Cannabis is slowly leaving the naughty list and entering the mainstream all over the world. As societies relax their guard against this often misunderstood plant, scientists are starting to conduct serious research into the medical properties of cannabis, or more specifically CBD. Even so, there are already indications that CBD can benefit your health. Here are some of the ways you can use cannabis to your advantage.
Anxiety Reduction
Anxiety, panic attacks, depression, and similar mental health problems are widespread in modern society. Everyone’s trying to squeeze a few extra hours out of their day, fighting with their bosses, having trouble at home, or at school — you name it. All these things combined tend to cause anxiety.
Medical treatment of anxiety usually includes various drugs that are often doing more harm than good. Anxiety medication is known to cause a whole array of side effects. Worst of all, these drugs can be addictive.
CBD and CBD derivatives, such as CBD oil, have shown promising results in treating anxiety in a natural, worry-free way. There are no downsides to using CBD. You don’t have to worry about side effects or anything of the kind.
However, finding the right dosage that works for you could take some time. Many would agree that experimenting with CBD is a much better way of handling your anxiety than taking conventional medication.
Pain Management
Much like anxiety medication, pain meds carry a great risk of addiction. In fact, prescription medication is one of the leading causes of substance abuse in the United States. Giving CBD a try has shown to be the right decision for many people battling chronic neuropathic pain. Taking CBD salve 500mg won’t completely eliminate the pain, but many are finding that the right dosage of CBD is enough to make the pane manageable. Pain management with CBD is much healthier and far less risky than pain mitigation through the use of conventional painkillers.
That being said, more research is necessary to confirm whether CBD has any commercially viable anti-inflammatory properties. So far, CBD has only shown positive effects in treating neuropathic pain, or pain caused by damaged nerve endings.
Cardiovascular Benefits
Cardiovascular diseases are one of the leading causes of death among adults all around the world. High blood pressure and other issues caused by physical inactivity, improper diet, and other factors, all lead to various diseases. Research into CBD has shown very few concrete results in terms of its benefits to various aspects of human bodies.
However, one area where there is concrete, empirical evidence of beneficial CBD properties is its effect on blood pressure. Namely, CBD, even in light doses, has been shown to reduce blood pressure. Higher doses of CBD oil or other forms of CBD are known to cause measurable drops in blood pressure.
As such, CBD oil and its derivatives are currently being probed as a potential alternative to conventional blood pressure medication. Furthermore, CBD oil can also help protect your heart indirectly.
Potential Neurological Effects
When the legalization of cannabis was first introduced into the mainstream in the US, most of the proponents cited this plant’s ability to relieve the effects of various neurological disorders. As soon as medical marijuana became a thing in select states, research had begun into this particular side of cannabis.
Needless to say, research is still being conducted. While there is yet to be conclusive evidence of the relationship between CBD and neurological disorders, most of the empirical data shows that CBD does in fact reduce the effects of, or even prevent seizures. Interestingly enough, some studies have shown that CBD is a viable way of preventing seizures in kids and young adults affected by epilepsy and other neurological disorders.
Treatment of Secondary Symptoms Associated with Cancer
Cancer is a terrible condition that takes many lives each year. In many cases, cancer produces a variety of secondary symptoms that make the lives of cancer patients extremely difficult. Pain, constant nausea, chemotherapy side effects — all of these symptoms make the day-to-day life of cancer patients unbearable.
Cannabis, or more specifically CBD, has shown to be a good alternative to a conventional medication when it comes to curbing these symptoms. Taking CBD or a CBD/ THC mix has been effective in some trials, thus helping affected patients better manage their pain and nausea.
Needless to say, cannabis and its derivatives are currently the subjects of serious research that aims to uncover any potential ways of using this plant to treat cancer. So far the evidence is inconclusive, however, even treating secondary symptoms of cancer is enough to put cannabis on the radar for many health organizations around the world.
Treatment of Arthritis
Arthritis is one of those conditions that make everyday life miserable. Dealing with constant joint pain is enough to disrupt anyone’s life, especially among younger people. The pain-relieving properties of CBD are said to help with arthritis pain management.
Once again, the anti-inflammatory properties of CBD haven’t been proven. Rather, most of the evidence is anecdotal. That being said, the amount of those affected by arthritis who came forward stating that their pain has been significantly reduced by CBD is substantial. Further studies are being done to come up with empirical data on the subject.
Is CBD Effective?
The effectiveness of CBD and its health benefits are still being evaluated. Even though there is limited empirical data available, more and more research is being done to find out just how good cannabis is in terms of providing health benefits to humans. That being said, the sheer number of health organizations who are working on adding CBD to the list of valid treatments for various ailments gives credence to the idea of cannabis derivatives and cannabis oil.
Given enough time, the scientific community will find out whether cannabis can be used in treating serious conditions such as cancer, or if its properties fall short of making any significant change in patients’ lives. Considering the popularity of CBD and cannabis as a whole, chances are that the world won’t wait too long to get answers to all these questions.
