Stress could be considered the new American mental health epidemic. According to The American Institute of Stress, 77 percent of the U.S. population reports feeling stress on a regular basis. About a third say that they live with extreme stress perpetually.
What’s worse, stress levels appear to be increasing over time. Nearly half of the U.S. population believes that their stress has increased significantly during the last five years. Factors that influence stress levels include, in order of worst to least, job pressure, money, health, relationships, poor nutrition, media overload, and sleep deprivation.
There are many solutions to stress, including pinpointing the cause and trying to cut back on activities that aggravate it. However, it’s not always that simple. When you can’t change your daily activities, CBD gummies really do help alleviate stress symptoms.
What Is CBD and Is It Safe?
Cannabidiol, CBD, is a hotly debated addition to the health and pharmaceutical field that’s gained a lot of attention in years past. It’s an oil taken from the hemp plant that has certain mental and physical health benefits for people of all ages.
Because CBD is derived from the hemp plant and can be taken directly from marijuana, there’s significant controversy surrounding the drug. However, CBD and marijuana, though they share some of the same medical benefits, have completely different impacts on the mind and body.
Marijuana has high levels of THC, a psychoactive compound that alters the mental state. It’s the ingredient that makes you “high.” CBD can be purchased legally in many states as long as the THC level is less than 0.3 percent, which is not even enough to make a small child high. You can even buy CBD gummies for kids without concern that it will cause psychological issues.
CBD is not addictive and has very few, mild side effects. Many experience no side effects at all. There’s even an FDA-approved CBD drug on the market that’s been proven to help epilepsy and other neurodegenerative diseases. With further research, it’s likely that CBD will become federally approved and distributed as a useful drug for stress relief, among other things.
Stress Relieving Benefits of CBD
Now that you can rest assured that CBD is safe and legal to purchase, you’ll want to understand the benefits it can have on your stressed-out psyche. First of all, it’s useful to look at how CBD reacts in your body.
Humans have what’s called the endocannabinoid system, which regulates your central nervous system. It also helps control emotions associated with external and internal stress factors. When you consume CBD, it stimulates this system so that it better handles the stressors it encounters.
There’s not enough research to definitively say that CBD eliminates stress. However, several studies indicate that it does. A study on 32 different rodents showed that those using CBD had significantly lower anxiety levels during stress tests than those without. Similar results was found in studies on mice.
There have been few human trials that test CBD’s effects on stress levels, but those that have show that those on CBD are better able to handle environmental stressors than those who don’t use it.
CBD Gummies in Combination with Stress & Anxiety Treatments
In clinical settings, CBD seems to have the biggest impact when used in combination with other treatments for stress and anxiety. Doctors may recommend a combination of traditional psychotherapy and carefully-controlled pharmaceutical treatments and CBD oil supplements to minimize stress.
The reason this is so successful is that sometimes you have to get your body to relax in order for the psychotherapy sessions to take effect. CBD naturally relaxes you and lets you take a proverbial step back. It gives your brain the chance it needs for deep healing.
CBD Gummies Help Kids Adapt
Kids, for the most part, are highly resilient to external stressors. However, some experience greater anxiety in stressful situations than others. A study from the University of Colorado School of Medicine showed that CBD was a good solution for treating symptoms of anxiety, insomnia, and other stress-related mental illnesses as a result of traumatic experiences.
When purchased from a trustworthy source, CBD gummies are safe for kids. It can help them relax and adapt after a traumatic event. Again, this is most helpful in combination with therapies and physician-controlled pharmaceuticals.
Seek CBD Gummies from a Trustworthy Source
CBD gummies are an easy and delicious way to consume CBD when you’re feeling stressed at work or anywhere else. However, you must be careful where you buy your products. CBD can be purchased online, but it’s not very highly regulated. In fact, the only FDA-regulated CBD product requires a prescription and is only prescribed for epilepsy and related illnesses.
This doesn’t meant that you can’t purchase CBD online. You should simply be smart when shopping for CBD products.
Legally, a retailer can only sell CBD if it contains less than 0.3 percent THC. Ideally, you’ll get CBD that contains no THC at all. You don’t want to purchase CBD with high levels of THC for safety and legal reasons – you could be arrested for purchasing products high in THC if you live in a state where marijuana is not legal.
However, because it’s not highly regulated, some sellers say that CBD has lower levels of THC than it really does. Or, they don’t bother to check the THC levels before selling. Do your research, read reviews, and make sure you’re getting CBD from a trustworthy source before you consume any gummies – especially if you’re planning on giving it to kids to help with their stress levels.