Many have sought ways to get a good night’s sleep and tackle insomnia without taking a sleep aid. According to the CDC, about 70 million U.S. adults suffer from a poor sleep disorder. This explains why there’s no shortage of medication to tackle insomnia.
The downside is most of these sleep medicines have addictive properties. CBD is the latest medication that holds therapeutic targets. Many people swear by its properties, and it’s taking the world by storm.
It’s usual for people to recommend CBD to others. Its health benefits are highly lauded. The compound’s beauty is that it has no psychoactive properties. Further, it has offered much-needed relief from sleep problems. It has little in the way of causing addiction, adding to its appeal.
However, there is not much clinical data to support CBD for sleep. The majority of information that abounds about CBD appears from people’s experience and early research.
What Is CBD?
CBD belongs to the Cannabis sativa constituent. It is one of the many cannabidiol found in the cannabis plant. Manufacturers grow it naturally without pesticides, chemicals, or herbicides to not distort its quality. The reason is that CBD is a bioaccumulating plant that absorbs any chemical added to the soil.
CBD interacts with the body’s endocannabinoid system, which regulates various bodily functions, including pain, appetite, mood, inflammation, sleep, and anxiety-related disorders. There are cannabinoid receptors in the central nervous system, like CB1 and CB2 receptors, that aid the endocannabinoid system.
These days, it’s easy to find CBD in many products. Its popularity has kickstarted a wave that makes people buy any product it’s incorporated to decrease anxiety disorders. Today, there are tons of hemp-derived CBD products like bath bombs, gummies, topicals, vapes, lubes, oil, and many more.
CBD is legal on the federal level. The 2018 Farm Bill legalizes hemp-derived products that contain 0.3% THC in dry weight. However, most states do not recognize the law banning CBD consumption.
Can CBD Help With Insomnia?
CBD is known to tackle the consumer’s stress hormone effectively. As you may know, stress is the most frequent cause of insomnia, and by relieving the user’s stress level, they can get better sleep. Stress can come from many factors, like mental health disorders, anxiety, inflammation, and irritability from an uncomfortable bed.
CBD has analgesic properties, which offer pain relief to consumers. Some research suggests that combining THC and CBD regimens improves complex sleep-related behaviors. These include insomnia, REM sleep issues, post-traumatic stress disorder, excessive daytime sleepiness, and wakefulness after consuming caffeine.
Patients with obstructive sleep apnea and circadian rhythm disorders may experience improved sleep quality with CBD. It can ensure the body progresses through the normal stages of sleep with no interruption. Also, CBD helps calm adult psychiatric patients suffering from anxiety or sleep difficulties.
It reduces the time it takes a patient to fall asleep, allowing them to sleep longer. This might be useful for nurses experiencing circadian rhythm disorders due to work shifts that distort their sleep-wake cycle. Additionally, CBD may improve rapid eye movement and sleep-related problems in Parkinson’s patients.
CBD’s effects on people differ. Some people will consume the recommended dosage of a CBD product and feel its effects quickly, while some won’t feel the effects with the same dosage. It doesn’t mean the compound doesn’t work. They just need higher doses to combat their body’s high tolerance for CBD.
Is It Safe to Consume CBD for Insomnia, Chronic Pain, and REM Sleep Behavior Disorder?
CBD generally is a safe compound to consume. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), CBD does not cause adverse health effects. However, CBD’s popularity is not without its downside. Fake brands have emerged, manufacturing CBD products that have harmful chemicals.
They use untested ingredients to amplify the product’s potency, compromising its safety and side effects. Further, these fake products saturate the market, and consuming them will cause you harm. But not to be alarmed, there are credible brands with genuine products you can patronize to aid your insomnia.
These brands typically follow high-quality production methods, ensuring their CBD products are safe to consume. They test the products in third-party labs, sieving leftover contaminants and checking for other things like the product’s potency and quality before packaging.
That aside, they display a certificate of analysis detailing the CBD product’s content, which fosters accountability and transparency. Although CBD from credible brands won’t harm you, you should consult your doctor if you’re on medication to know if drug interactions are possible. The doctor will help direct you to the right CBD product.
Where Do I Purchase CBD From?
The majority of CBD brands do not have physical stores. They sell nonprescription CBD products on their website and will ship to your location. Additionally, it’s best not to buy any CBD products from stores. Their originality might be in question. The FDA is lax in regulating the CBD market.
As such, there’s an equal amount of good and bad CBD products in the market. Purchase CBD products directly from credible companies’ websites. Most of them offer discounts and other incentives you will enjoy. Ensure to do due diligence and research a CBD company before purchasing their product.
Read customer reviews to know what other users are saying about the brand. Further, check the shipping fee to ensure your purchase doesn’t go beyond your budget, and find out if the brand ships to your state. Also, read the product label to ensure it’s properly labeled, and discard the brand if anything seems odd.
Does CBD Have Any Side Effects?
