Why CBD Works for Some People, but Not for Others

Image by Julia Teichmann from Pixabay

Thousands of people credit cannabidiol (CBD) for changing their lives. The most common use for CBD is to relieve anxiety and stress, but others use CBD for pain and inflammation. However, not everyone reports a positive experience. Some people say CBD just doesn’t work for them.

While everyone’s body is different, we all have endocannabinoid receptors that specifically interact with CBD. In theory, everyone should get some benefit from CBD. However, that’s not always the case. There are several possible reasons some people don’t benefit from CBD.

1. Expectations are too high

One of the reasons CBD might not be working for someone is because their expectations are too high. They might be expecting CBD to relieve symptoms beyond its actual capabilities.

CBD has been touted as a cure-all for just about every ailment imaginable. However, there isn’t any scientific evidence to support many of these claims. Although many studies show CBD relieves anxiety, pain, and some cancer treatment side effects, many other claims have yet to be proven.

 2. They’re using the wrong delivery method

There are plenty of ways to administer CBD, but not all are equal for every situation. For example, when you’re trying to get pain relief in a specific area of your body, taking an oil isn’t the best solution. You need a targeted delivery method like a salve or a CBD patch. Salves are great, but you’ll always lose a bit of CBD on your hands from rubbing it into your skin. You’ll also have to re-apply salve several times throughout the day.

Transdermal CBD patches deliver the maximum amount of CBD directly to the area of discomfort over a longer period of time. You don’t have to worry about patches rubbing off on your clothes either. 

Another delivery method mistake is ingesting CBD when you need relief quickly. Most edible CBD products don’t contain much CBD. Even when you do find strong edible CBD products, it can take hours to process and get into your system. When you need relief fast, smoking CBD will deliver the effects within seconds to a minute.

If CBD isn’t working for you, before giving up, try changing your delivery method to match your needs.

3. They’re using a poor-quality CBD product

Some people don’t get results from CBD because they aren’t using the right product. Many clever entrepreneurs have jumped on the CBD bandwagon and started selling CBD products that aren’t high-quality. Many of these low-quality products are purchased in bulk as white label batches and then branded and sold to unsuspecting consumers. These business owners don’t always know the quality is poor, but they don’t bother to run tests to find out.

If a CBD product is poor, it’s not going to help anyone. Instead of trying to find a good deal on CBD, it’s better to find the top-rated products and spend the extra money. You really do get what you pay for.

 4. They’re using a product that has been intentionally watered down

While some businesses unintentionally sell low-quality products, others intentionally water down their CBD products just to make more money. There’s virtually no difference between a poor-quality product and a watered-down product. Neither will produce desired results.

 5. They need THC and terpenoids to get the benefits

CBD is often isolated and marketed as “pure,” however, pure CBD won’t provide the biggest benefits. Two important ingredients make CBD products work best: terpenes and THC.

While some people report relief with pure CBD, that’s not the norm. The people who get benefits from pure CBD are usually smoking it in high quantities. Most people need both terpenes and THC to get the benefits of CBD.

Research has shown that CBD, terpenes, and THC have an ‘entourage effect’ and work extremely well together. In fact, research shows that a combination of CBD and THC is more powerful than taking either cannabinoid alone. The biggest benefit is that CBD reduces the unwanted psychoactive effects of THC while not decreasing its efficacy.

 6. They’re not taking enough CBD

Perhaps the most obvious reason people aren’t getting benefits from CBD is because they’re not taking enough. It’s hard to find oils and capsules that contain 10mg or more. Most people need to take 30mg or more per day just to slightly feel the effects. 

If you’re taking one capsule per day, you’re probably not getting enough CBD.

There is no official CBD dosage recommendation (yet)

Since the FDA has yet to approve CBD, there is no official dosage recommendation. However, if you’re not getting the results you want, talk to a pro-CBD/THC doctor to find out how you can start getting the results you’re after; you might just need a bigger dose or a different delivery method.