Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like every pharmacy, grocery store and gas station has some kind of hemp oil or gummies with a cannabis leaf on it for sale. Even Amazon is selling hemp oil products that claim all sorts of benefits.

Because CBD has not yet been approved by the FDA, many commerce platforms have restrictions on what you can call your products, which has resulted in some creative packaging and labeling and causing even greater confusion.

So how do you know what you’re buying? Well, you have to look carefully at labels and understand the difference between products. If you don't know how, don’t worry. Herbie is here to help!

RELATED: Why We’re Passionate About CBD

CBD Oil

CBD oil works by restoring the body’s natural balance, otherwise known as homeostasis. Our bodies have an endocannabinoid system consisting of receptors in our brain and other organs that are responsible for regulating immunity, pain, mood, temperature, muscle repair, and other functions.

People extract CBD oil from the hemp or cannabis plant using carbon dioxide extraction (CO2). It’s a popular way to extract essential oils as well.

CBD extracts come in three kinds:

• Full-spectrum: contains all compounds of the cannabis plant, including THC (low levels). Our Calming CBD Oil uses a Full Spectrum extract.

• Broad-spectrum: contains several compounds of the cannabis plant but not THC.

• Isolate: an isolated version that only contains CBD (or a single cannabinoid). Our Balanced CBG and Sleep CBN Oils use isolates.

CBD oil is still a new market, so these terms may be used interchangeably since they are not regulated.

Uses

CBD has become very popular over the past few years. There are tinctures, gummies, lotions, and all kinds of beauty products with CBD.

Although THC does have some medical benefits, most often, consumers use CBD because it has similar medical benefits without the “high” or impairment that comes with THC.

Benefits

CBD may help improve the following ailments:

• Chronic pain
• Anxiety and depression
• Inflammation
• Addiction
• Neurological disorders like epilepsy

Of course, we need further research. But scientists are learning new, exciting things about CBD every day!

RELATED: 25 mg CBD Full Spectrum “Calming” Gummies

A simple way to know that you’re buying exactly what you want is to look at the label.

Perhaps the best way to understand the nuances of “hemp” and “CBD” is to look at one of our labels for our Calming CBD Tincture.

Does the product contain CBD or other cannabinoids?

You can see at the bottom of our label that it contains 1000mg of CBD. Additionally, under the Supplement Facts, it indicates that each dropper contains 33mg of Hemp Extract Oil (CBD). The label also indicates that it’s using a Full Spectrum hemp oil containing less than 0.3% THC, which is often indicative of a hemp flower extract. These are clear indications that the product is CBD oil.

Does the product contain Hemp Seed Oil?

To see what you DON’T want in your CBD oil, let’s take a look at this label from a “Hemp Oil” product we found on Amazon.

If you look closely at the label, there are no indications of any actual cannabinoids like CBD, only that it doesn’t contain any THC.

Under the Supplemental Facts, it says “Hemp Oil Extract” which may or may not be what we’re looking for. But, if you look under the Other Ingredients, it says very clearly “Organic Hemp Seed Oil” which is not the same as CBD Oil.

Hemp Seed Oil is extracted from the seeds of the hemp plant and does not contain any cannabinoids at all. We do not use hemp seed oil in any of our products.

Actual Hemp Oil and CBD Oil is extracted from the flowers of the hemp plant and will contain a wide variety of cannabinoids, such as CBD, THC, CBG, etc. This is the only type of oil we use in our products.

Is there a Certificate of Analysis (COA)?

Actual CBD Oil and other products will display a Certificate of Analysis (COA) on the website and QR Code or link on the packaging. We do this for ALL of our products so our customers can verify the potency and terpene profile of each product.

For example, here’s a link to the COA for our Calming CBD Tincture. You can see that per container, the total amount of CBD is 1057.683mg which is slightly more than the 1000mg we have on our label. There are small amounts of other cannabinoids as well. This is what you should expect to see for a high quality CBD oil.

Tinctures vs Oil

When talking about CBD, the words “tincture” and “oil” are often used interchangeably. Because of this, when creating our products, we decided to use the word “tincture” when referring to our liquid CBD products.

Tinctures and oils generally look the same, have similar effects and are taken the same way. There are, however, significant differences between the two.

Tinctures are created through an alcohol-based extraction process. The resulting product is not as potent, contains residual alcohol, does not absorb as well into the body and usually does not taste very good. Because of this, they often contain sweeteners or flavorings to cover it up.

Oils are generally extracted using CO2, which is a very pure way of extracting cannabinoids and terpenes. This results in a much higher quality oil that is absorbed better by the body and will have better effects. This is how our products are created and you can see by the label that they only contain the Hemp Extract Oil (CBD), MCT Oil (a coconut-based medium chain triglyceride oil, and our proprietary blend of terpenes to enhance the effect and provide a mild flavor.

Final Thoughts

Hemp oil and CBD oil are enhancing people’s lives everywhere. With more research on the way, the possibilities for both oils seem endless!

The important thing to remember is to buy the best quality of oil available to you. At Herbie, we take pride in our oils. We believe everyone deserves access to the benefits of hemp and CBD.

We want to make a difference in the world so everyone else can play their part. Give our products a shot and tell us what you think!

See what our customers are saying about our products!