What Type of CBD Should You Use?

Every day, more and more people are discovering how CBD can enhance their wellbeing and improve their overall health. But not everyone is getting the same results. 

You may have a friend who raves about CBD, and another who tried it and didn’t notice a thing. Or maybe you felt the incredible benefits of CBD initially, only to find your experience changed the second time around, leaving you wondering what happened.

The difference may be the type of CBD you’re taking. That’s right — there are different types of CBD on the market, distinguished by what else is tagging along in the CBD formulation. You’ll find “full-spectrum CBD,” “broad-spectrum CBD,” and “CBD isolate”. 

To make matters more confusing, these terms can vary based on the manufacturer and where the product is sold. And some types of CBD may contain CBD’s intoxicating cousin, THC. 

In this post, we’ll explain the difference between the types of CBD on the market and why, at UPSY, we choose to formulate our products with purified, research-grade CBD isolate. 

You Might Not Be Getting The Full Benefits of CBD

Aside from the type of CBD you’re taking (full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, or isolate), there could be other reasons you’re not getting CBD’s full benefits. Some people’s nervous systems have a mild response to CBD. But it’s more likely they’re using a brand that has low bioavailability or mislabeled potency.

Studies by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have documented that some CBD products have very little CBD at all, and some have too much. Unless your product is produced by a trusted company and tested by a 3rd-party laboratory, it’s hard to know what you’re getting.

CBD products that have the right quantity of CBD may not give you the full benefits either. That’s because our bodies struggle to absorb CBD. CBD is oil-like and the human body is mostly water. Oil and water don’t mix, so CBD often passes through our digestive system unused. Fortunately, we have processing technologies that make CBD more bioavailable. 

And even if you’re using a bioavailable CBD, there may be other substances in your product that cause unwanted effects. That’s why the type of CBD is important, and that’s why it’s critical to know the difference between full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, and CBD isolate products.

What Is Full-Spectrum CBD?

You may see “full-spectrum CBD” defined differently from company to company, and from place to place, but one thing should be clear: full-spectrum CBD products contain a little (or a lot) of THC. Unlike CBD, THC is very psychoactive.

As the active component in recreational cannabis, THC creates the “high” that some people may want and others may want to avoid. That’s not to say all full-spectrum CBD is noticeably psychoactive. Many contain very little THC but — be warned — they will show up on a drug test. If you take regular drug tests, it’s best to only use broad-spectrum or isolate CBD products.

Other full-spectrum CBDs contain a lot of THC — as much THC as they do CBD. Some consumers want both the therapeutic properties of CBD and the psychoactive effects of THC at the same time; because for them, taking both gives them a better medicinal and recreational experience.

If medical marijuana is legal where you live, your full-spectrum product might be derived from high-THC cannabis rather than low-THC hemp. Cannabis (otherwise known as “marijuana”) isn’t legal everywhere, and it contains significant amounts of THC along with CBD. Hemp is cannabis’ non-psychoactive cousin. It contains very little (if any) THC.

Many people find that whole-plant products are a better fit for them rather than CBD isolate products. When the constituents of cannabis or hemp are consumed together, some people notice positive effects. This is called the “Entourage Effect.” When all the chemical compounds of the plant travel together in an entourage, they can have an effect that’s more than the sum of their parts. They can also make you tired, especially if there’s THC in the mixture.

Pros of Full-Spectrum CBD

• Offers a whole-plant holistic product
• Creates the Entourage Effect for some consumers
• Psychoactive. Causes a “high’ (which some people want)

Cons of Full-Spectrum CBD

• Psychoactive. Causes a “high’ (which some people don’t want)
• Might not be legal where you live
• May cause fatigue and tiredness
• May have a strong odor or taste
• Often has lower bioavailability than isolate products and a greater risk of impurities

What Is Broad-Spectrum CBD?

Some people want the Entourage Effect, but prefer a psychoactive-free CBD experience. If this is you, broad-spectrum may be a good choice as a holistic treatment. However, the challenge and chief complaint about broad-spectrum CBD is that it makes you feel tired. 

Just like full-spectrum CBD, broad-spectrum CBD products contain more than CBD. Although broad-spectrum products don’t have THC, they do contain hemp compounds such as plant waxes and botanical oils. Additionally, broad-spectrum CBD usually has leftover chlorophyll from the plant, and other phytocompounds specific to hemp and cannabis.

Broad-spectrum CBD can also have low bioavailability because many manufacturers generally take a low-tech approach to making their products. Just like whole-plant full-spectrum CBD products, broad-spectrum manufacturers extract the plant compounds with alcohol or hydrocarbons, and call the process complete - the CBD remains in an oil form and therefore not absorbed well by the body.

As a result of broad-spectrum’s low-tech processing, it’s also more likely to contain pesticides and residual compounds like mold and heavy metals, especially if it comes from a no-name manufacturer. Obviously, pesticides aren’t what you want in your CBD supplements. 

Again, for some, the most important benefit of broad-spectrum CBD is its low-THC profile. Because the FDA requires CBD products to contain no more than 0.3% THC, broad-spectrum products from reputable brands offer the Entourage Effect they want without the psychoactive experience. 

Pros of Broad-Spectrum CBD

• Offers a full-plant, holistic product
• Non-psychoactive
• Won’t show up on a drug test

Cons of Broad-Spectrum CBD

• May cause fatigue and tiredness
• May have a strong odor or taste
• Often has lower bioavailability than isolate products and a greater risk of impurities

CBD Isolate Products

At UPSY, we formulate our products with research-grade CBD isolate. CBD isolate is purified CBD. It’s what researchers use when studying the benefits of CBD, and we believe it’s the perfect starting point for UPSY’s nature-based wellness solutions.

CBD isolate is a snow-white crystalline powder with no other substances present in the matrix. It contains none of the other oils or plant compounds found in full-spectrum and broad-spectrum products. It’s what scientists prefer because it let’s them study the exact effects of CBD, and it’s what our customers prefer too.

Isolate CBD is best for people who must take drug tests regularly or live in an area with especially strict THC laws. It’s also a good choice if you know you’re sensitive to THC or need to take high doses of CBD for a medical condition like epilepsy.

The other benefit of CBD isolate is higher bioavailability. Because the CBD molecule is already isolated, post-processing technologies can make it more soluble and more easily absorbed by our bodies. As you might imagine, absorption is critical for actually getting all the benefits of CBD.

Most of all, isolated CBD lets us formulate versatile wellness solutions that work better — and taste better — than other products. It’s the blank slate that lets us add other supplements for better treatment outcomes and tastier concoctions.

Pros of CBD Isolate

• 100% purified CBD
• Guaranteed THC-free
• Tasteless & odorless
• No tiredness or fatigue
• Research-backed benefits
• Often more bioavailable because of post-processing technologies

Cons of CBD Isolate

• Some people prefer a full-plant product
• Ummmm...

If you haven’t tried an UPSY product yet, what are you waiting for! Our selection of research-grade CBD isolate products gives you the outcome you want; whether you’re looking to pep-up or wind down. With our advanced post-processing methods, you get pure CBD goodness and none of the residual plant compounds.

SHOP NOW