Oil pressed from hemp seed, containing roughly 55% linoleic acid, 15–20% alpha-linolenic acid and a few percent gamma-linolenic acid. It is not CBD oil and contains essentially no cannabinoids.
The most useful thing to say about hemp seed oil is what it is not: it is not CBD oil, and products are routinely confused or deliberately blurred at the point of sale. As a food oil it is a good source of both essential fatty acid families in a ratio around 3:1 omega-6 to omega-3, and it carries a small amount of gamma-linolenic acid. The human research is sparse — a few small trials in atopic dermatitis and on lipid markers — and none of it establishes a reason to take it in capsule form rather than use it as a salad oil.
Sold as
Cold-pressed culinary oil, Softgel
Standardised to
Fatty-acid profile, typically stated as an omega-6 to omega-3 ratio near 3:1 — a product without this marker may not resemble what was studied.
Also known as
Hemp oil, Cannabis sativa seed oil
Regulation: Hemp seed and hemp seed oil are legal foods in most jurisdictions and contain negligible THC and CBD, but they are frequently marketed in ways that imply cannabinoid content. Products described as "hemp oil" on a supplement shelf may be either the seed oil or a cannabinoid extract, and the two are regulated differently.
What the research used
The amounts, forms and durations published trials of Hemp seed oil actually administered.
These are the amounts published trials administered — not a recommendation, and not a dose to copy. Trial participants were screened, supervised and given a characterised preparation. What is in a retail bottle is frequently not what was studied, and the amount that suits one person is not general advice.
Studied for Atopic dermatitis and skin barrier
30 ml
Not enough
Dietary hemp seed oil daily · 20 weeks
From one small crossover trial reporting reduced skin dryness and itch scores. It is the most-cited human trial of hemp seed oil and it is not enough to establish a dose.
This is general information about food, not medical advice. It cannot diagnose, treat or replace guidance from a clinician who knows your history.
When it was taken
Each window says whether a trial compared it against an alternative, or whether it is convention and pharmacology. Most timing advice is the second kind.
None of the timings below were directly compared in a trial. They reflect how the research happened to dose, or what the pharmacology implies — which is not the same as a timing being better.
🕐Any time
Not enough
No timing comparison exists. It is used as a food oil, and heat degrades it.
Timing was not directly compared. This reflects convention or how the compound behaves in the body, not a trial showing this window works better.
The evidence in depth
Best supported: Not enough
What each association actually rests on, and the papers behind it. A rating describes the state of the research, not how promising the supplement sounds. How we rate evidence.
Small trials have found no consistent effect of hemp seed oil on cholesterol or triglycerides. What exists is short, small and mostly compared against other seed oils rather than placebo.
Not enough evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.
One small crossover trial reported improvements in dryness and itchiness in atopic dermatitis. There is not enough human research behind this to call it a finding rather than a lead.
Not enough evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.
No source is attached to this association yet, so it is rated not enough evidenceby default. It is listed because people commonly ask about it — not because there is evidence for it.
Things to know
Interactions, contraindications and dose limits, most serious first. Concentrated extracts interact with medication in ways the whole plant does not, so this section carries more weight here than it does on a food page.
Worth knowing
Not CBD oil, and labelling is often ambiguous
Hemp seed oil contains no meaningful cannabidiol or THC. Products marketed as "hemp oil" may be either, at very different prices and with very different regulatory status. Anyone buying for cannabinoid content is likely to be buying a salad oil.
Worth knowing
Oxidises quickly
A highly polyunsaturated oil with a short shelf life. It should be refrigerated after opening and not used for frying.
Worth knowing
Trace THC and drug testing
Hemp foods can carry trace THC from hull contamination. Modern processing keeps this very low, but positive workplace urine screens have been reported historically with high intakes of poorly processed product.
In the food catalogue
The whole-food form, where one exists. The evidence for a concentrated extract rarely transfers to the food, or the other way round — these are cross-links, not equivalents.