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. 2021 Jan 6;14(1):35.
doi: 10.3390/ph14010035.

Comparison of Five Oral Cannabidiol Preparations in Adult Humans: Pharmacokinetics, Body Composition, and Heart Rate Variability

Natasha N Bondareva Williams  1 , Taylor Russell Ewell  1 , Kieran Shay Struebin Abbotts  1 , Kole Jerel Harms  1 , Keith A Woelfel  2 , Gregory P Dooley  3 , Tiffany L Weir  4 , Christopher Bell  1
Affiliations

Comparison of Five Oral Cannabidiol Preparations in Adult Humans: Pharmacokinetics, Body Composition, and Heart Rate Variability

Natasha N Bondareva Williams et al. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). .

Abstract

Data supporting the physiological effects of cannabidiol (CBD) ingestion in humans are conflicting. Differences between CBD preparations and bioavailability may contribute to these discrepancies. Further, an influence of body composition on CBD bioavailability is feasible, but currently undocumented. The aims of this study were to: (1) compare the pharmacokinetics of five oral CBD preparations over 4 h; (2) examine the relationship between body composition and CBD pharmacokinetics; and, (3) explore the influence of CBD on heart rate variability. In total, five preparations of CBD, standardized to 30 mg, were orally administered to 15 healthy men and women (21-62 years) in a randomized, crossover design. Prior to and 60 min following CBD ingestion, heart rate variability was determined. Body composition was assessed using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. Peak circulating CBD concentration, time to peak concentration, and area under the curve was superior in a preparation comprising 5% CBD concentration liquid. Fat free mass was a significant predictor (R 2 = 0.365, p = 0.017) of time to peak concentration for this preparation. Several heart rate variability parameters, including peak frequency of the high frequency band, were favorably, but modestly modified following CBD ingestion. These data confirm an influence of CBD preparation and body composition on CBD bioavailability, and suggest that acute CBD ingestion may have a modest influence on autonomic regulation of heart rate.

Keywords: autonomic; bioavailability; fat free mass.

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Conflict of interest statement

K.A.W. is an employee of Caliper Foods. Caliper Foods approved the design of the study but had no role in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data, in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) flow diagram.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Circulating cannabidiol (CBD) concentration following ingestion of five different preparations. Dose was standardized to 30 mg. Limit of quantitation was 0.25 ng/mL and is represented by the red dashed line. Data are mean and standard error.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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