One question you may or may not have considered yet in regards to consuming CBD is how to get the most effect possible from your cannabidiol products. The power of the substance can be increased or diminished depending on how you take it and what other substances you take with it.
There is a lot of debate about the best and safest way to use CBD products but the focus of this article is mostly on ingestion and sublingual consumption and how to use those effectively.
Bioavailability
Bioavailability, though it sounds perhaps a little complicated, is simply the proportion of a substance that can have an effect on your systems after it is introduced to the body in one form or another. In other words, it’s how much effect you’ll get from your CBD after consumption.
When anything is ingested in the body, it moves through multiple organs, breaking down bit by bit along the way. If you ingest CBD oil, it travels to the stomach, then the small intestine, then to your liver—through the metabolic system. The liver metabolizes the oil before it goes out into the circulatory system. But the problem here is that the enzymes in the liver will not always be able to break down the CBD into anything useful and therefore MOST of it will end up as waste, or excrement. Thus bioavailability is low. The liver will unfortunately prevent most of the substance from reaching your blood stream. You would still see a slight benefit but it could certainly be improved upon.
Two ways we can improve this bioavailability rate:
First, instead of even allowing the CBD to enter the metabolic system, you can consume it sublingually. This means administering the substance directly to the sublingual gland, which is just beneath the tongue. You could administer CBD in the form of an oil, tincture, lozenge, or spray using this method–holding it under your tongue as long as you can so that the substance is absorbed by the glands. It is more direct and therefore impacts the body more quickly and effectively.
Second, if you prefer to ingest CBD, you should be eating foods that enhance its bioavailability. According to a study conducted by the University of Nottingham, fatty acids and medium to long chain triglycerides increase bioavailability the best. These foods, firstly, act as binding agents. The CBD is able to attach to them. The fats are metabolized into energy and they take the CBD along with it. This means that the CBD can then avoid being reduced by first metabolism. They are burned wtih these fats for immediate use. When CBD was used simultaneously with these foods, bioavailability increased by four times as much.
So what foods should you eat when ingesting CBD oil? Think fats such as:
- Coconut oil
- Olive oil
- Soybean oil
- Sesame oil
- Fish
- Nuts
- Avocado
- Meat
- Eggs
Lastly, it is of course important to be sure that you are using the highest quality of CBD possible. Bioavailability increases with the quality of the substance used. See these articles for more information on sourcing:
