CBD oil is becoming one of the most popular trends of recent years, with the ongoing legalization of cannabis supercharging efforts to spread CBD products further into the consumer marketplace. Across the country, patients and athletes of all ages are now relying on CBD extracts for a wide variety of purposes, chief amongst them in an effort to fight the anxiety which plagues them.
Do CBD extracts have a meaningful impact on anxiety, and if so, how should they be properly used? Here’s how CBD can help with anxiety, and what you need to know about this cannabinoid.
Millions are suffering from anxiety
The primary reason that so many people have been flocking to CBD extracts in an effort to combat their anxiety lately is that traditional means of fighting this condition have often failed. According to one study, at least 30 percent of all American adults experience an anxiety disorder at some point or another in their lives, with more than 19 percent of all American adults having reported suffering from an anxiety-related condition in the past year. These terrifying statistics serve as a useful example of why CBD extracts are so popular, as they’re proving effective means of defense against age-old conditions which continue to haunt literally millions of people.
How does CBD come into play regarding anxiety? It’s relatively straightforward; like most cannabinoids, CBD is found naturally in the human body, yet consuming it via a commercial product can provide you with a number of medical benefits. People suffering from seizures can consume CBD in an effort to mitigate such events, for instance, and the CDC has illustrated that medicinal marijuana’s wide-ranging impacts are mostly positive and warrant further study.
While long-term research hasn’t yet been conducted on CBD products, there are reasons to believe that they’re already generating results when it comes to combating anxiety. One small study conducted in 2010 noted that people who were suffering from anxiety disorders saw benefits from taking CBD extracts. Furthermore, medicinal and recreational dispensaries around the country have been selling CBD products like hotcakes in recent years, with a trend of consumer products having exploded in an effort to cash in on the ongoing cannabis craze.
CBD isn’t like THC
It’s important to establish that CBD is useful for fighting anxiety partly because it’s unlike THC, the cannabinoid which alters your mental state and makes users feel “high” after consuming it. Marijuana and THC have been historically associated with anxiety, yet CBD extracts are completely different from the recreational use of cannabis and have more positive effects on those suffering with anxiety disorders.
Nevertheless, CBD products are in the midst of a wild-west moment right now, with legal authorities struggling to figure out how they’re going to regulate these extracts. The CDC recently called for additional regulations on CBD oil products, largely because medical professionals want these products to be safer and thus demand increased scrutiny over their production. While homebrew treatments like yoga and meditation have proven capable of helping some people suffering from anxiety, medical treatments will likely always be called upon, so CBD still has a vibrant future ahead of it.
Given that premium CBD products have no psychoactive effects on the brain, those suffering from anxiety don’t have to worry about getting high from using the substance and suffering from adverse impacts. CBD is frequently quite easy to apply, usually coming in the form of an oil tincture or salve which can be directly rubbed onto your skin. In this regard, some people find CBD treatments to be soothing just in the form of the ritual process they offer when applying them.
A critical review of CBD from the World Health Organization also noted that CBD is effective for a wide range of health problems like epilepsy and that it has no potential for abuse in human beings. It should be stressed that the long-term impacts of CBD use are still understudied, yet it’s becoming increasingly obvious that these extracts have a wide range of legitimate medical uses.
Can CBD actually help with anxiety? Medical professionals and patients alike appear to believe so, and those who are suffering from anxiety will likely increasingly turn to cannabis for help in the future.