During the past couple of years, there’s been a lot of online discussion about cannabidiol. This substance is called CBD, for short. Many people have observed that CBD helps make them feel better. It can reduce anxiety, depression, and pain. Some studies have also shown that CBD has a whole slew of other potential benefits, including protecting against neurological complications, benefiting heart health, and possibly helping diabetes prevention. While this research is still underway, the early results are encouraging.
Given the potential health benefits for cannabidiol, manufacturers have been working overtime to try and come up with consumption methods that are not only palatable but are truly enjoyable. People often consume CBD as an oil. With this method, you put a few ml under your tongue and let it absorb into your body. This method is quick and easy, but it’s not exactly natural. It feels a little more like taking medicine as opposed to eating delicious candy, for example.
CBD edibles aim to solve this problem. By infusing CBD into food products, you can get the potential health benefits of this incredible substance while also eating something tasty. It’s also a way to make taking CBD discrete. Coworkers and friends won’t need to know that you’re taking it (with that said, you shouldn’t need to feel like you have to hide it since it’s legal within most jurisdictions).
If you’re in the market for CBD edibles, here are ten types that you’ll want to try. Some of these you can buy from various manufacturers online or in-store. Other edibles you’ll need to bake at home.
Ten Types of CBD Edibles to Try
Many CBD edibles are available from manufacturers all across the country. Here are ten types that you should consider trying!
1. Gummy Bears and Worms
Gummy bears are favorites of almost every child. These sweet and chewy treats are as cute as they are tasty. Manufacturers now make CBD gummies for adults. Chewing on these gummy bears may help calm you down, reduce anxiety, and lift your mood.
One of the coolest things about gummies is that they let you chew on them, which can help distract you if you are feeling anxious. Studies have shown that chewing itself can lower stress. Therefore, these gummies pack a double punch in that you get the potential stress benefits of CBD and have stress relief through the physical act of eating them!
2. CBD-infused Dried Fruit
Some manufacturers have started infusing CBD in dried fruit. Dried fruit is what it says it is – fruit that has had all the moisture removed from it. It’s a healthy snack that may have a little bit of crunch to it to start. Adding CBD to it gives you a healthy and tasty way to consume cannabidiol. You can often get dried mango or pineapple, which taste great on their own and make a rich source of CBD!
3. Chocolate
CBD-infused chocolate is incredibly popular. Many people love to snack on chocolate bars at work or when they get home after a hard day. The fantastic thing about these is that you can have them after dinner, so it becomes part of your regular eating habits. Instead of having to remember to eat some gummies, you can have dinner and get your CBD intake via a sweet dessert afterward.
4. CBD-infused Almonds
Since CBD is such a versatile substance, manufacturers can include it with anything. Cannabidiol tends to be taken by people who are looking to improve their overall health. One aspect of dieting and eating right is often having nuts for protein and as a snack. Dieticians often recommend almonds because they are an excellent source of protein and also burn fat.
Recognizing the link between CBD consumption and potential health benefits, manufacturers started adding CBD to almonds. Now, when you have almonds to help lose weight or obtain protein, you can also have the potential health benefits of CBD included! There’s no need to consume CBD separately.
5. Granola Bars
If you hike or you want a satisfying snack throughout the day, granola bars are almost unequivocally the way to go. They are healthy, nutritious, and have a lot of right ingredients for your body. Now, you can get CBD-infused granola bars, so when you’re going out for a hike and need a pick-me-up, you can also take the benefits of CBD with you!
6. Protein Bars
If you consume protein bars as part of your daily workout routines, then you’re in luck – these can easily include CBD as well in them! If you make protein bars yourself, often adding CBD is as easy as adding CBD oil to them. However, if you don’t make them yourself, you can buy them from several different manufacturers.
7. Smoothies
Smoothies are a delicious and wonderfully nutritious and healthy way to consume a plethora of nutrients. Dieticians love recommending smoothies because of how easy they make consuming healthy, nutritious ingredients. The best part is that you can infuse your favorite smoothies with CBD oil. Put a teaspoon or so into your favorite drink and enjoy the health benefits of the CBD and nutritious ingredients combined!
8. Coffees and Teas
Your coffee or tea can use some CBD! You can put some CBD oil in the coffee and stir it up for a fantastic start to your day. If you are looking for a way to get into the habit of consuming cannabidiol daily, this is arguably one of the best ways to do it. Since many of us are in the habit of drinking coffee every morning to start our days, so adding CBD to it ensures that you’ll reap the benefits of the CBD as well.
As a bonus, you can add Hemp milk to your coffee for an extra delicious, creamy, and Cannabis plant-friendly drink!
9. Cookies
Who doesn’t love a fantastic homemade chocolate chip cookie? If you are like most people, having cookies around the house will bring you feelings of joy and comfort. Adding CBD to your cookies could make you feel even better! There are many CBD cookie recipes out there. Since CBD oil is a fat-based substance, so it works nicely with the butter to result in a delicious baked treat. Of course, you can make these health-conscious as well by making them gluten-free or low-calorie.
