The Difference Between CBD Oil And Rick Simpson Oil

Miguel Antonio Ordoñez

Freelance Cannabis Journalist

Miguel Antonio Ordoñez

Last updated: August 7th, 2024

Ever since, a large number of people suffering from various diseases have been experimenting with the Rick Simpson oil, and indeed many have anecdotally reported staggering results of remission. However, due to the illegal status of the oil, research on humans is very difficult to conduct, as governments are reluctant to hand out the necessary licenses and permits.

In addition to the Rick Simpson oil, the cannabinoid CBD has also received special attention. The cannabinoid shows a wide range of beneficial qualities, all while being absolutely non-psychoactive.

How Does CBD Oil Relate To RSO (Rick Simpson Oil)?

For good reasons, CBD and Rick Simpson oil are receiving attention. There is no shortage of studies and anecdotal reports that show the beneficial aspects of cannabis. However, there is some confusion surrounding CBD oil, and how it is related to Rick Simpson oil. While they are similar in many aspects, they are still very different products.

Both oils are made from the same plant: cannabis, respectively hemp. From a botanical perspective, cannabis and hemp belong to the same plant genus - cannabis. However, due to geographical factors and through breeding, the plant has developed into different species and strains, which produce a different harvest: Hemp produces few and small flowers with low cannabinoid content, but in exchange hemp produces high amounts of fibre, which are used in many industrial applications. Cannabis, on the other hand, refers to the recreational plant which produces big and potent cannabinoid-laden flowers, but only small amounts of fibre.

Cannabinoids

It is thus becoming apparent how the CBD oil and the Rick Simpson oil are very different products. Since they are coming from different strains (hemp and cannabis), they naturally contain different amounts of cannabinoids. The Rick Simpson oil is a full spectrum plant extract of potent cannabis. It therefore contains very high levels of THC and other cannabinoids; easily in the range of 50-60% THC and 10-15% CBD, depending on the strain that was used. In addition to high levels of THC and CBD, other cannabinoids such as CBN and CBG are also present in concentrated amounts.

Commercial CBD oil, on the other hand, contains high levels of CBD, but only very, very small trace amounts of other cannabinoids such as THC or CBN: 2.5-20% CBD, and only 0-0.03% THC. As research has shown, THC shows promising potential for many conditions, which is why this psychoactive cannabinoid is an important part in any cannabis based approach.

Consuming simply a larger amount of CBD oil is both an expensive and digestive challenge, since it is oil based. But even then it would not match the wide range of cannabinoids that are present in a full spectrum extract such as the Rick Simpson oil.

It has to be made absolutely clear that under no circumstances is the CBD oil any replacement for the Rick Simpson oil. It is a different product that cannot possibly replace the full spectrum Rick Simpson oil.