Reducing Anxiety with CBD Oil

CBD or Cannabidiol is a compound derived from the cannabis plant. There has been much speculation and controversy about using cannabis for medicinal purposes, but many studies have shown that CBD has contributed significant positive effects to the treatment of various illnesses. But what about when it comes to mental health? Can CBD help reduce anxiety?

According to research, CBD can reduce many symptoms of anxiety and the best part is it has little to no side effects.

Is It Dangerous?
Before anything else, it’s good to address the fear of some people that CBD may have some intoxicating effects such as that of THC. Though CBD and THC both come from cannabis, they have very different effects. THC is the cannabis chemical that gets you high and CBD does not have that effect.

People who use CBD do not experience any alterations of their mental state.

What Is CBD Oil?
What exactly is it? Cannabidiol or CBD is oil that is extracted from the cannabis plant. It is rich in chemicals called cannabinoids which has some effects on the brain’s receptors but it does not make a person feel high. It has many health benefits including the slowing of cancer cells and improving mental health.

You can consume CBD oil, use it as an added ingredient to food or you can take it as medication. Smoking it has no proven benefits.

What Does CBD Do to the Brain?
To understand how CBD can help in reducing anxiety symptoms, it’s good to know how it works in the brain.

CBD produces several effects in the brain. It is firstly a 5-HT1A agonist - which is a type of serotonin receptor. Mental issues such as depression and anxiety can usually be treated by targeting serotonin. Serotonin is the neurotransmitter that is responsible for feelings of happiness. Drugs like SSRIs or serotonin reuptake inhibitors work by increasing the availability of serotonin in the brain’s synaptic area. This can in turn, reduce anxiety and improve mood.

In the same way, CBD boosts signals through serotonin receptors. It enhances the transmission and even works faster than other drugs. It may even solve some of the limitations of the currently existing antidepressant medications.
 
Using CBD Oil to Reduce Anxiety
Clinical trials on humans have shown that CBD can help reduce anxiety. After patients with generalized anxiety consumed CBD, they reported a significant decrease in anxiety. The researchers validated these reports by scanning the patients’ brains and noted that there were patterns in the brain which are similar to the effects of anti-anxiety medication.

In a smaller study, patients who suffer from social anxieties took CBD before simulating a public speaking test. They reported that they had significantly less anxiety and researchers proved this by measuring physical symptoms like heart rate and blood pressure. Those who didn’t take CBD experienced higher anxiety and discomfort during the simulation.

This shows that CBD can significantly reduce anxiety and help with cognitive impairment and discomfort.

Finding new ways to treat anxiety is important because it can reduce risks of other incidents such as accidents. If you ever get into a vehicular accident because of anxiety, you should seek the help of a car accident attorney.

Conclusion
Those are just some of the research done about CBD and mental illnesses like anxiety. There is a wealth of studies that you can find showing how CBD significantly helps in the treatment of many other illnesses. Evidence from animal studies helped the scientific and medical community understand how it works in the brain and more and more human trials are starting to validate its positive effects.

This is a guest blog entry.