How does taking CBD oil work?
Taking CBD oil is quick and simple. You simply put a few drops under your tongue and let it sit there for a minute. Then you swallow it. This way the oil is absorbed directly by the mucous membranes in your mouth.
Through the mucous membrane under the tongue, part of the CBD is absorbed directly, without the detour through the stomach and liver. Some people do not like the taste, though, or find using drops under the tongue inconvenient. They prefer other ways of taking CBD:
- Swallowing CBD capsules
- Eating edibles, such as cannabidiol gummies
- Applying a CBD patch
- Spraying water-soluble CBD into the mouth.
How CBD oil is absorbed, step by step
To understand what happens when you take CBD, it helps to follow the route. Put very simply, there are three steps:
- Absorption of CBD
- Distribution through the body
- Interaction with the endocannabinoid system
1. Absorption of CBD into the body
The first step is the absorption of a certain dose of CBD (along with the other cannabinoids and terpenes) into your body. Are you taking CBD oil? Then a large part of the CBD is absorbed through the mucous membranes in the mouth. The rest goes through the digestive tract. With edibles and capsules everything is absorbed through the digestive tract, and with patches you absorb the CBD through your skin.
2. Distribution of CBD through the blood
Once the CBD has entered the body, it ends up in the bloodstream. Once in the blood, it is distributed throughout the body, until it reaches the receptors of the endocannabinoid system.
3. Interaction of CBD with the endocannabinoid system
The endocannabinoid system can be seen as the body’s own cannabis system. Every mammal has this system, which is able to bind cannabinoids such as CBD, CBC, CBN and THC. For this it is equipped with receptors: CB1 and CB2. So when the CBD encounters a receptor of this system through the bloodstream, the CBD is recognised and binds to such a receptor. This creates an interaction with the endocannabinoid system.
What that interaction means for people is still the subject of research. There are no EU-approved health claims for CBD. What research does and does not show so far can be found in our article about CBD and sleep.
How quickly is CBD absorbed?
That depends on the way you take it, whether you have just eaten and your metabolism. Under the tongue it goes faster than through the digestive tract, where it can take one to two hours before the CBD is in your blood. Patches release the CBD gradually, over about eight hours.
Most people use CBD over a longer period rather than one-off. How to build that up calmly can be found in a good CBD routine in 5 steps.
Full spectrum or broad spectrum?
When you start looking for CBD oil, you will soon notice there are two kinds: full spectrum and broad spectrum CBD. The difference is that broad spectrum is entirely free of THC, while full spectrum contains all the cannabinoids, so THC as well. Do not confuse broad spectrum CBD with pure CBD, incidentally, because broad spectrum contains terpenes and other cannabinoids alongside CBD.
Full spectrum and broad spectrum are similar, because both kinds are rich in other compounds that occur in cannabis. The entourage effect is often mentioned in this context: the idea that the compounds from the plant complement one another when they occur together. Full spectrum contains the complete spectrum, including the legally permitted amount of THC. Do you want that complete spectrum? Then choose full spectrum. Would you rather not take in any THC, because of travel or work for instance? Then choose broad spectrum.
Would you like to know more about CBD oil, or are you unsure between two products? Feel free to get in touch. We are happy to think along with you.
Frequently asked questions about how CBD oil is absorbed
What does CBD oil do to your body?
We are not allowed to say, because no health claims for CBD have been approved in the European Union. What we can describe is the route: CBD is absorbed through the mucous membranes in your mouth or through digestion, enters your bloodstream and interacts with the endocannabinoid system. What that interaction means for people is still being researched.
What do you feel after taking CBD oil?
It does not get you high: CBD is not psychoactive, and legal CBD oil contains less than 0.05% THC. We don’t say what else you might notice, because there are no EU-approved health claims for CBD. CBD can cause side effects, though, such as drowsiness or a dry mouth. If it makes you drowsy, do not drive.
How many drops of CBD oil can you take?
Start low, for example with 2 to 3 drops of 5% CBD oil, and stick to the dosage on the label. How much CBD that is depends on the percentage: a drop of 5% oil contains about 2 mg of CBD, a drop of 10% about 4 mg. The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) advises healthy adults to take no more than 10 mg of CBD a day.
