Today we’re going to tell you everything you need to know about CBD. We’ll tell you what it is, who should use it, why, how much to take, where to get it and cover the different products available.
What Is CBD?
Both hemp and marijuana come from the same plant species, Cannabis sativa, but they vary in THC composition. The cannabis plant has over 100 chemical compounds, called cannabinoids.
The two main cannabinoids are THC and CBD. THC is the chemical that gives a euphoric feeling to the user. It’s what gets you high. CBD is non-psychoactive and has helped with many health conditions including back pain, osteoarthritis, epilepsy, anxiety, and more. CBD provides many of the medicinal benefits derived from the cannabis plant, without getting you high.
How Can It Help Back Pain?
CBD is generally a full body treatment for pain relief, but topical products can target specific areas. It reduces inflammation, combats anxiety (often related to chronic back pain), helps with sleep, and improves your overall state of relaxation.
What are the Side Effects?
CBD has generally mild side effects.
They include: mental confusion, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dry mouth, low blood pressure, tiredness, and a change in appetite.
While side effects are minimal, as with other natural products, there is potential for adverse reactions. People taking other medication are most likely to experience side effects, due to the interaction between CBD and the drug they’re taking.
Who Shouldn’t Take CBD?
If you are taking other medications, speak with your doctor first before taking CBD. They can advise you of any adverse reactions you may experience, based on their knowledge of your medical history.
Pregnant or breastfeeding women should avoid CBD. Not enough studies of CBD have been conducted in this group to determine if it’s safe or not for them to use. Until then, it’s best to be safe and avoid using CBD.
Like with pregnant women, not enough studies have been performed on the safety of CBD in children. One notable exception here is in cases of pediatric epilepsy. Both the FDA-approved drug Epidiolex (which contains CBD), and other forms of medical CBD have been shown to help treat severe epilepsy. If you want to give CBD to your child, it’s best to speak first with your pediatrician to ensure it will be safe for them to use.
CBD For Pets?
What about pets? Because animals like cats, dogs, and horses all have similar endocannabinoid system (ECS) functions, CBD for pets can provide some of the same useful applications. For those looking for an alternative, CBD may support a more wholesome wellness regimen.
Dosage
Ok, so its safe for us to use. How much do we take?
Most CBD oil products will have a number on the front of the bottle, often ranging from 300 milligrams (mg) to 10,000 mg. This number is not the amount of CBD oil you get in every tincture dropper or capsule but is instead the total amount of CBD contained within the CBD oil product.
How much CBD oil to take will vary from person to person.
The right CBD dose for you can depend on a few factors, including your weight, any other health conditions you may have, and medication you’re taking for those conditions. It also depends on your personal body chemistry and sensitivity to CBD.
When determining your ideal CBD dosage, your goal is to find the lowest dose that provides the benefits you need with few or no side effects.
The standard recommendations is to base your CBD dose on your body weight. Take 1 to 6 mg per 10 pounds of body weight. These are general guidelines.
Some will need more if taking CBD for chronic pain, and others will need less if taking for situational anxiety. Since side effects are minimal, it’s important to see what dosage works best for you.
Chart from: cbdoil.org
Ok, CBD is great. But there are so many different products, How do I choose?
Oils
Oils can be taken orally, vaped, or mixed with drinks. Oil is used in other types of CBD products like creams, but it can also be used alone. Capsules are also available (which are better for accurate doses).
Tinctures
Tinctures are made by soaking cannabis flowers in alcohol for long periods of time to extract the CBD. It is more concentrated. Tinctures are sold in bottles with droppers to be used in drinks or taken orally by squeezing a few drops under your tongue.
Edibles
Mixing CBD oil or tinctures with food and drinks are called edibles. You’ll find baked goods, gummies, and chocolates.
Creams and gels
CBD creams and gels are absorbed by the skin. This helps target specific areas, such as back pain. They have been shown to reduce inflammation and neuropathic pain.
Best way to take CBD?
If you don’t want to ingest anything, or if you want to target a specific area, you may prefer topical creams and gels. This is what we like best for back pain. It can relieve pain where applied in a few minutes and last several hours. Topical creams and gels may require a higher dosage to ensure it penetrates the epidermis.
Vape pens deliver the dosage fast – a few minutes, but also wears off fast – usually 2 hours. Tinctures are a bit slower -about 20 minutes, and last a similar amount of time as vape pens.
Edibles are a nice treat but take longer to take effect-about 30 to 90 mins, but can last four or five hours.
Where do you find quality CBD products?
How do I know that I’m “getting the good stuff”?
If you are using CBD, you’ll want to be sure you have quality products. Many online products have been tested only to find lower levels of CBD in them than stated on the label.
First look for products that have been tested by a third party. Testing results should be clear and easy to understand. It’s simply best to avoid CBD sellers (many found on social media, and even on amazon) that don’t provide lab results. We simply don’t know its quality. You should be able to see the lab results to let you know you have a high-quality product, and that the label is accurate.
You can purchase CBD products in specialty shops or dispensaries, or buy online, direct from the company. Most brick and mortar retailers will have legitimate products. However shopping online allows you to compare a wider variety of companies and know exactly what you’re getting.
CBD products aren’t regulated by the FDA, so it’s important to read the labels carefully and discuss any concerns with a health care provider.
It’s because of all these reasons that we like CBDmd. It is one of the most reputable CBD companies in the USA. You can look up the certificate of analysis (lab results) of their products on their website.
To conclude, we think CBD creams and lotions are best for back pain. They can be applied topically and target exactly where you’re feeling pain. Other CBD products don’t provide the targeted pain relief, but provide overall full body treatment and relief, which many prefer.
You may prefer to use the other products when it is more convenient. For example, using a vape offers quick results in a few puffs and tinctures can be added to drinks or dropped directly under the tongue.
Whichever product you use, be sure it is from a reputable dealer like CBDmd, and can provide third party lab results to ensure you are getting a quality product. All CBD products can provide relief, and the minor side effects make CBD a great alternative for back pain relief.
We hope this helps clear up any confusion and answers any questions you had about CBD products and back pain. Click HERE to cbdmd.com and choose from a wide selection of quality CBD products.
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