Tasting/Testing Journal, Ep. 3 “Choice CBD Gummies”

Recently, I noticed this bottle of “Choice CBD Gummies” on my father’s kitchen counter. He takes one per day, but doesn’t remember why. The bottle suggests: “Eat one to two gummies per day, or as needed.” Each gummy is supposed to contain 10 mg CBD.

People take CBD for many reasons, and it’s hard to distinguish applications supported by research from misleading claims. Because CBD doesn’t make people feel high, it’s easy to consider it harmless and without side-effects. This is risky, because CBD impacts many health conditions and interferes with some prescription medications.

I can’t figure out whence Choice CBD Gummies come. The label omits the manufacturer, and my searches found only fake reviews, claiming benefits such as relief from insomnia, depression, lethargy, and pain. On YouTube, a gentleman explained that seniors have been scammed into ordering these: https://lnkd.in/e8ASFXAQ

The cherry flavor of these chewy gummies was everything their red color suggested. I didn’t note any physiological result from consuming two.

To my children, these were, “Opa’s gummies” since their grandfather had them. Analyzing these gummies was a great opportunity to share the Orange Photonics, Inc. Lighlab3 with my kids. We wanted to know if these contain any THC at all, and how accurately these were dosed with CBD.

We had to get all the cannabinoid compounds out from the goo and into a solvent, so we cut off fine pieces and weighed them into a plastic tube. They were so sticky, it took a while to load the right mass into the tube. We added the solvent and heated, then shook, to dissolve everything possible. We could tell we were finished when the liquid was pink and the chunks were white.

Kids love knobs and touchscreens, so I had to let them help. My boy recorded the numbers, which gave us a great opportunity for that father/son chat about data integrity that I had been putting off.

In two samples, we found 7.0 and 7.5 mg, for an average of ~7.2 mg of CBD per gummy, and absolutely no THC. Since these are supposed to contain 10 mg CBD, they’re low by about 28%. It’s not uncommon to find larger deviations from the advertised doses of CBD products, and unwanted cannabinoids.

Most older folks take several prescription drugs, so I worry about the health risks of scamming them into taking CBD. If you know how these gummies are being promoted and sold to seniors, I would love to hear about it.

***edit***
Rob O’Brien points out that my conclusion is tentative, since I haven’t validated my use of this method. The white wisps that couldn’t dissolve might have held some CBD that wasn’t completely extracted. This is a subject for further discussion.

TastingTesting Cannabis Science HonestData

TL;DR

👴🍒 “Opa’s Gummies” – Tasting/Testing Ep. 3
Why does Dad take these CBD gummies every day? He’s not sure — and neither are we. But with help from the grandkids and the #LightLab3, we dug into the data (and the sticky mess) to find out what’s really inside.

🔍 Turns out they’re 28% under the label dose… and being sold to seniors with suspiciously vague promises.

This episode is part science experiment, part family moment, and a full-on reminder of why honest data matters.

💡 Check out the full results, lab photos, and testing process at ICS — and help us protect consumers of all ages.
#TastingTesting #CannabisScience #HonestData #CBDTruths #ConsumerSafety