CBD has some minor side effects. You can handle most side effects if you have a ready remedy. Most of the side effects trigger when you ingest a large dose of CBD. So, if you’re trying to sleep and consume CBD, give it time to work before taking another dose to avoid ingesting more than the recommended dosage.
You may experience side effects like dry mouth, fatigue, increased heart rate, nausea, delusions, confusion, and dehydration. Furthermore, you could also experience increased appetite, red eyes, mood swings, and drowsiness,
The side effects do not occur simultaneously, and you can effectively tackle some of them. For starters, drinking water when dehydrated and eating more food to sate your increased appetite can help fix most issues.
Will I Fail a Drug Test After Consuming CBD Products to Improve Sleep Disorders?
Usually, organizations check for THC percentage in a drug test, not CBD. The THC percentage in CBD products is at 0.3%, which is low and won’t make you fail your drug test. Credible brands adhere to the THC percentage rule. But the same can’t be said about fake brands.
The CBD product you consume might be infused with more THC due to their desire to amplify its potency. Furthermore, if you smoke CBD flower heavily to improve sleep, you’re likely to test positive for THC in a drug test. THC is a lipid-based chemical stored in body fats for an extended period. It builds up with each consumption.
But do not panic. Regardless of the THC stored in your body, it might not show during a drug test, depending on the type of test used. Usually, organizations demand urine during a drug test, and there are remedies you can employ.
Exercise frequently to dislodge the THC in your fats, then drink plenty of water, up to four gallons. This increases your chances of urinating. In doing so, you purge your body of THC. However, do not exercise so close to the test. You might not have enough time to purge THC from your body.
How To Use CBD Products For Sleep Disorders
These days, CBD is in numerous products, offering a beneficial health benefit to consumers. The products all have different production methods and purposes. But one cannot use one product in place of another due to other ingredients it incorporates that might not be suitable for consumption.
You can use the oil to make other CBD products like cookies and edibles; the oil will not lose potency. That aside, since CBD is legal, you can consume it publicly without getting in trouble with the law. Granted, you need to reside in a state that allows such freedom.
Here are some examples of CBD products and their consumption method:
CBD Gummies
CBD gummies are one of the leading products many ingest to experience the calming effect of CBD. Most companies manufacture it in various flavors, colors, shapes, potency, and sizes to liven things up for consumers. In addition, these gummies look like regular candy and often come in small packages.
You can carry it on you without getting burdened by the weight. It can fit easily in your handbag and coat without much difficulty. To dose CBD gummies, ingest a low-dosage gummy one at a time to determine your body’s reaction to it. CBD Gummies build up slowly. You are likely to feel its effect thirty to forty minutes after consumption.
So time your intake before preparing for bed. This way, the effects will kick in when you’re ready for bed. Factors like your reason for consuming CBD, and your tolerance to CBD can influence how quickly you feel the effects. Also, your weight, age, body metabolism, and size play a big role.
If you have a high tolerance for CBD, double your dosage. But another wonderful solution is purchasing higher potency CBD gummies to control your intake and THC build. This way, you won’t consume more than the recommended dosage.
CBD Oil
Brands use the CO2 method to extract CBD oil from hemp plants. It’s the recommended way of effectively extracting oil to sieve out contaminants and pollutants. You can mix the cbd oil with your meal and beverages. Or ingest it underneath your tongue with the oil dropper.
Swish the oil in your mouth for a few seconds to quickly let it access your capillaries and enter the bloodstream. Consumers that have trouble speaking in public can use the oil as a confidence booster. Additionally, a simulated public speaking test suggests it’s a good way of aiding one to socialize better in public spaces.
CBD Topicals
CBD topicals are another satisfactory way of consuming CBD products. The production method for topicals differs, so do not eat or use them for cooking. Apply the topicals to your skin, and they will seep into your pores, gaining access to your bloodstream and calming your nerves, aiding sleep. Furthermore, you can apply it on open wounds, speeding up the healing process. The topicals have analgesic properties that will soothe chronic pain in your joints or muscles.
CBD Flower
CBD flowers have the same appearance as marijuana. Unlike marijuana, it does not have euphoric effects. Smoking CBD flower is the fastest way of experiencing its effect. It interacts with the endocannabinoid receptors, putting you in a good mood, and enabling restful sleep.
Have A Good Night’s Sleep With CBD!
The benefits of good sleep include memory formation, muscle and tissue growth, and sickness prevention. Many seek the perfect remedy for insomnia, but the market is saturated with many products, making it difficult to choose one. In recent years, cannabidiol, a cannabis derivative, has become increasingly popular as a sleep aid.
CBD is commonly used to promote healthy sleep, reduce anxiety, and relieve pain, among other things. Although widely touted as a remedy for sleep disorders, there is little research to back up the claim. As such, consult your doctor if you’re on medication before consuming any CBD product.
.
Other Articles
Can CBD Oil Cause Headache?
