Certain CBD gummies, like full spectrum CBD gummies, can have trace levels of THC that fall under the legal limit. While this limit isn’t necessarily enough to incite THC’s iconic “high,” it is enough to potentially trigger the Entourage Effect: a phenomenon that boosts the effects of cannabinoids on the body.** Other types of CBD gummies, like broad spectrum CBD gummies, contain undetectable levels of THC, delivering CBD-forward, wellness-boosting benefits.** Choosing between the two can be a little confusing, especially for those new to the world of CBD.
In this article, we’ll unpack the nuanced question of “Do CBD gummies have THC in them,” help you decipher which ones contain active levels of THC, and steer you away (or toward) gummies with legal levels of THC. If it all seems a little overwhelming and unclear, we get it. The market for hemp-based CBD gummies is rather new. So, information on the World Wide Web can be a little foggy. Here, we’ll give you all the know-how and how-to to help you wade the waters and find the best CBD gummies for you—all backed by natural fruit flavors and high-quality ingredients, of course.
What Is CBD?
Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of over a hundred cannabinoids native to cannabis plants. Like other cannabinoids, CBD offers unique effects that soothe your mind and calm your body, gifting you a range of wonderful wellness-based benefits. These compounds achieve these effects by interacting with your body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS).**
Similar to the market for CBD products, research into the endocannabinoid is still rather new, blossoming at a fantastic rate year over year. The endocannabinoid system exists as a unique cell-signaling system, made up of receptors that stretch across your entire body. These receptors help regulate essential functions, like sleep, mood, memory, appetite, energy, and more. When this system is out of sorts, chances are these functions are, too; and when your ECS is out of sync, you can probably tell.
Cannabinoids, like CBD, mimic natural compounds in your body called endocannabinoids. These exogenous molecules interact with your ECS receptors and help bolster them, leading to a boost in the system’s performance.** This is thought to be how CBD offers its patented wellness benefits.** No other compounds engage these receptors in this way. So, no other compound can achieve benefits quite like these.**
CBD vs. THC
Now, in cannabis plants, CBD isn’t alone. It’s complemented by a sea of additional cannabinoids, each one offering its own unique benefits for mind and body wellness. While other cannabinoids, like CBG and CBN, have quietly made a name for themselves for their distinct effects, the only cannabinoid to rival CBD’s popularity (and potency) is THC. In all cannabis plants, CBD and THC are the most abundant cannabinoids.
Known scientifically as tetrahydrocannabinol, THC is the cannabinoid most responsible for cannabis’ iconic (if not notorious) “high.” THC is the molecule responsible for the plant’s euphoric feels and psychoactive cerebral effects. But it doesn’t exist in the same amounts in all types of cannabis plants.
Hemp vs. Marijuana
The two most popular cannabis plants are hemp and marijuana. You’ve no doubt heard of the first and probably shudder at the second; marijuana comes with quite a reputation. Even though these two plants look awfully similar, with their perforated leaves and pungent aromas, these two plants have polar opposite chemical structures.
Hemp is a CBD-packed cannabis plant. While other cannabinoids bounce around in the hemp plant, CBD is the most abundant. On the other hand, hemp also features active levels of THC, just at a much, much lower concentration than marijuana. Hemp’s THC concentration naturally rests just below 0.3% by dry weight. Marijuana, conversely, can have THC levels that reach 30% in some strains. This is a massive divide, and it’s the main dividing line between these plants’ legality.
Thanks to the 2018 Farm Bill, low-THC hemp plants are federally legal to grow, harvest, and manufacture into goods, while marijuana still sits on the list of federally illicit substances, legal only in a handful of states.
Our products are all derived from low-THC hemp. Many go through additional filtration processes to reduce these trace levels to undetectable amounts, letting you experience the full benefits of CBD without even a whisper of THC’s euphoria. And other products, like our suite of full spectrum CBD + delta-9 THC goodies, let you experience these euphoric whispers up close.
What Are CBD Gummies?
In the world of hemp-based CBD products, CBD gummies reign supreme. These fruit-flavored, nature-backed chews often come with additional ingredients to complement the calming, soothing effects of CBD. Each gummy contains a precise, premeasured dose of CBD, letting you pinpoint just how much CBD you’d like to experience.
If you’d like a CBD-exclusive experience, our Original Mixed Berry CBD Gummies offer a CBD-forward experience, backed by either 25mg or 50mg of broad spectrum CBD per serving.
On the other hand, if you want to add additional wellness ingredients into the mix, check out blends like our CBD Gummies With Mushroom for Wellness. These natural, black-cherry-flavored gummies are packed with seven adaptogenic and nootropic mushrooms to bolster CBD’s unique wellness benefits.** Mushrooms like turkey tail, lion’s man, reishi, and more all work in unison to fortify your mind and body with antioxidant-rich effects.
What About THC Gummies?
And that brings us to THC gummies, the counterpart to the ever-popular CBD gummies. THC gummies often carry a full spectrum, hemp-based CBD extract that features the plant’s full range of cannabinoids—including active levels of THC. In many of our THC gummy blends, we add additional delta-9 THC (the main form of THC) into the mix, letting you enjoy a stronger “chill” that still rests just below the federally legal limit.
If you’d like to feel the hype for yourself, check out Berry Buzz THC Gummies, available in either 10mg or 5mg of THC per piece. These gummies offer a deliciously natural berry flavor that’s gradually offset by a blissful, fun-filled chill.
Do CBD Gummies Have THC in Them?
