The human body is an amazing and complex machine that runs efficiently with the direction of the nervous system. Maintaining a healthy nervous system is fundamental to overall wellness because the nervous system regulates everything from our cognition to our breathing to our immune system.
Yet despite the great importance of the nervous system to our overall health, it tends to get the least amount of attention when it comes to our daily wellness regimens. Just how can CBD support a healthy nervous system? This blog post explores various ways CBD products (such as CBD oils) can help support a healthy nervous system.
Before considering any kind of dietary supplements, you should acquaint yourself with how they can affect the nervous system. Also remember that whatever medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment you receive, this blog is for informational purposes only—so it’s always best to consult a health professional first.
CBD and the Nervous System
Several studies have been published about CBD and how it could assist in the management of nervous system conditions. It is also important to point out that in 2018 the FDA approved Epidiolex as a prescription drug for the treatment of seizures related to two rare forms of childhood epilepsy. Epidiolex is still the only drug approved by the FDA that contains CBD.
While ongoing research is important, we can already see that CBD interacts with the nervous system in remarkable ways. Making CBD part of our daily wellness routine can help maintain optimal function of the nervous system, which offers a whole range of positive effects, from supporting our immune system to enlightening our general mood, and managing things like discomfort or general stress.
What is the Nervous System?
Think of the human nervous system as the command center of your body. In other words, the nervous system is the system that regulates all the other systems of the body through a complex intercommunications network. One might even say the nervous system is the internet of the body and the brain its hard drive.
Important messages about body function, protection, and feeling all run through our neural pathways, which are part of the nervous system. Over 7 trillion nerves make up the nervous system, connecting nearly every cell and aspect of our body with the brain’s control center. Thus, nearly everything we do—from breathing to thinking to working to sleeping—is controlled by the nervous system.
Damage to the nervous system can occur from illness, disease, disorders, or trauma. Even stress can have detrimental effects on our nervous system, which in turn, can cause more serious problems. Major Depressive Disorder (for example) shows a disruption of the nervous system that can sometimes be triggered by stress. Thus, limiting and managing stress in our lives can be an important part of supporting a healthy nervous system. CBD products like Elixinol’s Calm Stress Support capsules help to relieve occasional stress and promote a positive mood, which contributes to the overall health of our immune system. Adding an extra layer of protection to our nervous system is a step towards greater wellness and less disruption to normal functioning.
Effects of CBD on the Nervous System
Doctors and scientists who have studied the effect of cannabis compounds on the body continue to discover the fascinating ways CBD interacts with our nervous systems. Cannabis compounds (or cannabinoids) such as CBD and THC interact directly with the body’s nervous network via the endocannabinoid system, which is a vast network of cell receptors that react to very specific compounds.
In other words, the body’s nervous system shows a remarkable correlative effect with CBD that can touch so many different aspects of how our bodies and minds function every day. For example, some CBD products act on the nervous system to help us with supporting optimal sleep, relieving occasional stress, or managing muscle soreness after activity or exercise. In turn, sleeping better, living with less stress and less discomfort all contribute to a stronger nervous system.
What’s more, using a supplement (such as CBD derived from hemp plants) shows little to no side effects. Over the long-term, focusing on preventative care can pay back dividends, as a healthy nervous system regulates a healthier mind and body.
Supporting a Healthy Nervous System with CBD
Just like weightlifting supports better muscle strength—or the way that cardio exercise supports a healthy heart and lungs—our brain and nervous network also require regular care in order to work at their optimal level. Along with regular physical exercise and mindfulness practices (like meditation or tai chi), diminishing the effects of stress in our lives can help in reducing anxiety disorders. In recent studies, CBD has been shown to lower the release of stress-response hormones. That’s right—CBD can support us in combatting some of the body’s negative reactions to stress.
But CBD offers so much more, as it activates the endocannabinoid system towards homeostasis (a state of optimal functioning) across the nervous system. This leads to support of your immune system, support of optimal sleep, and better management of discomfort.
How CBD Oil Supports a Healthy Nervous System
Recent studies show that products like full-spectrum CBD oil can often exhibit neuroprotective properties in users. For example, CBD products can improve the health and vitality of neural cells while diminishing our typical stress-response hormones that can have detrimental effects over the long-term. In other words, CBD can help neural cells better understand the job they need to do, and help those cells perform their function well. Meanwhile, CBD can protect healthy neural cells from being damaged by hormonal responses that are often triggered by stress.
Finding the right CBD product to support the Nervous System
Learning and understanding how the endocannabinoid system works is just a step in finding a lifestyle that supports a healthy nervous system. The more we learn about the endocannabinoid system, the more we can appreciate the way that optimal health comes from a holistic approach that works directly with our body’s regulatory network. Everyone is unique, yet science has shown us that we all have an endocannabinoid system that supports our nervous system. Thus, whatever specific benefit we are seeking, working with hemp-derived CBD is a simple, straightforward step we can take towards supporting a well-functioning nervous system.
