Cannabidiol, better known as CBD, is fast becoming one of the most popular wellness products today.
Wherever you look, products infused with CBD abound. Aside from CBD oil products online, there are also CBD gummies, CBD lotions, and even edibles such as chocolates, lollipops, and jelly beans!
Then again, CBD, a chemical compound found in cannabis plants like marijuana and hemp, has been around for thousands of years and was used to treat a variety of ailments.
CBD, as we know it today, is mostly extracted from hemp, and is still regarded as a valuable therapeutic source. Here are six uses of CBD oil that you should know.
1. Pain relief and management
According to a recentstudy, most people who use CBD to treat a medical condition use the cannabinoid to relieve and manage chronic pain, arthritis, and joint pain. CBD is believed to interact with the receptors of our endocannabinoid system, which acts as the body’s regulator of functions, including pain response.
2. Treatment for rare forms of epilepsy
Epidiolex, a drug that contains a highly purified form of cannabidiol, has the rare distinction of being the first and only CBD drug approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for prescription use.
Manufactured by Greenwich Biosciences, Inc., Epidiolex is designed to treat seizures caused by Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome. These syndromes are two rare forms of epilepsy whose seizures have shown resistance to pharmacological treatment.
3. Anxiety treatment
There have been studies that show promising results of using CBD as a treatment for anxiety disorders, the most common mental illness in the United States, affecting 40 million American adults every year.
One such study, for example, has revealed that giving CBD to patients suffering from social anxiety disorder has helpedreduce their overall anxiety levels.
There is alsoresearch saying CBD also has the potential to offer short-term help for social anxiety disorder sufferers, as well as people who experience symptoms of a variety of conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety, and panic disorder.
As with pain, CBD helps with anxiety and depression when it interacts with our body’s endocannabinoid system, whose receptors in the brain, nervous system, and other parts control functions that pertain to behavior and mood, among other things.
4. Sleeping aid
Insomnia can be caused by many things, including mental health disorders such as anxiety among them. Given the established potential of CBD as a treatment for anxiety, it follows that cannabidiol’s ability to help reduce anxiety levels can also help calm a person’s mind come bedtime, and allow them to get that much-needed sleep.
Regular users claim that CBD products have helped regulate their sleep cycle, which makes sense considering CBD’s established ability to calm symptoms of anxiety, including the racing thoughts that often prevent people from getting a good night’s sleep or staying asleep.
5. Acne treatment
A study published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation reveals thatCBD has the ability to inhibit oil production in the skin. Researchers also found that CBD showed anti-inflammatory effects on oil-producing glands, which led them to the conclusion that CBD is a promising treatment for acne.
6. Pet care
CBD products come in various forms, but so far, the fastest-growing segment of the CBD market is the one devoted to pets.
According to analysts, the CBD pet care marketwill hit $125 million by 2022. That means sales of CBD-infused chewable treats and capsules for anxiety as well as salves and creams to soothe the body aches and joint pains our pets suffer will steadily rise over the next couple of years.
For now, scientific research on the effectiveness of CBD, especially in the long term, is still limited. However, with the potential that early studies have uncovered so far about CBD, no one can blame you if you want to try cannabidiol products, too. However, it’s best to talk to your physician—or in your pet’s case, his or her veterinarian—about it before giving it a go.
By COOP City Pharmacy
July 28, 2022
