Millions of people across the globe suffer from inflammation. Furthermore, there are different kinds of inflammation: acute inflammation and chronic inflammation, each with its own challenges.
With the rising popularity of CBD as a wellness product, it’s no surprise “CBD for inflammation” is a commonly searched phrase on Google. CBD is well known for reducing discomfort in the body, among other things. It’s natural that people suffering from inflammation might turn to CBD for help.
Before we start our exploration of CBD and its possible benefits with inflammation, we want to make clear that we can’t make any medical claims about cannabidiol, since the FDA has yet to officially approve it for medical use. Still, we can look into what research has been done on CBD oil and inflammation, and how people are commonly using CBD products to help ease their discomfort.
CBD for Inflammation: What Is CBD?
CBD stands for cannabidiol. It’s one of many cannabinoids found in the hemp plant, with CBD being one of the non-psychoactive ones — meaning you get no “high” feeling from using CBD. Many love CBD for the calming effects it produces within the body, often described as therapeutic and calming.
CBD works in collaboration with the endocannabinoid system — a complex, cell-signaling system that works through receptors, enzymes, and endocannabinoids. The primary goal of the endocannabinoid system is to maintain homeostasis (balance) throughout the body. The ECS controls some of the body’s most important functions, like sleep, pain, and mood, to name a few.
CBD for Inflammation: How Does CBD Work?
As mentioned, you have a system called an endocannabinoid system. It’s a complex, cell-signaling system responsible for regulating some of the body’s most essential functions, like sleep, stress, pain, mood, and much more.
The endocannabinoid system consists of receptors, endocannabinoids, and enzymes. This physiological system influences the way your body metabolizes compounds — in this case, cannabinoids.
One of the reasons people have different CBD experiences is because we all metabolize substances at different rates. Interestingly, your body also produces its own endocannabinoids. This is why some people, who have lower levels of naturally occurring cannabinoids, have to take their CBD for a longer time to feel the effects.
CBD for Inflammation: What Is Inflammation?
Most of us identify inflammation with redness and swelling, but to get to the root of the issue we need to understand why this happens. Inflammation occurs when your body tissue suffers an injury or has harmful bacteria invading some area of healthy tissue.
As a defensive measure, the white blood cells in your body send a chemical response which increases blood flow in that area, contributing to the redness and/or swelling mentioned above. So, inflammation is, in fact, your body’s way of fighting off infections, injuries, and toxins.
There are two main types of inflammation: chronic inflammation and acute inflammation. Chronic inflammation is the type of inflammation that’s been an issue for a long time, often months or even years, sometimes. On the other hand, you’re probably more familiar with acute inflammation, which occurs when you slip and fall or suffer some other unexpected injury.
Research has shown that one of the benefits of CBD is that it has anti-inflammatory properties. Anti-inflammatories work by blocking the enzymes that cause pain and inflammation at sites of damage throughout your body. Topical anti-inflammatories, like sports creams and aloe vera, work in a similar way, but they are hyper-targeted on the area where you’ve applied them, which is where they are absorbed into your skin, tissue, and muscles.
CBD for Inflammation: Which CBD Oil Is Best for Inflammation?
CBD can be consumed through the bloodstream or through the skin, via topical products, such as balms and creams. As we’ve discussed, topical anti-inflammatories absorb directly into the affected area and bring direct localized relief.
To be absorbed through the bloodstream, CBD can be consumed as edibles, vaped, or taken sublingually. CBD oil, taken sublingually, is absorbed much quicker than edibles and also allows you to really dial in your exact serving size with a dropper.
The CBD oil selection online is quite expansive, so it’s all about doing your research to figure out which formulation works best for your personal needs. You should also keep experience in mind, since there’s a wide variety of concentrations on the market.
As far as formulations, you’ll need to decide between a broad spectrum CBD oil or a full spectrum CBD oil. Broad spectrum options contain non-detectable THC levels — virtually THC-free. This happens because broad spectrum CBD oil goes through an additional extraction process to remove trace amounts of THC. But this process also extracts some of the other helpful cannabinoids and plant matter that play a part in the Entourage Effect (more on this in a second). You still get some of the experience, but it’s not as pronounced as it would be with full spectrum CBD oil.
Many people prefer full spectrum CBD oil, because it contains all of the naturally occurring compounds found in the hemp plant — including trace amounts of THC (less than 0.3%), terpenes, and other minor cannabinoids. When all of these compounds are present, a phenomenon called the Entourage Effect kicks in. The Entourage Effect occurs when all these compounds work synergistically to produce a deeper level of therapeutic effects for you.
If you want 99% pure CBD, then you may want to opt for CBD isolate. The extraction process for this oil removes all of the active plant matter — other cannabinoids, terpenes, and essential oils. CBD isolate typically comes in a powder or crystalline form. The main benefit of an isolate is that you get CBD in its purest form, but you don’t get any Entourage Effect benefits.
CBD for Inflammation: How to Use CBD Oil for Inflammation
While many people have been using CBD for years, at this point, others across the globe are still learning about the benefits of CBD. It’s important to understand where you are in the process so you can find the right CBD product for your needs and utilize it correctly.
A CBD topical, of course, can be applied directly onto the affected area multiple times a day, as irritation and inflammation arise. Just rub it in and let it do its thing!
If you’re looking to incorporate CBD oil tinctures or edibles into your regimen, the first thing you need to do is sort out a schedule. If you’re trying to reduce inflammation, you should consider using a morning product, like CBD Morning Capsules or a CBD + CBG Wellness Tincture, when you wake up and then a nighttime product, like CBD Gummies with Melatonin or our CBD Oil Sleep Tincture, at bedtime. This way, you can take advantage of CBD’s wellness properties around the clock. So, choose accordingly as you determine your plan of attack.
Also, when you’re starting a new CBD regimen, it’s important to work your way up to the perfect serving amount for your personal needs. To do this, start with a small serving on your first day. If that doesn’t work, increase it just a bit the next day. Keep going until you find the right serving size for you.
If you take a second dose within a few hours of your first serving, you could be taking way more than your body needs and building an unnecessary tolerance in the process. When this happens, your product may not be as effective, because your body becomes accustomed to the cannabinoids and requires more to achieve the same effect.
Still, if this happens, it’s no reason to stress — just take a break for a day or two and resume your usual routine.
Some people have better results than others with little effort, because they have higher levels of naturally occurring endocannabinoids in their body. If you happen to fall into this category, you just need to make sure you take your CBD every day to ensure you build up the needed cannabinoids in your body so your endocannabinoid system can make the magic happen!
Final Thoughts on CBD for Inflammation
We’ve all had an injury and suffered from inflammation before, but most of us don’t realize that inflammation is your body’s natural defense mechanism.
“CBD for inflammation” gets Google searched a lot because consumers want to know more about the relationship between the two — but more so, they want to know if CBD will address their immediate needs and concerns.
No matter which kind of CBD product you opt for, we hope you have a positive wellness experience. If you’re looking for more information on CBD, check back often as we’re always posting new and informative blog articles on this fascinating cannabinoid and other related topics. We hope posts like this help you on your journey!
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