBD products that are high quality cost between $0.11 and $0.22 for each milligram.
If you’re interested in buying niche products such as edibles or creams, then you might have to do a bit of research to get an idea of what the average price is.
Then, you can buy products that have a price somewhere close to that. This way, you’ll make sure that you’re saving money shopping online while also staying safe.
8. Study Up on the Hemp Source
If you want safe, quality CBD products, then you need to make sure that the hemp they’re being extracted from is of high quality and safe to use. To do this, study up on the hemp source for the CBD products you’re considering buying.
(Hint: if there’s no info on this, it’s a sketchy company to be buying any products from.)
When looking at the hemp source, check that it hasn’t been exposed to any foreign chemicals while it was being grown.
This includes pesticides. Even though pesticides can keep pests away from the plants, they would have a negative effect on the hemp.
You should also look at information about how the hemp is grown, picked, and prepared for selling.
Reputable CBD sellers will have information about this as well as information about the hemp producer. (For example, where they’re based.)
9. Look at the Label
When you’re looking at CBD products online, you should be able to look at the information that usually appears on the label. When checking it out, make sure that it actually says there is CBD in the product. If it says “Cannabis Sativa Seed Oil,” this isn’t CBD.
It’s just oil, which means that you won’t actually get any of the benefits from CBD that you were looking for.
The label should also include information about the specific type of cannabinoids in the product (e.g., full-spectrum), the expiration date, and the rest of the ingredients in the product.
Need More Information?
Now that you know what you need about shopping for CBD products online, you might need more information. Maybe you need help selecting the right CBD product for you, based on what benefits you’re looking for.
Or maybe you want to learn about which CBD accessories are out there which you can use to enjoy your CBD.
Whatever information you need, you can find it on this blog. Take a look at some other sections to learn more.
