Glossary Terms
Full spectrum: The whole-plant cannabis extract with all cannabinoids including a trace amount of THC, less than 0.3%. It has essential vitamins, minerals, and terpenes that give the cannabis plant its unique fragrance and potential for medicinal benefit.
Broad spectrum: The whole-plant extract with the THC removed. Broad spectrum still delivers a proposed mechanism known as the entourage effect by which cannabis compounds other than tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) act synergistically to modulate the overall psychoactive effects of THC.
Isolate: Purified CBD processed to remove all other cannabinoids, oils, plant material, waxes, and chlorophyll. It has no taste or smell. Isolates are found in skin-care products and edibles, where taste and smell are important.
Beyond the cannabis plant: Ingredients found in our skin- and hair-care products
Black pepper (botanical name: Piper nigrum): Indigenous to southern India, where it’s still extensively grown. Organic black pepper essential oil is steeped in Ayurvedic tradition and has been used throughout the ages as a remedy for an assortment of ailments.
In Asia, black pepper is thought to be detoxifying and anti-aging. Organic black pepper oil has warming properties that assist the circulatory system by stimulating blood flow and delivering vital nutrients to the applied area. It’s also considered a digestive tonic, as it stimulates enzymes that are beneficial for digestion.
Organic black pepper essential oil has analgesic properties that promote relaxation and decrease pain from muscle soreness and stiff joints. It’s particularly suited for those suffering from arthritis and rheumatism. The sharp scent is considered a stimulant, which helps to surmount both mental and physical fatigue. It’s also thought to be an aphrodisiac.
Organic black pepper essential oil is a wonderful element to incorporate into cosmetic applications, personal-care formulations, soaps, and aromatherapy.
Coconut oil (botanical name: Cocos nucifera): A versatile and nutritious treat for the skin and hair, acting as an effective moisturizer on all types of skin. Coconut oil is ideal for preventing dryness and flaking of skin in addition to halting wrinkles and adding moisture. Its antioxidant properties make it helpful in preventing premature aging and degenerative skin diseases.
Coconut oil is also one of the rare carrier oils that’s a potent antiviral agent. Bruce Fife, C.N., N.D., author of The Coconut Oil Miracle, exclaims in his book: “Laboratory tests have shown that the MCFAs (medium chain fatty acids) found in coconut oil are effective in destroying viruses that cause influenza, measles, herpes, mononucleosis hepatitis C, and AIDS.”
It contains ferulic acid and p-Coumaric acid, which have been proven to be strong natural antioxidants. Use coconut oil, which is good for all skin types, to enjoy significantly fewer wrinkles and blemishes. It’s ideal for use in hair, skin, and beauty formulations.
Jojoba oil (liquid wax ester; botanical name: Simmondsia chinensis): In the 1700s, Native Americans used the oil and seeds as a treatment for sores, cuts, bruises, and burns; as a skin conditioner, for soothing windburn and sunburn; as a cooking oil; and as a hair or scalp restorer.
A distinguishing property of Jojoba is the inherent structure of the oil, which resembles the sebum oil produced by the sebaceous glands on our scalp, making jojoba more similar to human sebum than to traditional vegetable oils. Sebum acts like a moisturizer for dry scalp. Jojoba oil, having a similar structure, helps in maintaining the required level of moisturizer in the scalp. The regular use of this oil gives strength to hair by providing moisture, freeing it of split ends and tangles. Organic cold-pressed jojoba oil does not become rancid in part because of the presence of tocopherols (vitamin E) and primarily because of its wax structure, which is never subject to oxidation. It’s also full of plant sterols (plant fats), which help boost the immune system in addition to preventing transepidermal water loss in the skin—extra important, as aging is primarily the result of dehydration of the skin.
Organic jojoba oil also helps hair growth by acting as a solubilizing (dissolving) agent that disbands the sticky buildup, diffusing through the follicles. This allows for hair growth without blockage. There are seven general attributes that allow for optimal oil absorption into the skin, all of which cold-pressed jojoba oil possesses: low viscosity, high unsaturation, low saponification number, short carbon-chain length, low lecithin (jojoba oil has no lecithin), straight chain molecule, and branched esters.
Lanolin: Scientifically proven to be closest to lipids in human skin, more so than any other ingredient. That’s why it works. It’s semi-occlusive & semi-permeable—meaning it allows skin to self-hydrate from within but also acts as a breathable skin barrier. Lanolin holds as much as 400% of its weight in moisture, behaving as a reservoir for your skin. And it’s vegetarian and animal cruelty-free.
