How long does CBD oil take effect?

Modified on: 19/09/2022

Everything you need to know about your body’s reaction time to taking CBD

There are different ways to take CBD, and each of them has other reaction times and durations. The factors influencing these times depend on the form of intake and the person’s metabolic characteristics, such as body weight, age, and tolerance to the substance.

It should also be specified that CBD oil can only be legally used topically on the skin in some countries. To be more explicit, ingestion is not permitted by law.

Therefore, the information I am about to give you has the sole purpose of being shared with you, pending any new provisions by the government.

Now back to our dear CBD oil.

Let’s see what the main ones are, how long they take to take effect and why, if your country allows it.

Why does the method of intake affect absorption time?

How can the same substance behave differently depending on how I decide to take it? What difference does it make if I put two drops of CBD under my tongue or add it to my favourite brew?

There is a difference, and below I will try to explain what it is. Even if you are not doing very different things, your body’s reaction time will vary a lot.

CBD will, in any case, end up in your bloodstream, thus reaching all parts of your body and their CB1 and CB2 receptors.

By stimulating the cannabinoid system, cannabidiol interacts with various receptors in the immune system, brain, and other organs and tissues.

The timing of cannabidiol’s action depends directly on the length of the pathway it has to travel to reach the CB1 and CB2 receptors.

Let’s now look at the main routes of administration and how long they take to trigger the effects of CBD.

Read also: What are endocannabinoids, and what are their effects?

Smoking CBD or vaping it

Many cannabis users choose to vape the inflorescences mainly because it does not involve combustion, which is impossible to avoid if one chooses to smoke them.

However, these two methods share the pathway to the receptors. In both cases, CBD enters the circulation through the pulmonary alveoli.

Once it reaches the alveoli, the cannabidiol is finally ready to enter the bloodstream. If inhaled, it only has to pass a thin barrier to reach the bloodstream.

This results in short reaction times. This is why smoking and vaping are the preferred methods of most cannabis users.

Furthermore, CBD taken through these methods has a very high bioavailability rate. This means that almost all of the inhaled CBD can cross the barrier and generate an effect in the body.

However, it is rather challenging to make a precise estimate of the duration of effect what we do know concerns the half-life of the various modes of intake, i.e. the amount of time required for the concentration of the active ingredient in the body to halve.

In this specific case, the half-life of CBD of a hypothetical 20 mg dose is 1-2 hours.

Read also: Full-spectrum CBD oil: what it is and what it means

Ingest CBD through food or drink

By choosing this modality, several possibilities open up. There are, in fact, many ways of ingesting CBD oil and among the most common are capsules, tinctures (extracts to be swallowed) and CBD-infused foods and drinks.

For those who want more discretion, these methods are ideal, as you cannot detect the presence of cannabidiol unless you wish to communicate it.

Another advantage of ingestion is that it does not put your lungs at risk as smoking cannabis does. As a result, we have recently seen a significant increase in the supply of CBD-based edibles, such as biscuits, candies, brownies, and more.

This method allows you to fix your CBD through many different foods, playing with your creativity. The time, however, is much longer than inhalation or, as we will see, sublingual administration.

The reason is straightforward: CBD has to be digested before entering the bloodstream.

The digestive process, as you know, needs its own time. First, the food needs to be broken down by acids and enzymes, and once this process is complete, it can be metabolised by the liver. Only then will they be ready to be released into the bloodstream.

The effects of CBD taken orally will not be tangible until at least thirty minutes have elapsed. The half-life of CBD, in this case, is around 23 hours.

Although it takes longer to enter your bloodstream, cannabidiol taken in this way allows you to integrate it into your daily routine easily and, as I mentioned above, provides unparalleled discretion. Moreover, the effect lasts longer.

Taking CBD oil sublingually

I want to tell you that the last method of taking CBD is sublingual. To be handled this way, cannabidiol must be in the form of an oil or, even better, a tincture.

Sublingual administration is typical of the medical field due to the concise absorption time this mode requires. The speed with which it reaches the bloodstream is remarkable, and, as it does not have to be digested, it maintains a high level of bioavailability.

Just under the tongue, we find the thinnest layer of the lining of the oral floor of the mouth, and this portion of the mucous membrane is affluent in capillaries. This is precisely why there is such a high capacity to absorb active ingredients in this oral cavity area.

By choosing this option, it will take about 15 minutes to feel the effects of CBD, and its half-life is variable. A range of 1 to 10 hours is estimated for a dose between 5 and 20 mg.

In conclusion, how long does the effect of CBD oil last?

We have seen that the duration of the effect of CBD oil depends on several factors, such as the concentration of the oil, the dose administered, how it is taken, and the metabolic characteristics of each individual.

It is difficult to predict the body’s reaction time and the duration of the effects induced by taking CBD reasonably accurately.

Suppose you are also part of the world of cannabis enthusiasts. In that case, you can find many interesting articles on Justbob.shop, from CBD oil for topical use to the best varieties of CBD cannabis for collecting purposes.

We are waiting for you in our CBD flower shop!