You’ve heard the hype about CBD oil. It cleared your friend’s acne, reduces your boss’s stress (thankfully!), and helps your favorite star athlete deal with pain from injuries. Sounds like CBD oil is the cure-all for just about everything, right? How is that possible? What the heck is this stuff, how does it really help?
Let’s explore.
What is CBD Oil?
CBD oil, short for cannabidiol, is a one of over 100 phytocannabinoids found in the cannabis plant. Another popular phytocannabinoid is THC, infamous for its psychedelic effects and “high” feeling.
Unlike THC, CBD does not get you high. Brands like Hempura source their CBD Instead, CBD oil delivers most of the benefits of the cannabis plant without disrupting your daily activities. So you can go to work, your SO’s family dinner, and drive home safely after consuming CBD oil.
How Does CBD Oil Work?
Although CBD oil has been around for quite some time (it is even mentioned in a Hindu text dated back to 1500 BC), there is still a lot to discover about CBD oil and how it works.
We do know that inside of us is the “endocannabinoid system”. “Endo” stems from endogenous, and “cannabinoid” relates to – you guessed it – cannabis. Basically, this endocannabinoid system means that cannabis-like substances already exist in our bodies. Consuming CBD encourages those natural receptors to light up.
One task of the endocannabinoid system is to maintain homeostasis, aka balance, in our bodies. For example, when you are overheated or freezing cold, the endocannabinoid system launches into action to bring your body temperature back to normal.
Overall, CBD assists the endocannabinoid system to maintain or recover your body to the comfortable state of homeostasis. Knowing that, all of the claimed benefits of CBD oil makes sense!
Benefits of CBD Oil
Whether you consume CBD oil or apply it topically, there are numerous proven therapeutic benefits of using CBD oil.
Here are a few common benefits of CBD:
- Reduces pain
- According to various sources, there is overwhelming evidence of CBD oil mitigating pain. However, there are not yet full-clinical trials portraying exactly how this works. That said, most people why try CBD claim it’s very beneficial for pain relief.
- Calms anxiety
- Multiple studies prove that CBD oil not only helps consumers suffering from PTSD and social anxiety feel better quite quickly, but also show the brain copes with stress differently. Taking CBD for anxiety is one of the most common reasons people buy CBD.
- Less stress means better sleep
- According to the Sleep Doctor, CBD increases daytime alertness and strengthens the sleep-wake cycle. Many CBD brands actually create products around helping you sleep with CBD. You can learn more about CBD oil for sleep here.
- Decreases inflammation
- Athletes love CBD oil because it helps reduce soreness and recovery time. Popular ways of consuming CBD for inflammation is by rubbing topicals on enflamed joints and muscles.
- Clears acne
- Our hair follicles and sebaceous glands contain cannabinoid receptors. Applying CBD oil topically helps reduce inflammation caused by clogged hair follicles.
People all over the world feel less-stressed and inflamed since tampering with CBD oil. Knowing how CBD oil works with our bodies, it is no wonder we can bask in all of these benefits!
I am a UK tech blogger and have been in the industry for over 10 years now, running Mighty Gadget and its sister sites and contributing to other sites around the web. I am passionate about all tech, including mobile, wearables, and home automation. I am also a fitness fanatic, so I cover as much fitness tech as possible.