Nano-Emulsion vs Liposomal CBD: Which Is Best?
CBD oil and CBD gummies are the two most commonly used forms of CBD. People prefer both forms due to their affordability and comfort. However, there are some problems associated with oral CBD use. Studies suggest that oral CBD has an extremely low bioavailability.
Low bioavailability means very little is reaching your bloodstream or circulation after oral ingestion. That is why people are not getting promised health effects or need to ingest CBD in higher dosages.
Studies suggest that the bioavailability of orally ingested regular CBD products varies between 13-19%. This means that barely one-fifth of CBD reaches your bloodstream, and the rest is just lost. Although, of course, these statistics must be interpreted cautiously, the bioavailability of CBD can be increased, and it depends much on the carrier oil. For example, using olive oil or MCTs may boost the bioavailability of CBD oils.
There are various ways of boosting bioavailability. For example, one way could be changing the intake route. Vaping may increase stability, but it shortens CBD’s half-life and increases the risk of lung disorders.
Another way is to find novel solutions that are safe and could yet considerably improve CBD’s bioavailability. Thus, some of the ways are producing water soluble CBD. For example, one may create nano-emulsion or liposomal CBD.
These technologies have been around for quite a while, and their pros and cons are well known. However, it appears that creating nano-emulsion is better, as it results in higher solubility, bioavailability, and more stable products—a way preferred by Essentia Pura.
Different Ways to Produce Water-Soluble CBD:
Cannabidiol (CBD) is naturally lipid soluble, which is the prime reason for its poor bioavailability. However, there are many ways of improving its bioavailability. For example, using MCTs as carrier oils may help boost their bioavailability.
Another way could be making it water-soluble. Yes, it is possible to make fats water-soluble. Milk is an excellent example of a naturally occurring emulsion, a water-based produced with suspended fat particles.
The human body absorbs water more readily, as it needs one and a half to two litres of water a day. Therefore, more than 60% of the human body is water.
There are many ways of making CBD water-soluble, like using liposome technology or creating nano-emulsified liquid CBD concentrate.
Both liposomal technology and nano-emulsions have been well-studied by science, as pharmaceutical manufacturers have extensively tested these methods.
Studies suggest that liposomal is quite a good technology for some specific medications, though it may not be a good choice for CBD.
In both these technologies, manufacturers encapsulate lipid soluble CBD in a water-soluble structure, thus creating an amphipathic structure. It means that both of these technologies create structures with a water-soluble outer layer.
Nano-emulsions have better bioavailability in many cases due to smaller particle sizes and are simpler to produce. Hence, using this technology is a better choice for CBD. On the other hand, liposomal technology is more complex and is better suited for specific drugs.
In nano-emulsion, the liquid lipid core is covered by a surfactant monolayer, making it readily absorbable by the body and yet stable. It is the way in which nature tries to boost the bioavailability of some fat-soluble vitamins and other vital nutrients. Thus, milk is an excellent example of nano-emulsion.
Liposomal technology is a relatively more complex and new way of encapsulating complex pharmaceutical drugs. Nevertheless, it is a good choice when creating nano-emulsion is not an option. This is because it binds drug molecules in a lipid bilayer.
Key Similarities in Nano-Emulsion and Liposomes:
- Both are water-soluble or amphipathic carriers resulting in improved bioavailability
- Both are non-toxic and biodegradable, as they do not use any toxic chemicals in the production process
- Both technologies are widely used for drug delivery
- Considerably improved absorption
- Prolonged CBD’s half-life
Some of the Downsides of Liposomal Technology are:
Liposomes are more complex to produce; thus, products using such technology are more expensive and have other downsides.
- Larger particles that are >150nm (nano-emulsion particles are generally a few times smaller), and hence relatively poor bioavailability
- Lesser solubility due to dual lipid layer
- Shorter half-life
- Liposomes are quite complex and tend to be unstable, and thus may undergo oxidation or hydrolysis-like reactions
- Leakage of encapsulated molecules, and thus reduced efficacy
- High production costs
Essentia Pura Nano-Emulsified Liquid CBD
Before we further discuss why to consider non-emulsion CBD, it is worth understanding that it is not to replace CBD oil but rather to compliment it. CBD oil is still one of the most popular CBD products due to its ease of production, low cost, and high consumer trust level. However, nano-emulsion may help better when someone needs faster-acting products and when higher CBD blood concentration is needed.
There are some good studies comparing CBD oil with nano-emulsions. Those studies show that 50 mg or nano-emulsion may be comparable to 100 mg of CBD oil. However, nano-emulsion would still have some benefits over the regular CBD oil, like almost three times faster absorption and almost 65% bioavailability.
It means that if someone uses these products at equal dosages, then the difference would be even greater, and nano-emulsion would not only act faster, achieve health benefits faster, but would have almost thrice greater benefit.
Here are the Reasons Why We Chose Nano-Emulsion:
- Water-soluble and small particle size.
- We use special technology to ensure that droplet size remains small and thus ensures high and consistent bioavailability – since droplet size matters, and not all nano-emulsions are produced equally.
- Faster absorption.
- Higher bioavailability when compared to regular CBD oil and even liposomes.
- More stable molecules mean products continue to have high efficacy during their shelf-life.
- Bile juices are less likely to influence CBD absorption.
- Lower first-pass metabolism, as it is vital to know that CBD is metabolized in the liver.
As we have already mentioned, nano-emulsion is not about replacing CBD oil or gummies; it is about complimenting your existing product range with higher efficacy CBD products.
We believe it is a good idea to have a range of CBD products using regular lipid soluble CBD isolate or broad-spectrum distillate.
However, at the same time, it is a good idea to consider water-soluble CBD. It may be especially good for producing certain kinds of products like CBD-infused drinks, making high-potency CBD products, or producing products with more predictable pharmacokinetics that absorb faster, work quickly, and have greater health benefits. For such products, one can use water-soluble nano-emulsified liquid CBD concentrate.
