- How CBD Works In The Body
- For Chronic Pain Relief
- For Athletic Recovery
- Use the Certificate of Analysis
- Will CBD Show Up On A Drug Test?
Unless you have been living under a rock, you have almost certainly noticed it: CBD is everywhere these days. Survey data indicates that 1 in 7 Americans have tried CBD, and some industry estimates expect CBD sales to grow an average of 107% every year for the next three years. One of the biggest uses is CBD for chronic pain relief.
CBD’s popularity comes from countless personal stories, as well as some scientific evidence, that has shown the compound as being capable of helping people address numerous physical and emotional problems.
These potential benefits have the ability to help a variety of people in numerous different ways. For instance, many athletes have turned to CBD to recover from workouts, practices and games. CBD improves their performance by helping them get back into peak physical condition.
CBD Knowledge Nuggets – click here for more
Your serving size may be different than your friend’s, even if you have the same issue to treat. The main rule is to start low and increase. Just because your pain is intense, doesn’t mean you need a lot of CBD to handle it. Your body may react differently than others.
It depends on your type of pain. For chronic pain, a daily tincture may be beneficial. For localized pain, a roll-on or balm may be the best way to use CBD.
There are hundreds of companies selling CBD, both good and bad. A popular company may not have the right product for you. Sometimes it may come down to just which one feels right to you. You can see our list of partners that we have determined are good ones to purchase products from.
How CBD Works In The Body for Chronic Pain Relief
In order to understand how CBD may be used for chronic pain relief, it is important to understand how CBD works in the body.
CBD works by impacting the functioning of your body’s Endocannabinoid System. Everyone has an Endocannabinoid System, which consists of roughly three different components:
- Cannabinoid receptors. Researchers have identified at least two different types of receptors: CB1 and CB2. It is possible that there are more. These receptors are found throughout the body, including in skin, muscles, and organs.
- Cannabinoids; and
- Enzymes which break down the cannabinoids once their reaction has been completed.
Normally, your body will produce cannabinoids. Like a lock and key, these cannabinoids will bond with receptors, impacting a variety of physical and emotional sensations in your body, including impacting your levels of stress, wakefulness, appetite, and more.
CBD does not bind directly with CB1 or CB2. Instead, it alters the bond itself, causing it to occur for longer periods of time and strengthening the bond. This, in turn, affects all of the sensations noted above.
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CBD For Chronic Pain Relief
Many studies are still ongoing about what impact CBD has on your body. Because of the legality that has surrounded hemp and cannabis, testing and research is slow. Very few firm scientific conclusions can be drawn from the research that has already been done. However, studies have found that CBD has the potential to reduce inflammation. This, in turn, may be able to reduce your pain levels.
Based on a review of the available literature, CBD may be successful as an anti-inflammatory. Other studies have found that CBD may reduce signs of swelling and increase joint mobility in rats and humans. At the same time, limited studies have found that CBD can help reduce the suffering of people who are actively enduring many chronic conditions, including arthritis, cancer symptoms, and multiple sclerosis.
CBD Knowledge Nuggets – click here for more
CBD can make sex better by reducing anxiety and lowering inhibitions. See CBD and Sex
CBD can stay in your system from 48 hours up to one week – or longer.
CBD may reduce your anxiety and relax your body making it easier to fall asleep.
CBD and Athletic Recovery
As the above has indicated, CBD may have the potential to reduce muscle soreness and inflammation for all, including athletes. Indeed, many CBD marketing efforts have been targeted to athletes for these reasons, and there are numerous athletes that have endorsed their own CBD line.
CBD can be used for athletic recovery in many forms, including as a pill, edible, vape, flower or topical. In the case of athletes, a topical is likely to work best. This is because you can apply it directly to areas of muscle soreness for highly targeted relief. Selecting a good amount to use can be a challenge for a topical, but your best bet is to start small. It appears that CBD is well tolerated, even in large amounts, so feel free to use a topical on affected parts several times a day. If using an edible, it may take some time for you to feel the effects – potentially as long as a couple of hours after ingestion – but the effects may last longer.
Use a Certificate of Analysis to get a Quality Product
There are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to using CBD. First and foremost: Make sure that the CBD you use comes with a Certificate of Analysis. Unfortunately, as demonstrated by other studies, too many CBD vendors sell products that are not adequately labeled. As a result, people are consuming products that contain ingredients that are not appropriately disclosed.
This is why a Certificate of Analysis is so important. It is a test, performed by a third-party vendor, which independently verifies what ingredients are in the CBD product. This ensures that you are consuming products that are of high quality and accurately labeled.
Second, make sure you consult with your healthcare professional before using CBD. CBD side effects are usually mild and tolerable, but there are concerns over some drug interactions. Your doctor will know what drugs you are on and if there is a potential for negative interactions.
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Will CBD Show Up On A Drug Test?
By definition hemp, from which CBD is extracted, has less than 0.3% THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, which is the specific type of cannabinoid found in marijuana that results in intoxication. So CBD will not make you high but it might show up on a drug test. Many people advise professional and college athletes to use an isolate compound – which has no THC. However many drug tests cannot differentiate between the different cannabinoids so you might get a positive test even with isolate types of CBD. If you are worried about a drug test, don’t use CBD at all or at least find out what type of cannabinoids certain tests will look for.
To be sure, more research needs to be done on CBD, and at the moment, no definitive medical claims are possible when it comes to CBD use and relief. However, initial studies are positive, and the future appears to be bright for this area.
