How CBD works: Factors affecting your response to CBD Cannabidiol

How CBD works is a difficult question to answer. No two people are alike and similarly no two people will respond exactly the same to CBD Oil. A number of factors affect what kind of dosing regime is best for you. Some scientific studies suggest that these include :

• Previous experience with Cannabis based medicine
• Your tolerance to CBD
• Medications you already are taking  
• Your weight
• Your metabolism
• Your diet
• Your personal sensitivity
• The initial tone of your endocannabinoid system
• Your daily stress levels

CBD works slowly as it resets many of the functions managed by the body’s own endocannabinoid system. It takes time to bring things back into balance so your body can start healing itself. If you put yourself out of balance the CBD has to work harder.

Keep a daily diary to monitor your results

Changes are often subtle and not noticeable on a day-to-day basis so it is a good idea to keep a journal, jotting down a couple of lines about how you slept, how you felt when waking up, general mood/feeling of well-being, the times of the day when your symptoms were more noticeable and the level of this on a 1-10 scale.

Often, when people feel that they are not obtaining much benefit from the oil, looking back to the beginning of their notes they realise that there has actually been significant improvement. In other cases they may start to notice a gradual decline in effectiveness.

Will I get better results by taking more CBD? 


One of the common misconceptions about CBD and other cannabinoids is that taking more is better. Doctors with extensive clinical experience noticed that many of their patients taking low doses of cannabinoids were getting the same or better results than those taking much higher doses. They also noticed that over time patients who started with a low dose and followed an up titration method of increasing their dose would notice that at a certain point the effects would start to decline.

What has been discovered is that Cannabinoids have what is called a biphasic response curve. Meaning that at lower doses and higher doses the effects can be different.

Is it better to take CBD once a day or spread out over 24 hours?

If you are taking CBD orally the Cannabidiol undergoes extensive first-pass metabolism via CYP3A4, an important enzyme in the body, mainly found in the liver and in the intestine. It oxidizes small foreign organic molecules (xenobiotics), such as toxins or drugs, so that they can be removed from the body.

According to a recent study, following single doses in humans, the half-life of CBD when taken orally is about 1 to 2 days. The half life means the time it takes the cannabinoid levels to drop to about half in the blood.

So in answer the question, is it better to take CBD all together or spaced out, the answer is it really doesn’t matter. You can take take your daily dose all at once or spaced out, however by spreading your dosage throughout the day it provides a constant trickle of cannabinoids into the blood, instead of peaks when taken all together.

Your decision will really depend on the condition you are treating and the effects you want to achieve. This is the reason why people who are having sleeping problems can take CBD in the morning and still get the benefit during the night.

References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CYP3A4
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4189631/#i1535-7511-14-5-250-b1

Is it better to take CBD in the morning or evening?

Again this is a matter of preference and depends on your needs. Some people find that taking CBD Oil in the morning works best for them as it makes them more alert. Other people find CBD oil is best taken at night time as it is beneficial for sleep and helps them relax.

You may find you need to take less CBD if you take it in the morning after eating a light breakfast containing a fatty substance like toast with butter or avocado.

If you take CBD after eating a heavy meal it may get affected by the digestive enzymes in the stomach and more CBD will be eliminated by your liver.

We encourage you to experiment and find out what is best for your individual needs.

How long does it take for CBD to leave my body completely

In one study patients were given high doses of CBD (700mg) every day for 6 weeks. After a week of not taking any further CBD their blood was tested again and in most it was completely gone.

“The elimination half-life of CBD was estimated to be about 2-5 days, and there were no differences between genders for half-life or CBD levels.”

References:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1666917

My CBD Oil Has Stopped Working? Has my CBD Oil lost its potency?

If you have been taking CBD oil for a while you may discover that it stops working the way it did when you first tried it. This can happen gradually over time or suddenly depending on the reason or cause behind it.

Is your product out of date or has it been exposed to sunlight or extreme temperatures?

The greatest enemies of any CBD product are light, heat, air, and time

CBD Oil if kept refrigerated will last up to two years. Once you open it we advise consuming it within 3 months. The problem comes if you expose it to sunlight or extreme temperatures or you forget to put the lid back on properly.

The first thing that happens is the acidic cannabinoids may decarboxylate. If your CBD is a whole plant extract it may contain a higher amount of CBDA & THCA.

The Terpenes may also lose their potency and degrade. Your CBD probably contains the same amount of CBD but the other beneficial molecules will have been affected.

If your CBD oil has degraded you may longer get the same entourage effects where the minor cannabinoids and terpenes are having the same influence.

Another cause may be the base oil going rancid, this is more common if your base oil is hemp seed oil rather than coconut MCT oil. The oil then just tastes bad and should be thrown away.

If you CBD is still in date and you have followed the correct storage instructions and you still think it’s potency has reduced then read on.

Desensitizing after taking too much CBD Oil

When you have taken too many cannabinoids over a longer period of time your receptors get overstimulated and pull away from the outside of the cell towards the inside making them unavailable for further interaction. This means that your receptors have been desensitized and down regulated and the effectiveness of CBD will diminish for you.

It’s important to keep a diary so you can monitor your CBD intake and its effects over time. If you have taken too much CBD and desensitized your receptors you may notice:

• Your CBD tolerance has increased.

• Your CBD usage has increased as you try to get the same effects as you used to. 

• The effects you are getting now are not the same as what you got 3 or 6 months ago. 

• You may even think CBD has entirely stopped working for you 


If this happens take a 48 hour break to give your receptors a chance to recover. Do things to up-regulate your body’s own endocannabinoid system like taking more exercise, eating more green leafy vegetables, taking omega 3 and 6 supplements.

Then begin taking CBD again but with a much smaller dose, gradually increasing until you get the effects you want. This way of increasing your sensitivity and taking regular breaks every few months to rebalance will help you greatly reduce the amount of CBD you have to take.