Video: What To Look For When Shopping For CBD

From The New York Times to the Today Show, it’s hard to go a day without reading or hearing about hemp CBD. Yet, despite the public’s quick adoption, the U.S. hemp industry is still relatively new and is thus unregulated by the FDA and USDA. This means that it is the responsibility of each company to hold itself accountable for its quality. Unfortunately, this also means there are companies out there that are not being entirely truthful about what is (or is not) in their product.

If you’re in the market to try CBD, here are some quick tips for what to look for to find a quality brand:

1. Ensure you receive third-party lab results.

This is key! Because it's an unregulated industry, third-party verified lab results show exactly what is and what is not included in your oil. “Third-party” means that the product was sent to an unbiased company for testing. Premium hemp CBD oil company Populum started with a mission of quality and transparency. Keeping in line with this goal, Populum holds itself to the highest standard by conducting multiple in-house and third-party lab tests to ensure the quality of the products. Before an order is shipped out, Populum tests every single batch for toxins and to certify the CBD concentration by an independent third-party lab. To help customers understand what they’re taking, they provide a copy of third-party lab results in every box. With the lab results, customers can see the purity of the oil while also ensuring that each Populum product is free of any toxins.

2. Make sure there is a trial period.

What if you don’t like CBD? Or it doesn’t do what you thought it would? When choosing between brands, make sure there is a trial period option to try out the product and make sure it’s what you expected.

Populum is the first brand in the industry to offer a risk-free trial. You get 30 days to try Populum, and if you decide you don’t like it, no problem! You can return it for a full refund. No sample sizes. No catch. Just pure peace of mind.

3. Read the reviews.

Since the industry is unregulated by the FDA and USDA, CBD companies can not make health claims. If you see a company that is claiming their product can cure or fix illnesses or ailments, that should be a red flag! You can, however, read the reviews from real-life customers on how they used CBD and what effect it had on them. For example, Populum has more than 900 verified customer reviews. Take a look.

Also, make sure to look at unbiased third-party sites to see how CBD brands stack-up.

4. Look for a concentration guarantee.

Because CBD is still unregulated by the FDA and USDA, there are a lot of companies out there that are not being entirely truthful about the products they’re selling. According to University of Pennsylvania research, “nearly 70 percent of all cannabidiol products sold online are either over or under labeled.” This is a very troubling statistic, as it is very difficult for consumers to ensure the product they’re buying is labeled correctly. For example, what may seem like a reputable CBD oil company, may be selling a 500mg CBD Oil, which only actually contains 200mg of CBD. Visa-versa, another company may be selling a 500mg CBD oil, which actually contains 1000mg of CBD, though this scenario is less likely to occur as the higher the concentration, normally the higher costs of production to the business.

To help ensure transparency for our customers, Populum has a “CBD Concentration Promise.” As full-spectrum CBD oil is formulated using naturally derived extracts, it is impossible to make the CBD potency exactly the same for each batch. At Populum, we guarantee we're always delivering on the labeled potency, while staying within a deviation of up to 10% more CBD than what is labeled.

When shopping for CBD, make sure the CBD company offers some sort of guarantee on their product efficacy and concentration. This should be clearly labeled on their about page or should be called out on their lab reports.

5. Check lab results for true full spectrum extracts.

Another case of fraud that we’re seeing in the unregulated CBD industry is full-spectrum dilution. It is a rather unfortunate trend happening in the industry, and is very hard for consumers to spot.

Full-Spectrum CBD is considered the most-effective form of CBD because it’s minimally processed and it does remove any of the other beneficial cannabinoids found in the hemp plant, like terpenes, CBC, and CBN. Because it’s the most effective form of CBD and it’s minimally refined, it makes it more expensive for companies to sell. For unethical companies who want to sell a “full-spectrum” product but at a lower cost, they mix full-spectrum extracts with CBD isolates. This easily boots the CBD concentration by using a cheaper ingredient. Because they’re mixing the two, there are still some remements of the full-spectrum properties found in the composition, so brands will still label the blend extract as “full-spectrum” when that in fact is not the case.

As conscious consumers, how do we make sure that we’re buying true full-spectrum CBD? The best way is to analyze the third-party lab results. They should show a healthy mix of cannabinoids. When looking over the lab results, make sure you see traces of: CBN, CBC, CBN and terpenes. Each full-spectrum batch is different, so not all of these cannabinoids need to be present, but there should be traces of at least a few.

6. Test the company’s customer service.

Since CBD is new for many, make sure the brand you’re buying from has a reputable and knowledgeable customer service team. You should easily be able to communicate with the company through email, phone, chat, and text. When you’re first starting out with CBD you will likely have questions like “how much CBD should I take?” or “what do CBD concentrations mean?” or “which CBD product is right for me?” The customer service team should easily be able to point you in the right direction and answer any CBD related questions that you have.

At Populum, we are dedicated to our customers. “Populum” translates to “for the people'' in Latin, so our goal is to always put our customers’ needs first. From the CEO to our interns, everyone at Populum is part of our customer service team (or a.k.a. “CBD Concierge”). We guarantee that we can answer any questions that you have and we are happy to do so!

7. Look for clean ingredients.

Because CBD is derived from the hemp plant, pure unflavored CBD can be an acquired taste. Many companies add sugars and additives to suppress the hemp flavor in supplements. For topical products, many companies use preservatives like parabens and non-vegan oils.

When looking for CBD, whether a topical product or a supplement, make sure you can read the ingredients and know when you’re putting on or in your body.

Populum keeps our products clean and simple because we believe in the pure benefits of hemp CBD. Our products are vegan, cruelty-free, paraben-free, non-GMO. Additionally, our ingredients are posted clearly on each product page on our website and are labeled clearly on product boxes. Most of our products have 6 ingredients or less!

8. Ask Questions!

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Wherever you are at in your CBD journey, Populum’s team is here to help. It’s important that you are totally informed on what you’re receiving before purchasing, so don’t be afraid to call us at (855) 872-2772 or send us an email at [email protected].

Shop Populum Products.