CBD Dosing – Getting The Correct Dosage
If you’ve decided to try CBD oil, you’re then met with a common and confusing question. What strength should you order and how much should you take?
This isn’t helped by all of the contradictory information online, not to mention on product packaging; therefore we’ve done our best to explain the ideal dosages and what factors could affect this.
The Right Sweet Spot For You
Before we go into the potential CBD dosage, it is important to explain that it is different for every single person.
There are a number of factors which can affect how much you require, highlighted below:
- Body weight
- Tolerance levels and sensitivity to CBD
- Age
- Gender
- Overall health
- Symptoms being treated
In general, if you weigh more, you may require a greater dosage in order to yield optimal results. Just the same, if you’ve taken CBD oil regularly before, you might require a higher level as you build up a tolerance.
You must consider all of these factors and, after assessing our dosage calculations, work out what works best for you individually.
It can be tempting to base your measurements on what people have told you worked for them, but just remember they may be taking it for very different reasons and their body might have a completely different reaction to yours.
For this reason, we recommend you personally find your sweet spot and the dosage that works for you.
FSA Recommendations
The Food Standards Agency in the UK have recommended that you don’t take any more than 70mg in a 24 hour period, unless directly advised by a medical professional.
In an average 500mg CBD oil tincture served in a 10ml bottle, a single drop will contain 0.05ml, which means you will get 2.5mg of CBD from a single drop, with 200 drops from a bottle. This means you could have up to 28 drops.
Or alternatively, if you’re looking at a 1,000mg 10ml tincture, it will provide 5mg of CBD per drop, meaning you could have a maximum of 14 drops per 24 hours.
FDA Approved Treatment
The Food and Drug Administration have only approved a single CBD based treatment for epilepsy, which is Epidiolex, used to treat seizures.
The dosage they recommend is much higher than the average person will require who is buying CBD oil over the counter.
Epidiolex have recommended a dosage of 2.5mg per kilo of body weight, twice per day. So for someone who weights 70 kilos, they would be taking 175mg twice per day, making a total of 350mg.
CBD Dosages In Studies
There have been numerous studies conducted on CBD usage, however they have largely used much higher doses than the FSA max recommendation.
According to the World Health Organisation, the oral doses in these studies have varied between 100-800mg per day.
According to this study, doses of up to 1,500mg per day were provided to subjects, which repeatedly were shown to be well tolerated by humans.
However, the dosage we recommend with our product range would be vastly lower than what they provide in clinical studies where they have careful monitoring in place.
CBD Oil Dosage
If you have not tried CBD oil before, we’d generally recommend starting with a lower dosage and building up over time.
Many people start off with a dosage of 20-30mg of CBD. Of course, it should be remembered that this doesn’t need to all be taken as one dosage, many people split this into two helpings, once in the morning and once in the evening.
When you take it will depend on your reasons for taking it. For example, if you struggle to sleep at night then you may be better off taking it 45-60 minutes before bed.
On the other hand, if you get anxiety while at work, you may want to take some first thing in the morning and have a second dosage after lunch to keep you through to the end of the day.
Why It Might Not Have Worked?
Many people start off by purchasing a cheaper option, meaning it will contain less CBD. On top of this, they will take a minimal dosage of 1-2 drops, which might mean they’re only getting 2.5-5mg of CBD.
Even as a beginner with CBD, this low dosage may not yield the targeted results, which can leave people feeling off-put and frustrated.
Another factor is that not every CBD oil is equal, which is why it is important to look at the lab report before making a purchase. You need to ensure the batch you have contains the stated level of cannabinoids, so you can either find this on the brands website or request it via email.
If a company refuses to provide a lab report, you should feel very dubious about their reasons for hiding this important information.
Different Consumption Methods
We have previously mentioned the dosage of CBD oil, however you may be ordering CBD in different formats.
There are so many different products on the market that contain CBD, including gummies, tea, coffee, topical treatments, mints, powder, pouches and e-liquid, just to name a few.
In general, you should always start off low and build up, until you find your personal sweet spot.
Different consumption methods will also affect how quickly you feel the effects. For example, a vape pen will offer a much more instant effect, which is useful if you require a dosage imminently.
CBD oil tends to take between 30-60 minutes, while gummies can take 60-120 minutes to take effect.
You should therefore consider your timing based on your reasons for taking it, so it ‘kicks in’ at the optimal time.
How Do I Take CBD Oil?
CBD oil should be taken sublingually, meaning the oil should be dropped under your tongue.
You should hold the liquid under your tongue for 1-2 minutes, to allow it to enter your blood stream, before swallowing the remaining liquid.
Even with gummies, it is often worth chewing them and then leaving them in your mouth for a minute or two before swallowing. It can be tempting to swallow them quickly, especially when they taste great, but you still want to achieve some form of sublingual consumption.
Conclusion
There is no boiler plate CBD dosage recommendation, as this will vary drastically depending on your circumstances, your symptoms, your tolerance levels and even how recently you’ve eaten.
For the average user starting out with CBD oil, they may want to start with a dosage of between 20-30mg and build up from there if necessary.
