CBD edibles: What are they, how to use them, and what are the benefits?
8 February 2024While CBD oil remains a widely used supplement, CBD edibles are rapidly gaining popularity. These edibles are food items infused with CBD, such as chocolate, cookies, candies, tea, or cakes. Consuming these edibles offers various advantages. In this blog, we delve deeper into these benefits and explain the best practices for using these edibles.
What are CBD edibles?
There’s a world of supplements available, and CBD (cannabidiol) has been one of the most popular for years. CBD can be ingested in various ways. Many are familiar with CBD oil, but CBD edibles offer a fantastic method to incorporate your daily dose. CBD edibles encompass foods and beverages infused with cannabidiol.
This may evoke thoughts of the familiar THC-infused edibles, but CBD edibles contain no such compound. Thus, a piece of CBD-infused chocolate or candy contains no THC and won’t induce any psychoactive effects. CBD edibles are primarily sought for the health benefits CBD offers.
Due to these properties and ease of use, these edibles have surged in popularity in recent years. CBD interacts with the body (specifically, the endocannabinoid system) to restore balance. It can be used for sleep issues, inflammation, pain relief, mood regulation, stress, menstrual problems, and more.
Many opt for CBD edibles because they make dosing easy and enjoyable. CBD oil often has a strong taste that not everyone appreciates. Incorporating CBD into a tasty snack masks this taste. Additionally, there’s a wide variety of CBD-infused foods available, such as chocolate, candy, oatmeal, or gummies, ensuring there’s an edible to suit every palate. Another advantage of CBD-infused edibles is that while onset of effects may take longer, they last significantly longer, offering prolonged pain relief, relaxation, and anti-inflammatory benefits.
But how do you choose good CBD edibles? Quality greatly influences the effectiveness of supplements. Naturally, you’d prefer a product made with care for both humans and the environment. CBD processing and extraction methods are also crucial. SupMedi, for example, employs CO2 extraction, ensuring the obtained CBD is highly pure and safe. Additionally, SupMedi rigorously controls the entire production chain, ensuring customers receive high-quality, pure CBD products.
What ingredients pair well with CBD?
Another reason to opt for CBD edibles is the potential synergistic effects between CBD and additional ingredients in these delectable treats. This combination can enhance and prolong CBD’s effects. CBD combines well with fats, facilitating better CBD absorption into the body.
Chocolate serves as an excellent base for edibles. Both cocoa and CBD positively impact mood, and chocolate also contains healthy fats, further enhancing the combination. Therefore, CBD blends seamlessly into various snacks and treats with nutritious ingredients that complement, strengthen, or support CBD’s effects.
Using herbs and spices in CBD edibles is also a great idea. CBD oil often has a dominant taste. If that’s not to your liking, incorporating strong-flavored herbs and spices like curry, paprika, or peppermint into a CBD-infused snack or meal can enhance both taste and health benefits.
As mentioned, chocolate pairs exceptionally well with CBD in edibles. Cocoa triggers the release of certain compounds in the body, such as endorphins, promoting a sense of well-being. This mirrors CBD’s effect, which promotes anandamide production.
Both CBD and cocoa have positive effects on mood and emotions, acting as genuine feel-good substances. Moreover, both cocoa and CBD possess anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, making them a perfect match. Hence, choosing CBD chocolate is highly recommended!
However, CBD also complements coffee excellently. Initially, one might think that caffeine and CBD counteract each other. While caffeine provides an energy boost, it also comes with drawbacks.
Caffeine can disrupt the normal sleep cycle, making it harder to fall asleep deeply. It may also cause side effects like restlessness and agitation. Conversely, CBD exhibits relaxing and calming properties. Can these two substances coexist harmoniously? Surprisingly, yes. When CBD and coffee are consumed together, CBD may positively influence sleep.
It balances out compounds responsible for fatigue, such as adenosine, potentially mitigating caffeine’s adverse effects. Therefore, combining CBD with coffee may allow you to reap the benefits of caffeine without experiencing its drawbacks.
Dosage considerations for CBD edibles
When considering CBD edibles, you can opt for ready-made products or make them yourself. Making them yourself allows you to determine the CBD dosage and customize your snack or meal to your preferences. However, it’s essential to understand how to dose CBD. Fortunately, we can provide you with some tasty recipes perfect for the winter season.
