Arthritis is a chronic pain condition that is characterized by swelling, tenderness and pain in your joints. It starts with stiffness and discomfort, and tends to worsen with age. According to the CDC, an estimated 23% of American adults have arthritis. It is not a disease, and unfortunately this means that there is no cure.
However, there are medications and treatment you can use to at least relieve the pain and swelling in your joints so you can live a more normal life. One option is CBD, a natural supplement that is extracted from the cannabis plant. By itself, CBD does not make you high like the THC in marijuana does. Instead, it comes with almost no side effects, and the side effects that do exist are minor. See more here. Here are the three ways that CBD can help treat the symptoms of arthritis.
#1) Reduce Joint Inflammation
One of the main issues with arthritis is the swelling and inflammation that occurs in your joints. Not only can that cause discomfort and pain, but it also can cause you to have a more limited range of motion in your joints. Moving your fingers, knees, arms, or whatever joint has been affected can become stiff and painful. This can make you move around gingerly, or not at all in extreme cases.
One of the best properties of CBD is that it has powerful anti-inflammatory properties. You can take CBD oil or CBD capsules, or get special creams, lotions, or skin patches that can be applied directly to your affected joints. Using CBD can help reduce the swelling in your joints so you gain back some of your lost range of motion.
#2) Relieve Pain
The other main issue with arthritis is the pain in your joints. Whenever you have swelling and inflammation, you are liable to have discomfort at the very least and usually outright pain. This is caused by the swollen tissue presses against the nerve endings. This usually leads to sharp sensations of pain.
CBD can help relieve pain caused by arthritis in two ways. First, by reducing the inflammation that is the underlying cause of pain. Second, by relieving the sensation of pain. CBD interacts with the endocannabinoid system (ECS) throughout your brain and nervous system. It binds to your CB1 and CB2 receptors, which controls your sensation of pain.
#3) Improve Sleep
The pain and discomfort from arthritis can also cause issues with sleep. Any chronic pain condition often affects the ability to fall and stay asleep, so you don’t get a full night’s rest. When you regularly get poor sleep, you are more likely to develop a number of health complications including weight gain and an increased risk for heart disease, stress and anxiety, and diabetes.
CBD is able to help improve sleep quality for people with arthritis, as one study revealed. It does this both by treating the underlying causes for sleep interruption due to arthritis (pain, inflammation), and by helping improve sleep quality in general. Your ECS also regulates your sleep and your circadian rhythm, so when you take CBD, you are able to fall asleep more easily and stay asleep throughout the night.
If you have arthritis, trying CBD may be a very viable option to treat the above three issues. It is safe, and studies have shown that it is effective. You can speak with your doctor to see if you are able to use it as a supplement to your other medication and treatments. You can also try taking medication-grade CBD in place of your previous medication, if you find it is not helping as much as you’d like it to. CBD can have a negative side effect when combined with certain medication, so always consult with your doctor first.
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