Is Vegan CBD Skin Care Really Better?

Vegan products and CBD oil are two of the nation’s favorite skin care trends. One of them is supposed to be great for the environment, the other is supposed to be great for your sanity (and your complexion, and your nails, and your hair). Now, they’re being combined into one ultra-premium package — but is vegan CBD skin care worth the hype?

A growing number of vegans have been seeking out animal-friendly skin care products for years, and while CBD skin care is a relatively new phenomenon, it’s already attracted a loyal following of its own (even men are joining the fun). While both movements have their devotees, they also have their skeptics: some believe vegan products are mostly about marketing, while others have the same suspicions about CBD. Put the two together, and there’s ample reason to be skeptical.

However, it’s simply too lucrative of an opportunity for brands to pass up: the vegan cosmetics market is worth over $2 billion a year, while CBD represents such a gold rush that it was a hot topic at Davos. And in fairness, if you looked at a Venn diagram of vegans and the CBD-curious, you’d likely find a lot of overlap: especially among the much-coveted millennial demographic.

According to a recent Nielsen report on buying habits, 73 percent of them are willing to pay more for sustainable offerings. As one Nielsen exec said, having a reputation for “social responsibility and environmental stewardship” is essential for brands trying to make inroads with young shoppers, and few things are more millennial-friendly than cruelty-free products that also promise to take the edge off your anxiety.

But while vegan CBD skin care may be undeniably pleasing to your principles, what unique benefits does it have to offer your skin? Here, it’s simply too soon to tell — we haven’t seen enough clinical trials to determine if there are any substantial differences between vegan and non-vegan CBD products. Even studies of CBD skin care in general are still few and far between. Having said that, research does indicate that CBD does a lot for your skin without causing any major side effects, and products made without suffering are preferable to the alternative, so you can make a reasonable argument that vegan CBD skin care products should be your first choice whenever possible.

Whether you’re looking for a vegan CBD anti-aging serum, a daily facial cleanser, or anything else for that matter, here’s what you need to know to make sure you’re paying for more than clever packaging.

Tips for Choosing Vegan CBD Skin Care Products

Just because a product claims to be vegan and contain CBD doesn’t guarantee that it will be effective for you. These tips will help to weed out the duds and find one that stands a better chance of giving you the flawless complexion you want.

Make Sure It Really Is Vegan

Some certifications are little more than a gold sticker on the side of a jar.  But when you see the distinctive “Certified Vegan” logo, you can be sure your product is legit. The certification comes from the Vegan Awareness Foundation (more commonly known as Vegan Action) and it’s the gold standard for vegan products.

While some certifications merely ensure that a product isn’t tested on animals (which is illegal in many places anyway), “Certified Vegan” products are held to more rigorous criteria. Not only are they not tested on animals, they’re free of meat, dairy, honey, fish, poultry, eggs, or sugar that’s been filtered with bone char. They also don’t contain leather, fur, silk, or other such animal-produced materials.

Get Full Spectrum CBD

The media tells a lot of stories about cannabidiol, but they’ve largely missed one of the most important ones, and that’s why full spectrum extracts are the most effective type of CBD oil. While we’re normally conditioned to think of “pure” products as better or healthier, that’s not always the case.

CBD is one of many cannabinoids, which are one of many types of naturally-occurring chemical found in the cannabis plant. These chemicals work together in what’s known as “the entourage effect” to heighten and enhance the therapeutic benefits of each other. Full spectrum oils contain not just CBD (whose anti-inflammatory properties make it great for getting rid of pimples) but also other cannabinoids like CBC and CBG (which can prevent fungal skin conditions), plus a wide range of other terpenes, flavonoids, and other compounds.