10. Brownies
Last, but not least, you can always add CBD to any brownie recipe to create a delicious treat. Many brownies are great desserts to have because they are so customizable. You can have dark or milk chocolate, blondies, and so on. They’re also incredibly easy to bake! If you’re looking for a tasty way to consume CBD, you can either make CBD-infused brownies at home or purchase them pre-made from some manufacturers.
CBD Edibles and Bioavailability: How One Affects the Other
CBD edibles are one of the best ways to consume cannabidiol. Instead of taking oil that feels unnatural and may be difficult to remember, you can integrate the benefits of CBD with foods you already know and love. One crucial fact to keep in mind, however, is how CBD edibles affect bioavailability.
As a quick reminder, the term bioavailability refers to “the degree and rate at which an administered drug is absorbed by the body’s circulatory system, the systemic circulation.” In other words, a drug with a high bioavailability would cause an effect on the body immediately. Emergency room personnel give chewable acetylsalicylic acid (Aspirin) to people they think may have had a heart attack. The reason for that is that it has such a high degree of bioavailability. Chewing it enables it to be absorbed faster than swallowing it as a pill. By contrast, a drug with a low bioavailability would be slow to enter the bloodstream. It would take longer to feel the effects of that drug. In the previous example, we would say that pill Aspirin has lower bioavailability than chewable Aspirin.
Consuming CBD as part of an edible and not taking it directly as oil does affect its bioavailability. For example, researchers have found evidence that having a fatty meal with CBD may boost its bioavailability and allow more of it to be absorbed. Including CBD in edibles may also slow down the release of the CBD and make it more consistent over a more extended time. Instead of high CBD intake methods like vaping, which expose your body to a rapid intake of cannabidiol followed by a relatively fast fall-off, consuming CBD as an edible may make that process much more gradual. Having it be less of a shock to your system might make the overall effects much more sustained.
Overall though, researchers estimate the bioavailability of CBD ingested orally to be somewhere between 6% and 20% with effects starting around 30 minutes after consumption and lasting for about 2-3 hours. While consuming CBD edibles may adjust those ratios and times a bit, they won’t be substantially different. Consuming CBD as an edible will still give you all the potentially fantastic benefits of the substance!
More About Those Benefits
Much of the focus on CBD edibles is about making it possible to consume this substance regularly. Ideally, you should be able to get into the routine of taking CBD with some regularity so you can reap the maximum potential benefit. Having cannabidiol as chocolate or within smoothies is a way to do just that.
One important thing to keep in mind is that CBD may be a part of an active, healthy lifestyle. Research in CBD has shown that it can decrease inflammation significantly. If you exercise a lot, you know how damaging inflammation can be to your overall workout strategy. A lot of times, a sore muscle is caused by extreme inflammation which then traps lactic acid in the muscles. Or, you may inflame your joints during a workout due to all the mechanical stress that they are undergoing. CBD has the potential to help with these workout-related issues by reducing inflammation and hopefully allowing you to exercise with greater efficiency and less pain!
Another aspect of CBD that is promising for those who are seeking to lead healthy lifestyles is its potential heart health benefit. Research has shown that CBD may be able to lower blood pressure and reduce inflammation associated with heart disease. CBD is an antioxidant, which means that it might be quite beneficial for heart health. Much of this research is still in its infancy, but the results are looking promising.
Finally, focusing on a longer-term healthy outlook, CBD may also have neuroprotective properties. It may help protect against Alzheimer’s, epilepsy, and multiple sclerosis. Indeed, the only FDA-approved usage of medicinal CBD is for epilepsy, marketed under the name Epidiolex, which bolsters the notion that it might have neuroprotective value.
All in all, CBD plays a vital role in a healthy, vibrant lifestyle. If you exercise regularly and eat right, adding CBD may benefit you quite a bit!
CBD Edibles: Lots of Options
The ten good ideas and products listed within this post only scratch the surface of what you can do with CBD. The beauty of this substance is its versatility. You can add it to pretty much anything and reap its benefits without sacrificing taste or texture. The brownies you make with CBD in them, for example, will not taste substantially different than those without it. The smoothies you add CBD oil to, again, will not feel that much different in terms of taste or texture.
Additionally, there are fun ways to maximize your consumption of Hemp while adding in CBD. Using Hemp milk is one such way. Not only can you reduce dairy (which, incidentally, can cause heart disease, type-2 diabetes, and Alzheimer’s), but you can also enjoy the overall fantastic benefits of the Cannabis plant.
If you’re looking at integrating CBD into your daily life, try one of the edibles mentioned in this guide. You’ll likely find that there are many ways to include CBD in your everyday life so that you consume it regularly. Instead of feeling like you need to take medicine every night, you can enjoy some delicious treats while taking an all-natural substance that may contribute to your overall health!
