The benefits of CBD for Health & Wellbeing
Benefits of CBD use in your daily life
When life gets busy, your wellness routine is the first thing to be sacrificed, even though it’s the most important foundation for your health and wellbeing.
Wellness is about balancing healthy habits to live a more fulfilling life. However, the reality of it can be difficult at times. Getting enough sleep, managing stress, and eating well all tend to pile up on each other and make life harder than it needs to be.
Fortunately, CBD happens to be all about balance.
How CBD works: The Endocannabinoid System
CBD, or cannabidiol, is one of the major cannabinoids found in cannabis and hemp. CBD doesn’t affect us directly but rather influences how our body regulates itself.
The endocannabinoid system (ECS) is a communication network in the body that uses endocannabinoids to carry information between cannabinoid receptors throughout the body. It does this to regulate several vital body functions such as sleep, mood, appetite, pain, immune function, and hormones.
You can think of the ECS as the conductor of an orchestra– it helps maintain harmony between all of these functions and adjusts them as needed.
Enzymes break down these endocannabinoids after they’ve fulfilled their role. However, when our health is struggling (due to a lack of exercise, poor diet, too much stress, etc.), the ECS can’t regulate itself properly and falls out of balance. When this happens, enzymes start breaking down endocannabinoids before they can fulfil their role.
And this is where CBD can help. By inhibiting enzymes from excessively breaking down endocannabinoids, CBD indirectly raises endocannabinoid levels in the body and allows the ECS to function at its optimum.
Wellness Benefits of CBD
With the ECS running smoothly, it can properly regulate many other areas of the body as well. Adding CBD to your wellness routine can help you feel better from the inside out.
Better Sleep
Sleep is the foundation of our well-being, and it affects your mood, weight, immune system, and so much more. While we know that sleep is important, it can be challenging to get enough quality sleep at times. Thankfully, CBD can help make it easier.
Studies have found CBD may improve sleep quality and duration by supporting the ECS in regulating the sleep-wake cycle. If your sleep-wake cycle is off, you may struggle to fall asleep or stay asleep through the whole night. CBD can help “reset” our sleep cycle by helping the ECS adapt to lifestyle changes, such as late work hours or jet lag.
CBD has also been found to influence adenosine levels, which are sleep hormones responsible for making you feel tired according to your circadian rhythm.
Reduce Stress & Anxiety
Stress can take a tremendous toll on your well-being. When dealing with too much stress, our brain thinks and perceives the world differently.
Our stress response is regulated by the amygdala, a part of the brain that acts as an alarm bell for the body. When the amygdala perceives something as a threat, it rings the alarm and floods your body with the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline. The issue is, the more it does this, the larger and more sensitive the amygdala becomes.
Research shows that CBD affects activity in limbic and paralimbic brain areas, where the amygdala is located. CBD also helps relieve stress and anxiety by regulating cortisol levels in the body.
Improved Mood
Contrary to popular belief, your mood isn’t a reflection of the world around you. If anything, your mood is a reflection of your gut.
The gut-brain axis describes the connection between your microbiome (your gut flora) and the central nervous system. They communicate through the ECS, and your gut health affects your immune system, weight, emotions, and general wellbeing.
The gut microbiome influences your mood and mental health and researchers have even found that more than 70% of our serotonin is produced in the gut. CBD has many benefits for your gut: it can help increase beneficial bacteria while getting rid of harmful bacteria to support a healthy microbiome, which ultimately has positive effects on your mood and wellbeing.
Skincare
CBD has become one of the most popular skincare ingredients for its natural benefits. Topical CBD products, such as creams or balms, can be used to target trouble areas by interacting directly with cannabinoid receptors in local skin cells.
CBD can help support the skin barrier, which protects against harmful environmental factors, and balance the skin’s oxidative stress response, slowing down the appearance of ageing and fine lines in the skin. Thanks to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, CBD also promotes cellular healing and skin repair, reducing scarring and acne.
CBD is an incredibly valuable ingredient that supports our body in doing what it already does: keeping us healthy and happy. With such a variety of benefits and uses, correct packaging is essential for CBD products.
If you’re looking for safe and secure packaging for your CBD products, Pont can advise you on all aspects of product development and create bespoke solutions to fit your needs. Feel free to contact us with any questions or enquiries!