The cannabidiol (CBD) benefits list is long, and it’s getting longer. More and more studies are being approved to investigate new avenues for CBD medical applications.
On top of this, many areas have already been explored and show remarkable results. Cannabidiol oil is now clinically proven in many areas as an effective, all-natural alternative to many common prescription drugs.
In many cases, CBD oil outshines traditional medications, because it provides the same level of therapeutic action but without any of the nasty side effects associated with mainstream treatments.
We whittled down the list to the eight CBD benefits you should know about.
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CBD Benefits List to Blow Your Mind
1. Anti-Inflammatory Painkiller
Many doctors believe that chronic inflammation is the underlying cause of many chronic diseases and medical conditions, including pain. Even before CBD was understood, it was often self-prescribed to help alleviate people’s personal daily struggles with pain.
Pain relief and anti-inflammatory properties are some of the most popular health benefits of CBD therapy. After ingestion, CBD is able to inhibit neuronal communication through the pain pathways, thereby reducing the experience of pain for the user. It has been shown to reduce chronic inflammation in rodents without causing dependency issues or the serious side effects often associated with other opioid pain medications.
CBD, with some tetrahydrocannabinol, has shown efficacy against the chronic pain in rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and HIV as well as chronic NP pain. [1]
RELATED: Could CBD Be Inflammation’s Worst Enemy ... Naturally?
2. Anti-Anxiety
In one study after another, CBD appears to be proving itself as a safe treatment for anxiety and chronic stress, with a very good side-effect profile. In an oft-cited study, people diagnosed with social phobia were given CBD and then instructed to deliver a speech in front of a crowd.
Before and after speaking, they all reported significantly lower anxiety than the control groups. On top of this, all physical signs of stress, like high blood pressure, temperature, and heart rate were reduced as well.
Cannabidiol interacts with the endocannabinoid system, which—among many other things—is responsible for mood and nervous system regulation. It has been shown to be effective even in serious anxiety disorders. [2] [8]
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3. Neuroprotective
Cannabidiol is showing exciting promise in the search for stroke and serious brain injury treatment. Preliminary studies show that it reduces brain cell degeneration and death, which are common effects post-stroke, and posttraumatic brain injury. [3] [8]
4. Epilepsy and Seizures
Perhaps one of the benefits that first propelled CBD oil into the spotlight was its ability to dramatically reduce—or even eliminate—severe epileptic seizures in small children who were previously considered untreatable with the standard medications. National news showed anecdotal cases of parents watching their children suffer through multiple seizures per day. Yet the number of seizures dwindled to a handful—or even disappeared completely after CBD oil therapy.
This year, the FDA approved the first CBD-based drug for intractable forms of epilepsy—Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome—in patients two years of age and older.
This is a major breakthrough for the entire industry and augurs well for legal use of CBD and medical marijuana for multiple other conditions. [4]
RELATED: Why Are People Using CBD Oil For Epilepsy?
5. Antitumor
There are many supplements and miracle foods out there claiming to prevent cancer, but few of them have robust scientific evidence backing up their claims. Cannabidiol, on the other hand, has been found to reduce tumor growth, both in lab studies and in mice.
In one government-funded study from 1974, scientists discovered that cannabis prevented metastasis and increased death of abnormal cells. It has since been found to target a few cancers in particular, including prostate, breast, and leukemia.
Newer research is showing that, on top of these previously discovered anti-cancer effects, cannabis may also have pro-apoptotic abilities, which can help prevent the migration of cancer throughout the body. [5]
6. Reduces Diabetes
In lab studies on rats, CBD was proven to reduce the development of diabetes in non-obese diabetic mice by almost 60 percent. [5]
In a cross-sectional study to determine the association between diabetes mellitus and marijuana use, the researchers found that marijuana users had a lower age-adjusted prevalence of diabetes compared with non-marijuana users. While more study is needed, CBD and medical marijuana could well be an effective preventative treatment of a global epidemic. [6]
7. Antipsychotic
In a strange symbiotic relationship within the cannabis plant itself, CBD provides a natural counter to the psychotropic activity of THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol. These cannabinoids have diverse effects in the bodies of vertebrates and will have different effects if ingested separately.
High doses of THC have been found to trigger psychotic tendencies in some people, while CBD has the opposite effect and can even help ameliorate the effects of high-dose THC.
The calming and antipsychotic effect of CBD has now been applied to other areas of mental illness, including as a potential alternative for schizophrenic patients. It is offering hope to many patients who suffer through periods of psychosis and reject the difficult side effects of traditional antipsychotic medications. [7]
8. Reduces Nausea and Vomiting
In conjunction with CBD’s ability to target cancer cell growth, it is also extremely beneficial as a supplement to modern chemotherapy treatments. Many patients consider chemotherapy and radiation to be nearly as bad as cancer itself because the treatments cause lethargy, extreme nausea, vomiting, intense pain, and loss of appetite.
If CBD therapy is done in conjunction, it can help alleviate many of these difficult side effects. In particular, patients have been very successful in maintaining appetite and therefore weight and strength. They are also able to reduce nausea and keep food down. Finally, it helps reduce the pain and bodywide inflammation associated with these harsh therapies. [5]
Conclusion
This CBD benefits list is by no means exhaustive. CBD shows promise as a treatment strategy for ailments ranging from movement disorders and insomnia even to severe acne. The consensus is that well-designed clinical research is still needed, but the data so far is promising. [9][10]
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References:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3820295/
- https://www.nature.com/articles/npp20116
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938896/
- https://www.fda.gov/newsevents/newsroom/pressannouncements/ucm611046.htm
- http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S1516-44462008000300015&script=sci_arttext
- https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/2/1/e000494.short
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016561470900128X
- http://www.cocbd.com/uploads/8/6/0/1/86016880/current_status_and_prospects_for_cbd__2016_.pdf
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5958190/
- http://files7.webydo.com/92/9209805/UploadedFiles/5E9EC245-448E-17B2-C7CA-21C6BDC6852D.pdf
