Where to Put CBD Cream for Anxiety

CBD creams are gaining popularity. However, most consumers don’t know how best to use the product to relieve anxiety. Read on to learn more about CBD creams for anxiety, where they should be administered, and other possible benefits.

CBD is considered a remarkable alternative for pharmaceutical drugs. Although several research studies are being conducted to understand the integrity of its effects, CBD has displayed its anti-inflammatory and anti-anxiety properties. It can be infused in various products, including gummies, capsules, tinctures, and topicals. CBD topicals include creams, lotions, salves, and balms. They are administered topically and are infused with other essential oils such as lavender, olive oil, and eucalyptus oil. Besides relieving anxiety, they improve skin health and reduce dehydration and other skin conditions such as eczema and acne.

What Is CBD Cream?

Although they are not too different from regular creams, CBD creams hold an ace up their sleeve due to the infusion of cannabidiol.

CBD is an organic chemical compound obtained from hemp. It is non-psychoactive and thus does not cause a ‘high’ sensation when consumed. Besides hemp, marijuana is an active plant strain of the cannabis plant. However, these plants have different chemical properties and components.

While hemp has higher CBD levels, marijuana has traces of CBD and higher amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The latter causes euphoric sensations and alters the user’s normal brain functioning.

Where to Put CBD Cream for Anxiety

If you are new to CBD creams, you might be curious about where to apply them to alleviate anxiety. There are no precise target areas you can apply CBD cream for anxiety. You can apply the cream to areas that experience muscle tension since these areas might be affected when you feel anxious.

Applying CBD cream to the face, underarms, and forehead is a good place to start. These areas are guaranteed to experience muscle tension when you feel anxious, so applying CBD creams might be helpful.

You can also apply CBD cream to the scalp since it has numerous blood vessels, sebaceous glands, and hair follicles, providing a larger surface area for CBD to penetrate the skin properly.  

You should consider applying CBD cream to the shoulders, hips, stomach, and neck. While applying CBD cream for anxiety, it is important to be patient and allow the CBD cream to be fully absorbed since the duration of contact influences the amount of CBD that penetrates your skin.

Before applying CBD cream to the skin, you should cleanse it properly. CBD creams are less effective when applied on dirty skin since dust, oils, and bacteria make it more difficult for the cream to penetrate the skin fully. You can also exfoliate your skin before applying CBD cream to ensure the cream is more effective.

How to Use CBD Creams for Anxiety

CBD creams can be applied in the morning to enhance skin hydration due to their moisturizing properties. In addition, they can be administered in the evening to remove dirt, oil, and bacteria from the skin.

Ensure you gently apply the cream to higher tension areas, including the chest, neck, and shoulders, since these body parts experience muscle tension when you feel anxious.

How to Choose the Right CBD Cream

• Ensure the product has undergone intensive independent third-party testing. You can check the Certificate of Analysis on the company’s website since it indicates the product’s ingredients, potency, and purity levels.
• Ensure the CBD extract is obtained from organically grown hemp.
• Confirm the extraction method used to obtain the CBD extract. CO₂ extraction is highly preferred since it maintains the product’s purity and potency.
• Read the customer reviews since they give more insight into the product’s efficacy.

How Do CBD Creams Work?

According to Baswan et al. (2020), CBD creams interact with the endocannabinoid system by binding with endocannabinoid receptors under the skin. The endocannabinoid system is a complex system comprising endocannabinoids, receptors, and enzymes. It maintains several biological functions, including sleep, metabolism, breathing, and digestion in a homeostatic state. Furthermore, cannabidiol has a similar structure to the cannabinoids present in the body.

The receptors include CB1 and CB2, which are abundant in the central and peripheral nervous systems. CBD binds indirectly with CB2 receptors, transmitting electric signals that alleviate pain and anxiety. In addition, Pretzsch et al. (2019) suggested that CBD enhances the activity of GABA (Gamma AminoButryic Acid) in the brain, reducing higher levels of anxiety and stress.

What Amount of CBD Should You Use?

CBD gummies and capsules are easier to use since the dosage is precisely indicated on the product label. For example, if a gummy contains 5mg of CBD, you’ll need to consume 4 gummies to achieve a 20mg dosage. Contrastingly, finding the precise dosage for CBD creams is difficult since the product label only indicates the total amount of CBD in the cream. However, you can determine the dosage to use by dividing the total amount of CBD by the volume indicated on the package.

