The CBD industry is expected to hit the $16 billion mark in the United States by the year 2025. CBD, the popular plant extract is already being added to a lot of products that range from toothpicks to cheeseburgers. The newfound popularity of the compound has left people baffled and in search of new and interesting ways to add it to our daily routine.
What Exactly Is CBD?
CBD or cannabidiol is an extract from the cannabis sativa plant. CBD is just one among the 100 or more derivatives of the cannabis sativa plant. Another extract from the same plant family, THC is famous/infamous for its psychoactive property that induces a feeling of euphoria in its users, whereas CBD is known to possess no psychoactive properties, making it the safer option to use for medicinal and therapeutic purposes. Though both CBD and THC are known to work wonders in treating many conditions, the latter is known to become addictive over a period of time, making it the lesser preferred compound when compared to CBD with no known addiction-inducing effects, even in long term users and those using high doses of the compound.
Conditions That Can Benefit From CBD Use
Many medical conditions and a number of symptoms associated with these conditions can be treated to some extent with the right kind of CBD therapy. The medical conditions that are claimed to respond to CBD-based treatment include anxiety, depression, insomnia, chronic pain, heart problems, digestive issues, epilepsy and a number of skin problems like eczema and psoriasis.
CBD is known to help people suffering from serious mental issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder, without causing addiction. This non-addictive property of CBD is of much relevance in treating people suffering from mental health issues. CBD is even claimed to help with substance addiction by reducing cravings for specific drugs and helping patients withdraw from usage without experiencing debilitating side effects such as pain and further mental stress.
The studies on the actual effects of pure CBD are inconclusive as of now. More and more studies are being funded and conducted to unveil the potential of CBD as a magical cure for many conditions. However, in the absence of concrete evidence linking CBD to better health of users, it is advisable to rely on the compound in moderation to avoid any possible side effects that are counterproductive.