Products found in: lip balm
Lavender oil (botanical name: Lavandula angustifolia): Grown exclusively in the fertile grounds of Bulgaria, whose climate and altitude make for a unique and sought-after lavender essential oil. Bulgarian lavender has a characteristically fruity and floral aroma. It’s been associated with purity and cleanliness since its infancy, with the etymology stemming from the Latin root lavare (“to wash”). Contemporary aromatherapy as we know it today is invariably intertwined with lavender.
Organic lavender is one of the few essential oils that can be applied directly onto the skin without dilution. Lavender oil is one of the most popular essential oils in the world.
Products found in: CBD pain salve and RSO pain salve
Lemon oil (botanical name: Citrus limon): Works well on oily skin and general impurities. Its astringent properties reduce cellulite and obesity and tightens sagging, lackluster skin. It helps with acne, mouth ulcers, varicose veins, arthritis, muscular aches and pains, rheumatism, joint swelling, poor circulation, throat, respiratory ailments, and gout. Lemon essential oil also boosts the immune system by clearing lymphatic congestion, preventing contagious illnesses.
MCT oil (botanical name: caprylic/capric triglycerides): MCTs, also called MCFAs, are medium-chain triglycerides or medium-chain fatty acids. They’re a type of fat that’s most often found in coconut and palm oil as well as some dairy products. MCTs are beneficial fats that are easily digestible and provide energy. Instead of being metabolized through digestion, like most other foods, these fats are processed in the liver to be used as energy. Since the calories are used straightaway, they’re less likely to be stored as fat.
Peppermint oil (botanical name: Mentha piperita): One of the most widely used and versatile essential oils in the world, its signature minty fragrance is refreshing and clean. The oil also helps to increase energy, improve circulation, promote healing, and provide pain relief. Peppermint essential oil is commonly used in dental products, skin-care products, shampoos, soaps, aromatherapy, insect repellent formulations, cleaning products, and food flavorings.
Rick Simpson Oil (RSO): In the late 1990s, Rick Simpson was diagnosed with skin cancer. He went to Canadian Health in Nova Scotia, where he lived, and the Dr. took care of the spot on his face, asking him to return in a few months to treat the spots on his neck and shoulder. On his return home from the hospital he was determined to find a natural, plant-based cure for his remaining skin cancer. He knew the healing potential of the cannabis plant and started researching the power of the oils it contains. He was able to extract the oils from the plant himself and started to apply them directly to his skin cancer every few days. Upon Rick’s return to the hospital, the doctor was amazed that he’d completely cured his own skin cancer with the power of the plants. Rick continued to make the oil and went on to share all of his knowledge with people around the world. You can read and learn more about Rick and his story at www.phoenixtears.ca.
Sesame oil (botanical name: Sesamum indicum): Records of sesame seed production date back to the 1600s, making it the oldest crop grown for the use of its oil. It’s used all over the world—from Asia to Latin America—for darkening hair, for improving hair growth, as a nerve tonic, and to increase vitality. The oil is exceptionally stable because of the abundance of antioxidants present, with a shelf life of well over two years.
Its documented properties include its acting as a demulcent, diuretic, emmenagogue, emollient, galactagogue, sunblock, tonic, hair restorer, and skin revitalizer. In 2016 an international group of authors published in the American Journal of Translational Research an examination of the relationship of dietary fat intake, in particular sesame oil and the absorption and distribution of CBD isolates. The authors demonstrated a threefold increased absorption into the bloodstream. They were surprised, however, when the research showed a massive anti-inflammatory response, well beyond what would have been expected from such an increase.
Turmeric oil (botanical name: Curcuma longa): One of the most nutrient-dense spices in the world, turmeric essential oil may be used in a variety of methods to offer advantages toward inflammation, muscle pains, and more. It’s also known to assist in avoiding hair loss, utilized in numerous skin-care formulas for making skin appear younger. Turmeric essential oil is antiallergic, antibacterial, antimicrobial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antiviral, as well as antiworm.
Forms of CBD and Indications
Smokables (vape pens): If you’re drawn to CBD for its ability to work quickly, smoking oil or flower maybe your best option. It’s the fastest way, as the smoke/vapor is absorbed into the bloodstream via the lungs almost instantly. It lasts only about two hours in the body.
Oil tinctures: Oil tinctures are the second-fastest method of application. Often consumed sublingually (under the tongue) and held there for approximately 30 seconds to absorb into the bloodstream. Effects can be felt for four hours or more.
Topical: Often made into a pain salve or balm, CBD oil can also work topically. Applied directly onto the affected body, it may provide relief for around three hours.
Capsules and edibles: Consuming CBD as an ingestible is the slowest-acting method of administration. Capsules and edibles are pre-portioned and marked with their exact dosages so they’re easy to monitor and consume. Edibles can last four hours or more.
