What You Need to Know About CBD Oil for Psoriasis
CBD oil is gaining more and more interest in terms of being a wonderful solution for people living with psoriasis. Many people living with psoriasis try a huge variety of remedies to get their condition under control, and there is increasing research and evidence surrounding the success of CBD oil in helping treat psoriasis.
This comes with its perks and downfalls, but learning about all the avenues of treatment out there is essential in finding a solution that works for you. So let’s start from the very beginning.
What is CBD Oil?
First, let’s explain what CBD is.
CBD stands for cannabidiol, and as the name alludes, cannabidiol originates from the cannabis plant, commonly known as marijuana. Cannabidiol is just one of the chemicals that comes from the cannabis plant, and it is still in its fairly early days of being studied, so there is not a huge amount of solid evidence out there just yet around what it can and cannot help with.
However, with the worldwide movement starting to lean in favor of marijuana being able to assist people who are suffering from acute pain, it is interesting to find out what else this plant with over 100 chemicals may be able to help us with.
You’ll know of marijuana because of its THC properties. Those properties that can affect your mind and how you see things around you. With CBD, there’s no THC. To make CBD oil, the CBD is extracted from the cannabis plant and then mixed with something like coconut oil to make an oil that you can ingest or apply to the skin.
What Are the Benefits of CBD Oil?
Even though studies are still underway, there is still plenty of discussion around the potential benefits that CBD oil may bring to patients. One of the main benefits that are discussed often is pain relief. This pain relief seems to be noticed across different types of pain, from muscle pain to arthritis. This includes the pain associated with psoriasis.
According to Healthline, the body’s endocannabinoid system helps to regulate functions like sleep, pain, and, interestingly for psoriasis sufferers, the immune system. When the CBD enters the body, it binds with the endocannabinoids that the body produces and changes the way this system receives pain.
How Can CBD Oil for Psoriasis Help?
Another benefit that CBD oil is known for is clearing up things like rashes and eczema. This extends to psoriasis as well.
With psoriasis being an inflammatory disease, CBD oil has been found to help clear the up the appearance of psoriasis when the oil is applied directly onto the skin. It’s suggested that it does this by slowing down the growth of skin cells. Psoriasis is a skin condition that comes about due to the excessive growth rate of skin cells, so if CBD assists in slowing this down, then the appearance of psoriasis is likely to be reduced.
Psoriasis is also linked with mental illnesses including depression and anxiety. Many people who have suffered psoriasis before, whether this is from stress, or other triggers, may end up with feelings of anxiety and depression. It can result in lowered self-esteem, and living with the illness can result in higher levels of stress, which in turn can result in another psoriasis flare-up.
The research into CBD oil suggests that CBD prevents the breakdown of a chemical in our brains that affect our mental function. By doing this, symptoms of mental illnesses like anxiety and depression seem to be reduced.
What Are the Side Effects of CBD Oil for Psoriasis?
There is not much information about the side effects of CBD. It’s considered to be relatively safe to consume. The extent of the side effects that have been uncovered in studies so far includes such things as diarrhea, low blood pressure, appetite changes and fatigue.
What’s the Legality of CBD Oil?
CBD oil and cannabis oil are different. CBD oil doesn’t contain THC, for this reason, it is legal in many places around the world. It’s always wise to check the legality of products that come from cannabis plants in your area first. And of course, talk to your doctor before you try any new medication or treatments.
As the world starts to look beyond the cannabis plant as a mind-altering drug, we will start to learn more and more about the health benefits that come about due to the various chemicals within the plant. People living with Psoriasis often already have an open mind to all the different and upcoming treatments that may be available to help them, so this transition to trying CBD oil for psoriasis treatment may not be a big one for them.
However, the interest in CBD and CBD oil that people with psoriasis and pain sufferers may increase the research put into the product to make sure it is thoroughly checked, and if possible, made readily available to those who want to use it.