For example, if a CBD cream contains 400mg of CBD in 100g, a single gram contains 4mg of CBD. Therefore, if your daily dose is 60mg, you’ll need 15mg of the cream.

It’s important to apply enough CBD cream on your skin based on its potency. Higher potency CBD creams would require a smaller application, and vice versa.

Other Benefits of CBD Cream

• Peyravian et al. (2022) mentioned that CBD cream has anti-inflammatory properties that alleviate inflammation in the skin, muscles, and body tissues. The creams also alleviate inflammatory skin conditions such as acne.
• Moltke et al. (2021) mentioned that CBD creams may alleviate insomnia and improve sleep quality by relieving muscle tension and muscle aches.
• Jastrząb et al. (2021) stated that CBD creams have anti-oxidant properties that alleviate oxidative stress in the skin.
• Blebea et al. (2021) stated that CBD creams have moisturizing properties that enhance skin hydration.
• Abichabki et al. (2022) mentioned that CBD creams have anti-bacterial properties that remove bacteria, oil, and dirt from the skin.

Possible Side Effects of CBD Creams

Although CBD creams are effective, they may cause drowsiness and adverse skin reactions if infused with inorganic products such as molds and heavy metals. Therefore, ensure you purchase organic CBD creams since they have minimal side effects.

Conclusion

CBD creams can be applied to various skin areas to relieve anxiety. For example, applying CBD creams on the forehead and temples is effective since they have thinner skin; thus, the cream penetrates deeper into the skin tissues. You can apply it on the scalp since it has numerous blood vessels and hair follicles, providing the necessary surface area to absorb the CBD cream effectively.

Before applying the cream, ensure you cleanse or exfoliate your skin for better penetration of the cream. In addition, confirm the product’s potency and dosage to ensure you use the right amount of cream on your skin. CBD creams are popular due to their anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and anti-bacterial properties. While purchasing CBD creams, ensure you confirm the hemp source, extraction method, and whether the product has undergone intensive independent third-party testing.

References

Jastrząb, A., Jarocka-Karpowicz, I., Markowska, A., Wroński, A., Gęgotek, A., & Skrzydlewska, E. (2021). Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect of cannabidiol contributes to the decreased lipid peroxidation of keratinocytes of rat skin exposed to UV radiation. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2021.

Baswan, S. M., Klosner, A. E., Glynn, K., Rajgopal, A., Malik, K., Yim, S., & Stern, N. (2020). Therapeutic potential of cannabidiol (CBD) for skin health and disorders. Clinical, cosmetic and investigational dermatology, 13, 927.

Blebea, N. M., Hancu, G., Costache, T., CIOBANU, A., NICOARĂ, A., Karampelas, O., & NEGREȘ, S. (2021). LC-MS/MS USE FOR TESTING PESTICIDES IN CANNABINOID-CONTAINING PRODUCTS. FARMACIA, 69(6), 1107-1111.

Peyravian, N., Deo, S., Daunert, S., & Jimenez, J. J. (2022). The Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Cannabidiol (CBD) on Acne. Journal of Inflammation Research, 15, 2795.

Pretzsch, C. M., Freyberg, J., Voinescu, B., Lythgoe, D., Horder, J., Mendez, M. A., ... & McAlonan, G. M. (2019). Effects of cannabidiol on brain excitation and inhibition systems; a randomised placebo-controlled single dose trial during magnetic resonance spectroscopy in adults with and without autism spectrum disorder. Neuropsychopharmacology, 44(8), 1398-1405.

Moltke, J., & Hindocha, C. (2021). Reasons for cannabidiol use: a cross-sectional study of CBD users, focusing on self-perceived stress, anxiety, and sleep problems. Journal of cannabis research, 3(1), 1-12.

Abichabki, N., Zacharias, L. V., Moreira, N. C., Bellissimo-Rodrigues, F., Moreira, F. L., Benzi, J. R., ... & Andrade, L. N. (2022). Potential cannabidiol (CBD) repurposing as antibacterial and promising therapy of CBD plus polymyxin B (PB) against PB-resistant gram-negative bacilli. Scientific reports, 12(1), 1-15.