When most people think of cannabinoid wellness supplements, they think of the benefits of CBD oil and other products. CBD (cannabidiol) is wildly popular among the wellness and athletic communities. People enjoy CBD for its broad range of holistic benefits. But what about other cannabinoids?
CBC, a lesser-known cannabinoid, is being studied for potential uses in wellness products. Here’s what you need to know about CBC oil to decide if you’d like to incorporate it into your wellness routine.
What Are Cannabinoids?
Cannabinoids are compounds that naturally occur in plants, people, and animals. The human body makes at least two unique cannabinoids. Plants like broccoli and ginseng also produce a handful of natural cannabinoids.
Cannabinoids are most prevalent in the cannabis family of plants, including hemp. There are more than 100 unique cannabinoids that occur in cannabis. The cannabis plant produces a mother cannabinoid called cannabigerolic acid, or CBGA. The plant converts CBGA into other cannabinoids as needed.
The two major cannabinoids in hemp are CBD and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). Hemp also contains minor cannabinoids like CBN, CBG, and CBC. A bit of CBG will remain in the plant, but it mostly creates the other cannabinoids.
Each cannabinoid has unique functions. They all work differently to promote the health and reproduction of cannabis plants. No two cannabinoids work the same, and some are more beneficial than others.
How Do Cannabinoids Work in the Human Body?
The human body naturally makes and uses cannabinoids. The cannabinoids you make inside your body are called endocannabinoids, and the system of receptors that use the cannabinoids is called the endocannabinoid system.
The endocannabinoid system is everywhere. There are two types of cannabinoid-specific receptors, called CB1 and CB2. Cannabinoids can also work with many other types of receptors throughout the body.
There are cannabinoid receptors within your skin, brain, and digestive system that support your circadian rhythm, stress management system, immune system, and many of your internal organs.
The endocannabinoid system responds to many cannabinoids it comes into contact with. Some cannabinoids will bind to your cannabinoid receptors and change the way they perform their natural functions. Other cannabinoids interact with your endocannabinoid system, encouraging it to fulfill its natural functions more efficiently.
In the simplest terms, your endocannabinoid system is a really important part of your body that works to support almost everything your body does. That’s why cannabinoids are so popular in the wellness community.
What Is CBC?
CBC stands for cannabichromene. Cannabichromene is a minor cannabinoid that occurs within the cannabis family of plants. Almost all of the CBC products you’ll find on the market result from industrial hemp rather than conventional cannabis.
CBC isn’t very good at binding to your cannabinoid receptors, and cannabinoids need to bind to change how your body thinks or feels — CBC can’t get you high as THC can. It acts as an endocannabinoid stimulator and may have other minor wellness and health benefits.
What Is CBC Good For?
We love cannabinoid wellness, and we really enjoy science. We wish we had better news for you. Currently, researchers don’t know if CBC is good for very much.
There are extremely limited clinical data relating to CBC, and all findings seem to suggest that it can’t do anything CBD doesn’t already do.
We need more research on CBC to discover if it has unique benefits or special applications. For now, there are only a few things we know for sure.
CBC Has Weak Effects Similar to CBD
CBC works similarly to CBD but in a less broad sense. It stimulates some of the same cannabinoid receptors. Unlike CBD, CBC tries to bind to receptors. It doesn’t bind very well, which prevents it from making people feel high or in an altered state of mind.
CBC Acts as an Antioxidant
CBC, like other cannabinoids, acts as an antioxidant within the body. Antioxidants are protective plant compounds and vitamins that work to protect healthy cells from the damage caused by free radicals.
Environmental pollution and metabolic reactions within your body create byproducts called free radicals. Free radicals are cells that are one electron short of being complete. They try to steal electrons from healthy cells to stop themselves from dying.
Antioxidants sacrifice themselves. They’ll give up their electrons easily, sparing your healthy cells the damage.