Making CBD edibles from scratch isn’t overly complicated. Plus, baking can be enjoyable and relaxing. For example, try our delightful CBD Christmas cookies, featuring cocoa, candy cane bits, vanilla, peppermint extract, and your carefully chosen CBD dosage. Not only do these cookies offer the health benefits of CBD, but they’re also a delicious homemade treat. The blog contains the exact recipe for these cookies.
If you prefer luxurious and creamy snacks, you can make CBD chocolate truffles. CBD pairs excellently with cocoa, as these two substances complement and enhance each other’s effects. Truffles are a delightful treat, especially during the festive season, and they’re relatively easy to make. They require only butter, cocoa, cream, and CBD oil. You can personalize them further by adding orange, vanilla, or peppermint extract. With minimal effort, you can present one of the tastiest CBD edibles at your table.
However, when making your own CBD edibles, it’s crucial to ensure you’re consuming the correct CBD dosage—not too much, not too little. Therefore, it’s vital to know how much CBD you’re incorporating into your recipe. For instance, if you’re baking a cake, ensure one slice contains your daily CBD dosage. Initially, it’s wise to prepare the recipe without CBD. Once you know how many slices of cake (or cookies, truffles, etc.) the recipe yields, you can calculate the necessary CBD dosage.
Then, when preparing the recipe with CBD, incorporate the appropriate amount, considering how much of your delicious edible you’ll consume daily. For example, if a cake yields 12 slices, add your daily dosage 12 times. After your hard work in the kitchen, enjoy a healthy and tasty CBD-infused snack!
How the body processes CBD edibles
If you’re contemplating using a CBD product, you might wonder about the differences between edibles and CBD oil. The key distinction lies in how CBD is absorbed. When consuming CBD oil, the active compounds are rapidly absorbed through the mucous membranes in the mouth, entering the bloodstream directly. Conversely, with edibles, absorption occurs through the stomach, intestines, and liver, resulting in a slower onset of effects, but with prolonged duration. Additionally, the other ingredients in edibles can influence absorption rates.
However, several other factors differentiate the effects and dosing of CBD edibles from other products. Variables such as body weight, metabolism, recent food intake, and the quality of digestive enzymes also play a role. Generally, effects from edibles may manifest within 30 to 90 minutes after ingestion, though onset times vary among individuals. If you seek the benefits of edibles but desire quicker CBD absorption, CBD Candy tablets may be ideal. These tasty orange-flavored candies, infused with CBD, dissolve under the tongue for rapid absorption through the mucous membranes.
There’s abundant choice when it comes to CBD products. Whichever you select, rest assured they are all effective and can support your health. As mentioned, CBD oil is swiftly absorbed into the bloodstream via the mucous membranes. With CBD edibles, digestion plays a significant role. They first enter the stomach, then proceed to the liver for metabolism. Only after this process can CBD be absorbed into the bloodstream, leading to the onset of effects. Thus, it takes longer to feel the effects of edibles.
Furthermore, during digestion, a portion of CBD may not be absorbed, necessitating a relatively higher dosage. Hence, it’s essential to consider food combinations with CBD. Fats, for example, envelop CBD molecules, enhancing absorption.
CBD edibles are particularly suitable for individuals engaged in intense activities like endurance sports or long hikes. CBD offers numerous benefits for athletes, promoting more efficient energy utilization and aiding in toxin removal by enhancing blood circulation. Consequently, athletes may experience reduced muscle soreness during and after training or competitions. Moreover, this natural remedy can positively impact mood.
Quality sleep is crucial for overall well-being and optimal performance. Poor sleep significantly affects energy levels, concentration, mood, and mental performance. CBD edibles tailored for sleep can aid in promoting restful sleep. They support a regular sleep pattern, ensuring you fall asleep and wake up at the appropriate times. CBD may support the production of sleep-inducing substances like melatonin. Additionally, CBD edibles induce relaxation, both physically and mentally, facilitating quicker sleep onset, better sleep quality, and refreshed awakening. Hence, consuming a tasty CBD edible before bedtime is a wise choice.
