Leafreport Reveals 60% Of CBD Sleep Products Are Mislabeled, Here's What You're Really Buying

The CBD dedicated portal, Leafreport released the results of a new study revealing that 60% of tested CBD sleep products contained the wrong amounts of CBD, CBN and/or melatonin than advertised on the label.

As this is not the first time that research has revealed the mislabeling of CBD products, Benzinga spoke with Leafreport's product manager Gal Shapira about what can be done about this problematic situation. 

“The solution to the ongoing problem of mislabeled CBD products is more government regulation in the CBD and hemp space,” Shapira told Benzinga. “High standards like GMP for nutraceuticals in Europe help ensure consumers are receiving the safest possible product. In the meantime, consumers need to learn to look for and understand certificates of analysis from third-party testing labs."

Research Highlights 

To conduct its own research, Leaferport bought a variety of 53 CBD sleep products, including gummies, tinctures and capsules and had them tested by Infinite Chemical Analysis Labs, an accredited third-party testing laboratory. Professionals at the lab measured CBD, CBN and melatonin content levels in each product and sent back Certificates of Analysis (CoA) for each product.

The results showed that 60% of the tested products containing active ingredients like CBD, CBN and melatonin were not consistent with the strengths advertised on the labels. Indeed they were off by over 10% as compared to the amounts of the active ingredients reported on the CoAs.

Key Takeaways 

• Two out of three products tested that contained melatonin had inaccurate levels;
• One product had no melatonin at all, while two others had 3-5 times the labeled amount;
• Products containing two of the tested ingredients were less accurate than those containing one or all three, with only 29% matching the label;
• Over half of the products containing CBD had inaccurate CBD levels; Almost half of the products containing CBN had inaccurate CBN levels;
• Capsules performed the best out of any product category, with 50% matching the label, followed by 40% of gummies, and 30% of tinctures;
• Out of 9 products containing all three tested ingredients, 5 (55.6%) matched the label but only one did so for every ingredient;
• Out of 32 products advertised to contain broad or full-spectrum CBD, 25% were mislabeled.

• Shocking Results

  "Frankly, the results of this research are shocking and continue to illustrate the need for a more transparent CBD industry," Shapira said. "Consumers need to know when they buy CBD products there are certain quality standards being met. Leafreport exists to help these same consumers make better-informed decisions about what they put into their bodies, and we see this report as a critical service to help consumers ensure they buy products that actually work."

  Photo: Courtesy of Christin Hume on Unsplash