By J Gordon Curtis
Surveys have shown that 42% of CBD users use CBD for sleep, making it the third biggest reason overall. As always with cannabis, the research isn’t where we’d like for it to be but it is promising!
For example, this case study found that there was an improvement in sleep for 66% of it’s 72 patients. Results came after one month of ingesting just 25mg of CBD a day — what many would consider to be a threshold dose. Another study found that larger amounts (160mg in this case) could increase the amount of sleep patients had each night.
Plenty of personal accounts of using CBD for sleep have pointed to it being a powerful tool and now we have the science to back it up! But why is CBD an effective sleep aid?
Cortisol, the fight-or-flight hormone, is responsible for regulation of our Circadian Rhythm. Those struggling with sleep are often battling with this hormone–and, therefore, also this rhythm–being out of whack.
In a recent survey, 11 people were given either CBD or a placebo and it was found that cortisol levels were “significantly attenuated after CBD” compared to the placebo. This study makes it seem likely that this is one of the big reasons why so many have found success using CBD for sleep-related issues. Your endocannabinoid system naturally produces compounds similar to CBD to regulate these hormones and stressors throughout your body.
Insomnia is often linked to an anxious, overactive mind. CBD also helps through the fact that it’s a powerful anxiolytic. By quieting the chatter within, peaceful sleep is a lot more possible.
CBD allows the person ingesting it to signal to their body that everything is okay and it’s time to begin powering down. For many, finding peace before it is time for bed is difficult. We have all had those late-night moments in bed, doing the math to figure out how much longer we had left before it was time to wake up.
If you’re having trouble sleeping, check out our new Yin Tincture. In it, we combine the powerful sleep aid of full-spectrum CBD with Canabinol (CBN) and cannabis-derived terpenes. This heavy-hitting tincture is in a league of its own!