Now, for a definitive answer to this question. The short answer to this question is: it depends. The long answer is:
Some CBD gummies do have trace levels of THC that fall just under the federally legal limit. Typically, these gummies feature full spectrum CBD extract and often come with additional hemp-derived delta-9 THC. If you want legal levels of hemp-based THC in your CBD gummies, be sure to look for keywords like “full spectrum CBD” and “delta-9 THC” on the product’s packaging.
If you don’t want traces of THC in your CBD gummies, be sure to look for keywords like “THC-free” and “broad spectrum CBD.” Now, what is the difference between full spectrum and broad spectrum CBD? Well, that leads us to the caveat of CBD spectrums—the main decider of THC levels in your CBD gummies.
Types of CBD Extract
Once we’ve nurtured our hemp plants into ripe, fragrant, towering stalks, they’re ready for extraction. From here, we can take the harvest hemp plants one of three ways, making one of three extracts. This step will decide the THC concentration in the eventual CBD oil.
Full Spectrum CBD
If we were to take the hemp plant and whittle away unnecessary plant material, leaving behind the plant’s cannabinoid, terpene, and flavonoid profiles, we’d yield a batch of honey-used, viscous full spectrum CBD oil. This oil is teeming with the plant’s natural compounds, including 0.3% THC.
Broad Spectrum CBD
Now, if we were to take that same honey-hued full spectrum CBD oil and pass it through an additional filtration step, we can remove all trace levels of THC, bringing its THC concentration down to undetectable levels. This extra step would still retain the extract’s CBD concentration and most of its cannabinoid, terpene, and flavonoid profiles. The only difference is its THC concentration. That’s been brought down to undetectable levels.
CBD Isolate
And finally, we can take that same extract even further and whittle away all non-CBD molecules, producing a white powder that’s 99% CBD. This is CBD isolate, the purest form of CBD. It doesn’t retain any terpenes, flavonoids, or secondary cannabinoids, offering you the purest form of CBD on the market.
The best CBD gummies will contain a terpene blend that captures the essence of the cannabis plant and delivers more wellness benefits than cannabinoids alone, such as our CBD Gummies With Turmeric and Spirulina.**
The Entourage Effect
Now, other than experiencing the unique effects of THC, why else would you want THC in your hemp-based gummies? Why would a brand not just skip the first step and solely produce broad spectrum CBD gummies? Well, that’s because of the Entourage Effect.
When you take a product with multiple cannabinoids, those compounds bombard your ECS receptors all at once, compounding on each other and delivering waves of stronger, wellness-based benefits. Simply put, the more cannabinoids in your CBD product, the higher the likelihood of stronger effects.
Since broad spectrum CBD’s cannabinoid profile is incomplete, its chances of achieving the Entourage Effect are lower than full spectrum CBD. So, while it contains undetectable levels of THC, broad spectrum CBD can’t quite capture the breadth of effects that full spectrum CBD can.
Here’s a helpful chart to break all that down.
| Type of CBD Gummy | THC Content | Entourage Effect | Benefits |
| Full Spectrum CBD Gummies | Up to 0.3% THC | Yes | May experience stronger effects due to the Entourage Effect |
| Broad Spectrum CBD Gummies | Undetectable levels of THC | Lower likelihood | Still contains beneficial cannabinoids and terpenes, but undetectable levels of THC |
| CBD Isolate Gummies | No THC | No | Purest form of CBD, with no other cannabinoids or terpenes present |
Types of CBD Gummies
And, with all that said, now it’s time to put your new-found expertise to use. Let’s help you decide on a gummy blend that fits your lifestyle!
Mixed Berry Full Spectrum CBD Gummies
To enjoy hemp’s complete spectrum of cannabinoids, check out our Mixed Berry Full Spectrum CBD Gummies. These gummies carry a nature-backed berry flavor with additional vegan ingredients that make it one of the highest-quality blends on the market. Take a serving before bed, on your day off, or whenever you’d like to feel hemp’s fully rounded wellness benefits.
Original Mixed Berry CBD Gummies
Or, side-step detectable levels of THC altogether and check out our Original Mixed Berry CBD Gummies. Touting the same nature-backed berry flavor and vegan ingredients, these gummies contain broad spectrum CBD, letting you enjoy the wellness benefits of hemp’s cannabinoid profile (sans THC).
How to See If CBD Gummies Come With THC
To see if your CBD product has THC in it, make sure to read the packaging thoroughly and check the product’s lab reports. These reports detail the chemical composition of a product, showing you what cannabinoids, ingredients, and potential pollutants made their way into the finished batch.
You can find our lab reports by scanning the QR code on the product’s packaging.
CBD Gummies and Drug Tests
An additional concern that arises with CBD gummies and THC is the possibility of a looming drug test. While the science behind CBD gummies has exploded within the last few years, the science behind drug testing has not.
Typically, drug tests are designed to suss out THC in a sample, whether that be in hair, blood, saliva, or urine. These tests don’t decipher if the THC in the sample came from legal hemp-based products. All it can say is whether or not THC is detected in the sample.
So, if you have a drug test looming in the future, it’s best to avoid THC gummies and full spectrum CBD gummies entirely, as they may result in a false-positive result. Also, it may be best to moderate your use of broad spectrum CBD products. Although these gummies have undetectable levels of THC, frequent use can cause a build-up of THC over time, potentially leading to a false-positive.
Parting Thoughts
With all this in mind, hopefully you feel more confident to make a first-time purchase or to break away from your standard go-to wellness supplement—in exchange for some tasty CBD gummies.
So, now you can see why the answer to this question isn’t all that simple, and thanks to a growing market for CBD research, we’ll hopefully be able to dive even deeper into this topic in the near future.
New to CBD gummies? Need help deciding? Check out our entire collection of vegan CBD gummies!
