Unless you’ve spent the past few years living under a rock, you’ve probably heard of CBD. Virtually unknown just a few years ago, CBD has all of a sudden taken the nation by storm.
These days, it’s hard to walk down a city street without seeing signs for CBD products: you’ll find CBD in cocktails, coffees, baked goods, and so much more. The health buffs you know are talking about CBD, and it’s all over health and lifestyle magazines and blogs.
But why? What is CBD, why is it suddenly so popular, and what could it do for you?
What is CBD?
Let’s start from the beginning. What is this thing that everyone is suddenly so interested in?
CBD stands for cannabidiol, but unless you’re an expert in cannabis, that might not mean much to you. Cannabidiol is a chemical found in the drug marijuana. It’s one of the chemicals that are known as cannabinoids — things in marijuana that have some effect on our bodies.
And not all cannabinoids get people high. The one most famous for doing so is THC; in states with legal marijuana, some pure THC products are sold and used recreationally. CBD can also be isolated from the rest of the cannabinoid gang, so taking it on its own will not get you high. Why are people taking it then? Simple: they’re interested in CBD’s many health benefits.
The many benefits of CBD
It’s no secret that marijuana has a lot of positive effects. It can help with pain, reduce nausea, and relax you, to name just a few benefits. But smoking marijuana may not be healthy, and ingesting the drug-using any of the several popular methods will get a user high.
For those who don’t wish to get high (or who might like to, but have responsibilities), this makes marijuana a tough sell as a health supplement. But CBD is responsible for many of these health benefits, experts believe. Isolated CBD can give users some of the same benefits without the high.
To be clear, there’s still plenty that we don’t know about CBD. But what we know so far is largely good news, and researchers are still finding new benefits that CBD might give users. All this potential is part of the reason that CBD is so exciting right now.
Getting started with CBD
If all of this sounds good, then you may be wondering how you can add CBD to your regular health routine. Happily, it’s quite easy! Unlike THC and marijuana, CBD is legal or de facto legal virtually everywhere. And there are all sorts of products that make it easy to ingest: there are CBD patches, tinctures, lotions, edibles, and vape oils, to name just a few.
You can also, of course, check out CBD in cafes and bars: CBD cocktails and coffees are all the rage, and you’ll even find CBD beer. These products may not be the best way to make CBD a part of your daily life — you probably shouldn’t be drinking lots of cocktails every day — but they’re a great way to grab some extra CBD when you’re on the run.
So find a method that suits you and that you find it easy to make a part of your daily health routine. By adding CBD as a regular supplement, you may find that you experience reduced anxiety and other perks.
