CBD Buyer's Guide

There are hundreds of companies selling CBD. Because there aren’t any thorough regulations in place yet, it’s good to educate yourself on the basics of CBD before you choose what brand and/or product to try out. 

Whether or not you decide to try Mt. Toppin CBD, below some key pieces of information brands should share and questions you should ask brands you want to work with:

1. Packaging should clearly lists all ingredients.

If a brand doesn’t list ingredients on the packaging or product description, you should consider passing altogether. 

2. Simple ingredients

No artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives are needed for CBD to work, so they should not be added to any CBD products. For example, Mt. Toppin Recovery balm has three ingredients - Coconut oil, beeswax, and CBD.

  

3. Packaging clearly states potency.

Packaging should clearly state the amount of CBD in each container and in each serving/capsule. It is important to know how much CBD you are taking daily so you can track how much you're taking and how it affects your performance and sleep.

4. Hemp grown in the US and certified organic.

It is best to consume US-grown hemp products. Now that hemp has had two growing seasons in the US, farms that care about organic farming practices have had time to become certified organic by the USDA. This is the gold standard in ensuring that no heavy metals or pesticides are in your CBD. Hemp naturally extracts toxins from the soil which can turn up in CBD. If hemp is grown organically, it should have low to non-existent levels of toxins.

5. Shares 3rd party test results.

Either on the brand website or on the product packaging, there should be a link or QR code to the test results showing the amount of CBD, THC and possibly other cannabinoids in the product. Here's a link to Mt. Toppin's. This will likely be a legal requirement in the future so brands that make the extra effort to share 3rd party test results today go above and beyond what is required of them to make CBD contents transparent.

6. Unbacked claims.

CBD is a tool in the runner’s tool belt, not a magic bullet that cures all your injuries, so you may want to pass on brands that make such claims. While there is scientific literature on how CBD positively affects the human mind and body, there is still much to learn about exactly how all the cannabinoids in CBD work. Most of the benefits we hear about today are anecdotal. This doesn't take away from the efficacy of CBD, but we should be skeptical of brands that claim, with certainty, that CBD can cure or solve anything.