How Long After Taking CBD Oil Can You Drink Water?
Yes, You Can Drink Water After Taking CBD Oil
Firstly, it is always recommended that you follow the dosing instructions for the product you buy. However, as a general rule, you should be clear to drink water once you wait 60 seconds after taking the CBD oil sublingually (under the tongue). Additionally, if you choose to digest the CBD in pill form, gummies, or with an infused beverage, water can help send the contents down your esophagus to start the process of digestion. Either way, drinking water after using CBD oil is fine.
In this article, we'll explain steps you can take to ensure you reap the most benefits. After all, while drinking water won't minimize the CBD oil's impact, other factors will.
For Maximum Full-Body Effectiveness, Apply CBD Under the Tongue
To better explain why sublingually-applied CBD is the most potent, let’s start with the CB1 and CB2 receptors under the tongue; these receptors swiftly absorb the CBD, enabling it to forego the loss of potency that occurs when it is otherwise digested and metabolized.
To summarize, CBD wastes no time interacting with the receptors when directly applied under the tongue via a dropper or spray. If you wait at least a minute after using CBD, you are safe to drink water without lessening its efficacy.
Not sure how to apply CBD under your tongue? Check out our guide to How to Use CBD Drops.
What Happens If You Drink Water Too Soon
What happens if you don't wait the full minute after sublingually using CBD to drink water? You risk reducing the desired effects of the oil. The CBD that hasn't yet been absorbed under the tongue will mix with the water to go through the digestive tract. While you will still reap some of the CBD's benefits, the results will be diminished and take longer to go into effect.
In fact, many CBD-users actually prefer to add CBD to fluids, whether it be water, their morning coffee, or a smoothie. This helps to mask the earthy taste of the CBD oil (which isn't for everyone) and can streamline their daily routines.
Alternatively, you can even topically apply CBD to be absorbed by your skin, nourishing complexions and providing more targeted results.
The beauty of CBD is that it can be used dozens of different ways—research and experiment to find the methodolgy you most prefer and that helps achieve your goals.
If Not Water, What Would Lessen CBD’s Potency or Efficacy?
Now that we established that drinking water after taking CBD does not lessen its effectiveness, you may be interested in what factors do have an impact.
The type of CBD
How CBD is extracted from the hemp plant and processed has an impact. To explain, let’s first look at full spectrum CBD, arguably the most powerful option. Its limited processing purposefully leaves in other terpenes and components of the plant (including trace levels of THC), resulting in an “entourage effect” that boosts the CBD’s advantages. The amount of THC is less than 0.04%, meaning that it won’t have any intoxicating effects.
In comparison, isolate CBD excludes all other parts of the hemp plants. Such products can still be of a higher quality and deliver results, but the lack of an entourage effect means that the CBD offers comparatively less efficacy and potency.
The age of the CBD
As is true with most foods and medicines, expired CBD won’t be as effective as freshly harvested oils. Thankfully, all credible CBD products should have an expiration date on the bottle or packaging (steer clear if they don’t).
Additionally, take steps to ensure that the CBD doesn’t prematurely “go bad.” Store it in a dark location away from direct sunlight or extreme temperature swings, such as a drawer or medicine cabinet.
If you do end up using expired CBD, expect decreased potency (which is harmless). However, in some scenarios, you may have a negative physical reaction.
The integrity of the company
Like many other consumables and non-perishables, CBD oil may have other indicators of diminished efficacy or goodness beyond the expiration date. Check the smell. A normal CBD scent may range from almost odorless to an earthy undertone. If it’s “skunky,” don’t use it.
Furthermore, you will want to have information on the company or manufacturer that is selling the CBD. Farming and extraction processes may affect the beneficial results of CBD, as well as its general potency. Ideally, they should disclose information about the purity of the formula (and the lack of harmful chemicals) in publicly available third-party lab results.
Interactions with other medications
A contraindication is an adverse or bad reaction that can happen between ingredients in any type of product. If you are already taking any prescription or OTC medication, make sure you inform your doctor before you add a CBD supplement. Because CBD interacts with all of the regulatory systems and the organs, there is a possibility that another medication may lessen the effectiveness of the CBD, or vice versa.
Enjoy High-Quality CBD With the Botanika Life
The Elite Elixir is an adaptable CBD product that can be used externally on the skin, taken under the tongue, or infused in a drinkn or food of your choice. It incorporates 1500mg of a full spectrum CBD oil with a carrier hemp seed oil that works perfectly to deliver the highest potency and efficacy of the CBD oil.
Another CBD product you may want to regularly use is our CBD sleep spray, enhanced with magnesium, melatonin, and GABA. We designed the balance of the four active ingredients to improve all stages of rest from settling racing thoughts to improving the overall quality of sleep (less waking up in the middle of the night). To learn more about how the different components benefit your sleep cycle, read CBD vs. Melatonin for Sleep.
Botanika Life believes in full transparency and strives to deliver the cleanest, most beneficial CBD and CBD-based products. You can be assured that the ingredients are always vegan, sustainable, ethical, and safe, as verified through third-party lab results.
