You’ve heard of CBD, also known as Cannabidiol, whose popularity has reached almost crake-like proportions. CBD oil has come from nowhere to everywhere in just the last few years. It is perhaps best known for its ability to reduce anxiety and induce happiness, but CBD oil’s applications are seemingly endless. It has been successfully used to help with pain, insomnia, and depression. Some reports say that it helps with various other medical conditions as well, like arthritis pain and multiple sclerosis pain.
Due to its wide range of uses, CBD oil-infused products are the fastest-growing segment of the health industry. CBD oil’s use, especially for pain relief, is growing by leaps and bounds.
What Exactly Is Cbd Oil?
CBD or Cannabidiol, the main ingredient of CBD oil, is one of the 100 cannabinoids found in the marijuana plant, the cannabis Sativa plant. CBD oil is made by the extraction of CBD from the marijuana plant and then saturation oil with the extracted CBD. Yes, it is a cannabis extract but no, that does not mean that it can get you high.
That is the work of THC. THC is the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis that is responsible for the highness you experience after consuming cannabis. THC and CBD are both cannabinoids in the cannabis plant but they differ because THC is intoxicating while CBD is a non-toxic substance, producing very few side effects like drowsiness, sedation, or loss of appetite.
Advocates claim that CBD oil can help with a seemingly endless list of conditions from anxiety to acne. It can provide you relief and relaxation by reducing your stress or discomfort and treating your sleep disorders. Other than treating various kinds of ailments, CBD oil helps in improving our overall general health by letting us live a healthier and longer life.
But most importantly, CBD oil is very effective in treating different painful conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and certain kinds of cancer. You will learn in detail how to use CBD for pain relief in the latter part of the article.
Difference Between CBD Oil and CBD Tincture
Sometimes people get confused about CBD coming in in oil form or a tincture form and they assume both CBD Oil and CBD Tincture are the same thing and hence, use the terms interchangeably.
CBD Tincture has just the CBD (Cannabidiol) mixed with high-proof alcohol, the one that you buy at the liquor store. On the other hand, CBD oil is a highly-concentrated liquid form that has CBD (Cannabidiol) and Coconut oil. The presence of coconut oil in CBD oil gives it a pleasant taste and helps for the dissolution of the soluble CBD going in your body. CBD oil, unlike CBD tincture, contains triglycerides that help absorption in your body.
The flavor of a CBD tincture can be enhanced by adding several carrier oils or preservatives, whereas that is not the case with CBD oil. Also, it is easy to measure the dose of tincture one might need but calculating the right amount of CBD oil dosage takes a lot of effort and is time-consuming. Hence, CBD Oil and CBD Tincture are not similar products.
CBD Oil Products: Wellness CBD Oil Products and Medical CBD Oil Products
CBD oil, as a product, is classified into two distinct categories: Wellness CBD oil products and Medical CBD oil products.
Wellness CBD oil products are available off-the-shelf in health shops and pharmacies. CBD oil is one of the more popular ones but it has also made its way into shower gels, bottled water gummies, and even tampons. People also claim that wellness CBD oil products help with general aches and pains, anxiety, daily stresses, and sleep but there is little evidence to validate these claims.
The second type of CBD oil available is in the form of Medical CBD oil. There are a small number of approved medicines currently available on the NHS that contain much higher doses of CBD and there is some evidence to show that they may be effective at treating certain conditions.
There’s Epidural X which is approved for two very rare childhood epilepsies and then there’s Sativex which is licensed for pain and spasticity in multiple sclerosis. It also treats Rheumatoid arthritis and is used for Palliative cancer care.
Guidelines On How To Use CBD Oil For Various Kinds Of Pain Relief
1. Arthritis
Recommendations come from the Arthritis Foundation as the popularity of CBD oil continues to grow. The Arthritis Foundation surveyed more than 26,000 arthritic patients and found that nearly 80% of them have either used CBD oil or are considering it. Hence, the foundation is being proactive in providing some sensible guidance for arthritic patients.
The Arthritis Foundation is the first medical organization to come forward with guidelines on how to use CBD oil for pain relief in people with arthritis. It urges people to start with a low dose of CBD oil and then build up until they find relief from the pain. It also states that patients should speak with the doctors before they start to use CBD oil.
This is especially important since CBD oil is thought to have the potential to interact with many medications that arthritis patients might be taking including certain NZs, steroids, or antidepressants. Since there have been many mislabeling and quality control issues raised with CBD products, the Arthritis Foundation suggests buying CBD oil from a reputable company. Lastly, they specifically point out that patients with arthritis should not inhale it and should consume it either orally in the form of a capsule or sublingually.
2. Multiple Sclerosis
Among all medical conditions that have ever been looked at for CBD oil treatment, multiple sclerosis (MS) is the second-most high-quality study. Multiple Sclerosis causes the body’s auto-immune system to attack its immune system which eventually affects your nervous system. The plausible and randomized medical trials suggest quite a consistent effect on muscle stiffness and pain in hands, knees, and back, and also have benefits in improving sleep that is interrupted due to muscle pain.
It is important to know how to use CBD oil for pain relief in case of multiple sclerosis. CBD oil does not completely cure multiple sclerosis. It only helps to reduce the extreme pain that MS patients experience, the frequency of episodes of spasticity, and the severity of the spasticity. MS patients can intake CBD oil sublingually by administering it under the tongue or orally by adding it to their coffee or other beverages.
3. Cancer Care
CBD oil tends to work best for the symptoms that we associate with cancer and some of the cancer treatments. It works for cancer patients experiencing a loss of appetite, anxiety, insomnia, nausea, and pain, taking the place of opiate painkillers. Anecdotal evidence has been accumulating that CBD oil can help to reduce cancerous tumors. It is very effective in treating lung cancer and brain cancer.
A question might come to your mind on how to use CBD oil for pain experienced by cancer patients. Well, some cancer patients intake it by rubbing on their gums, which helps the CBD oil to get into their system very quickly. One can also take it orally in the form of a capsule or by dissolving it in a liquid beverage.
Different people have different medical histories and react differently to medications. So before using CBD oil for any kind of treatment or pain relief, make sure that you find out the right amount of dose that you must register initially.