Does CBD Help with Sleep?

You can achieve quality sleep without using drugs which can be addictive. CBD for sleep is here to help you achieve your sleep goals. There are several ways to take CBD. This article will explain how to use CBD for sleep and how to benefit fully from CBD.

Having good sleep helps your body regenerate energy lost during the day. The body also undergoes other bodily functions with ease while sleeping. Lack of better sleep can be a challenge to the body's functions. Drivers and workers operating heavy machines are encouraged to have a quality sleep of at least seven hours before operating machines. Quality sleep is characterized by at least seven hours of interrupted sleep. Achieving at least seven hours of sleep can be challenging due to insomnia and stress. Taking CBD can help you achieve quality sleep. Keep reading to find out how you can benefit from CBD for sleep.

Causes of Lack of Sleep

Sleep can be affected by different factors ranging from insomnia to an injured finger. Moreover, lack of sleep can result from stress, medication, medical conditions, fatigue, pain, and changes in sleep patterns. You can sleep easily when your body is comfortable.

Cannabidiol

Cannabidiol, or CBD, is a natural compound found in cannabis plants, mainly hemp plants, and marijuana. CBD is extracted from hemp plants because it's rich in CBD and its THC levels are within the required range of 0.3%. THC is a compound in cannabis plants, mainly marijuana, that induces a high feeling. CBD is extracted using solvent extraction or alcohol extraction process. The processed CBD is further processed in full spectrum, broad spectrum, and isolate CBD bases used to make CBD products. The CBD isolate is pure, while full-spectrum and broad-spectrum contain the hemp plant terpenes, including THC, found in the full-spectrum CBD.

CBD for Sleep

 According to Reddy et al. (2022), the human body has a circadian biological clock that controls the sleep-wake cycle. Gobbi & Comai (2019) found out that melatonin, a neurotransmitter that regulates sleep, is released during the night. Cooray et al. (2020) concluded that CBD binds with the ECS receptors. When CBD is taken, it binds with melatonin receptors reducing the rate at which melatonin breaks down. CBD is also known to aid factors like pain, stress, and anxiety, calming the body and resulting in better sleep.

How to Take CBD for Sleep

CBD products for sleep are available as oils, gummies, capsules, and vapes. These products dictate the method used, including ingestion, inhalation, sublingual, and topical forms.

Ingestion Method

CBD undergoes metabolism before being absorbed into the bloodstream. When one takes gummies, cookies, or adds CBD oil to meals and drinks, the CBD has to be digested before being absorbed in the liver.

Sublingual Method

The sublingual method cheats metabolism because CBD enters the digestive canal but does not undergo metabolism. The sublingual method involves placing drops of oil under the tongue and holding it for up to 60 seconds to allow absorption. CBD oil for sleep through sublingual administration usually comes as a tincture.

Inhalation Method

The inhalation method involves using vape pens and smoking. The vape pens have a battery and a coil that heats CBD oil to vaporize it. You can also get a vaporizer or directly smoke the hemp plant leaves and flowers. The CBD is absorbed into the bloodstream in the lungs together with oxygen.

 When to Take CBD for Sleep

The time one should take CBD for sleep depends on the method used. The time taken for CBD to take effect differs from one method. The length of the effect also depends on the plan. For the ingestion method, the impact can be felt after four hours and can last up to 8 hours. In the sublingual method, the effect can be felt after 30 minutes and lasts 2 hours. On the other hand, the effect of the inhalation method can be felt after 15 minutes and can last for 45 minutes.

Dosage of CBD for Sleep

The effect of CBD is affected by one's tolerance to CBD, body weight, and metabolism; this means that there is no fixed amount of CBD for every individual. You can find your correct dose by starting with a small dose and monitoring how CBD affects you; then, you can increase the quantity to the amount you are comfortable with.

Side Effects of CBD

Taking CBD does not cause any side effects, but you can experience some mild reactions like dizziness, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach upset, nausea, and drowsiness. Brown & Winterstein (2019) noted that CBD can interact with other medications, especially prescriptions. Before using CBD for sleep, consult your doctor if you take prescribed medications.

Benefits of Sleep

Improved Immune System

During sleep, the body restores the immune system and the body's energy due to the function of growth hormones.

Better Mood Improved and Mental Health

Sleep is believed to greatly influence mental and cognitive functions, like remembering things you learned a while back.

 Stress Relief

Sleep-deprived individuals appear stressed because of not resting, and the body does not do away with natural stressors during sleep.

It Helps in Maintaining Healthy Body Weight

With enough sleep, leptin hormone is produced, suppressing appetite, and less ghrelin is produced. Ghrelin is the appetite hormone.

How to Have a Better Sleep without Supplements

You can achieve better sleep without medications or supplements by;

• Developing a sleeping routine that you can follow even during holidays and weekends.
• You can remove screens like TVs from the bedroom because of the light.
• By avoiding naps after 3 PM.
• Caffeine can make it hard for one to fall asleep; limiting coffee to morning hours can be a good choice.
• Practicing mindfulness

The Bottom Line

CBD can help with sleep by interacting with the receptors that release melatonin. CBD can also aid in insomnia, stress, anxiety, and pain. Several methods of taking CBD for sleep include ingestion, sublingual, and inhalation. These methods dictate how long it will take for you to feel the effect and how long it will last. There is no fixed dosage for CBD because of different metabolism rates, body weight, and tolerance to CBD. CBD does not have fatal side effects like habit forming, but you can experience mild side effects, which should go away shortly. Achieving quality sleep can be easy with the help of CBD and a few hacks listed here.

References

Brown, J. D., & Winterstein, A. G. (2019). Potential Adverse Drug Events and Drug–Drug Interactions with Medical and Consumer Cannabidiol (CBD) Use. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 8(7).

Cooray, R., Gupta, V., & Suphioglu, C. (2020). Current aspects of the endocannabinoid system and targeted THC and CBD phytocannabinoids as potential therapeutics for Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases: a review. Molecular Neurobiology, 57(11), 4878-4890.

Gobbi, G., & Comai, S. (2019). Differential function of melatonin MT1 and MT2 receptors in REM and NREM sleep. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 10, 87.

Reddy, S., Reddy, V., & Sharma, S. (2022). Physiology, circadian rhythm. In StatPearls [Internet]. StatPearls Publishing.