CBC Is Part of “The Entourage” of Cannabinoids
The entourage effect is a popular theory about the way cannabinoids work. It suggests that cannabinoids work better when they are together. They may have a unique synergy in how they interact with each other that can impact how they interact with your body.
Full-spectrum hemp extract contains every cannabinoid the plant contains, including CBC. Some products, like CBD isolate, eliminate other cannabinoids. Cannabinoids can provoke a response from your endocannabinoid system, but they may not be as effective outside of full-spectrum extract.
When you use full-spectrum or broad-spectrum CBD products, you get the CBC that naturally occurs in the hemp plant.
Should I Use CBC Oil?
You can, but it may not deliver the effects you want. Since we don’t know much about the full potential of CBC, and it doesn’t seem to be as effective as CBD, it’s probably best to skip it.
You might be better off using CBD. CBD has been extensively researched and demonstrated to provide meaningful, holistic support to the body in numerous ways. It’s more efficient to produce from hemp and is often less expensive than minor cannabinoids like CBC.
Before you buy a CBC product, consider your wellness goals. Many people enjoy CBD because its benefits are broad and can positively impact many of your body’s daily processes.
There’s limited research that CBC would be able to do that. You’d be taking a bit of a gamble. Always talk to your healthcare provider for medical advice before taking new supplements.
Why CBD May Be a Better Choice
CBD is the tried and true top choice for cannabinoid wellness products. CBD products range from oils to creams and even sprays. It’s easy to produce and works well within the human body. You’re likely to experience more benefits from CBD than from CBC.
CBD Is More Efficient To Produce and Use
Hemp flowers often contain 20 percent or more CBD. They usually contain less than one percent CBC. There’s at least 20 times more CBD than CBC in a hemp flower. CBD is less wasteful to produce than CBC.
It’s very difficult to cultivate hemp plants that favor CBC production, which is why CBC products are so hard to come by. When you do find them, they’re often really expensive. In most cases, you could get a bottle of CBD oil and a few days’ worth of groceries for what high-quality CBC oil would cost.
Is it worth spending that much and utilizing so many resources for something that may not work as well as CBD? It’s your choice, but you’ll want to deliberate carefully.
CBD Has Been Extensively Studied
New CBD research is being performed every day. Long-term CBD studies are still ongoing.
Even the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has researched CBD. This research suggests potential uses for CBD and sheds some light on how it works within the body.
We know that CBD is generally considered safe for most adults to use in doses of CBD less than 1,500 mg a day. There are few side effects of CBD reported, and most are due to the carrier oils rather than the CBD itself.
We don’t have the same treasure trove of data about CBC. Although no current research suggests that CBC works radically differently or that it may be unsafe, there’s still a lot to discover. CBC might be highly beneficial, but we just don’t know.
If you’re interested in using CBC products, keep an eye out for published research performed by reputable institutions. As research comes in, you’ll have enough data to make an informed choice.
CBD Does a Better Job of Interacting With Your Body
CBD is a very friendly cannabinoid. It wants to meet all of your cannabinoid receptors and many other receptors throughout your body.
It can interact with all of them without attempting to latch onto them to change the way they work. That’s why CBD is so effective. It gets along with everyone.
CBD is more likely to meet all the marks than CBC. If you’re looking for a broad boost to your overall wellness, you’re more likely to find it in CBD.
In Conclusion: What Is CBC Good For?
CBC isn’t fully understood — we don’t know what CBC is good for. More research is needed to determine CBC’s unique properties and abilities.
For now, CBD remains the better-researched option. There’s enough data about how CBD works and the full extent of its effects to make it the safer bet.
If you’re ready to try CBD, we’re here for you. Pure Relief’s vegan gummies contain 25 mg CBD per piece. Our perfectly dosed gummies make it easy to take CBD on the go. Chew up a gummy and feel Pure Relief.
Sources:
An introduction to the endogenous cannabinoid system | National Library of Medicine
The effects of cannabinoids on the brain | PubMed
Antioxidants: What They Do and Antioxidant-Rich Foods | Cleveland Clinic