Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of the main cannabinoids found in the cannabis plant. It comes in various forms like capsules, oils, etc., and its demand is currently on upscale. We can easily say that CBD is a breakthrough product linked with so many health benefits enough to make any health enthusiast want it.
You probably may be thinking, “What benefits could there be in Cannabis – a plant that makes one high?” Well, while it is certain that marijuana makes one high, tetrahydrocannabinol – the second main cannabinoid is responsible for the cognitive state alteration. So, CBD provides you all its proposed health benefits without the Physcoactive effect associated with marijuana.
What are these benefits then? CBD can foster weight loss, seizure disorder, post-traumatic stress, depression, and anxiety. Yet, in this article, our focus is on the use of CBD for improving sleep.
If you’re keen on knowing whether CDB can improve sleep, how it does so, shreds of evidence that support the claim, as well as other useful information on CBD and sleep, continue reading.
Does CDB Capsules Really Help with Sleep?
To give a terse answer: Yes! CBD can be a sleep aid and there is various research that supports it. Yet, there is a little convolution to the claim. You’ll find out as you read.
How CBD Capsules Improve Sleep
Now, here is the convolution. There are no direct links the CBD capsule has with sleep improvement. CBD capsules work to aid sleep by removing specific causes of poor sleep. In other words, there isn’t somewhat of a “sleep hormone” CBD capsules directly affects but it will remove hindrances to poor sleep.
Precisely, CBD helps treat, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorders, depression, as well as other external conditions that cause insomnia. So, to really tell how CBD capsules can improve sleep, you can start by looking at how it helps with anxiety.
Research and Evidence that Support CBD Capsules for Sleep
Because CBD’s ability to treat insomnia significantly depends on sleep inhibiting factors, studies that support CBD use for insomnia are hinged on CBD’s ability to treat those factors. So, we will highlight each sleep inhibiting factors and how CBD treats them as well as improve sleep.
- Anxiety: A study on cannabidiol in anxiety and sleep investigates whether CBD helps in improving sleep and/or anxiety. The method used required 103 adult participants of which 72 experienced poor sleep and anxiety. These participants were each administered 25mg of CBD capsule every day. After a month, anxiety scores decreased for 57 patients (79.2%) and the remaining percentage decreased during the study duration. Sleep scores improved for 48 patients within the first month.
- Pain: Pain is undoubtedly a cause of sleep problems. CBD, on the other hand, can help relieve pain. Thus, indirectly improve your sleep. Research to determine new insights on Cannabinoid and pain describes how CBD can help relieve pain. It states that the mechanism behind the analgesic effects of CBD links to its ability to-
- Inhibit the release of neurotransmitters and neuropeptides from presynaptic nerve endings
- Modulate postsynaptic neuron excitability
- Activate descending inhibitory pain pathway
- Reduce neural inflammation
- Rapid Eye Movement (REM) Sleep Disorder: REM sleep behavior disorder is a parasomnia characterized by a loss of muscle atonia during REM sleep linked with nightmares and active behavior when dreaming. In one meta-analysis four patients with Parkinson’s disease treated with CBD had a quick and significant reduction in the frequency of RBD-related events without any side effect.
- Grogginess: While all the evidence above support CBD as a treatment for insomnia, CBD can also relieve somnolence. A 2014 study reveals that CBD can promote wakefulness, modulate sleep, and provide a putative mechanism of action.
How to Use CBD Capsules for Sleep
Just before you consider using CBD capsules to improve sleep, there are a few things you ought to know.
- There is no precise dosage recommendationfrom the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)onthe use of CBD capsules for sleep improvement.
- Most clinical trials on CBD for treating insomnia gave participants between 25 mg to 1500 mg per day.
- A study indicates that taking less than 160mg of CBD capsule may promote wakefulness. Whereas, higher doses can foster sleep.
All in all, we cannot prescribe a dosage plan for you but we recommend you start with a low dosage and gradually increase it until you discover what suits your body. Still, CBD capsule use for improving the quality of your sleep isn’t rapid. A study mentioned earlier highlighted its effect after one month of use. So, you will have to be patient.
Side Effects of CBD Capsules
Often, we get scared when we see “side effects” of any drug or compound. Really, there isn’t anything to be scared of, as CBD is regarded as safe by the FDA. Side-effects arise because the body isn’t familiar with such a routine or is not compatible with it. So, we will highlight common side effects common to CBD use as well as symptoms that indicate you should no longer use CBD.
PS: The FDA does not regulate CBD products like they do with other supplements. Hence, they don’t guarantee the safety, effectiveness, or quality of over-the-counter CBD products.
Common side effects
- Diarrhea
- Weight loss
- Fatigue
- Change in appetite
Symptoms that indicate withdrawal
- Fogginess
- Irritability
- Nausea or dizziness
Final Words
Overall, there are many clinical proofs that CBD can help improve sleep quality. CBD helps with sleep by removing the common causes of insomnia and poor sleep. Yet, there is no specific dosage recommendations by the FDA for using CBD to foster good sleep. Hence, we recommend that you see a doctor before taking CBD, as he/she is best informed on how to use CBD to improve your sleep condition in line with your health circumstance.
Still, if you want to make a trial and error to find your right dose, start small and be careful of the Bell Curve Effect- high and low doses of CBD produce the least results, medium doses produce the best result.