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Is CBD Oil Good For Managing Depression?
Depression is a significant mental health disorder for many people. It can cause anxiety, stress, negative thoughts and more, resulting in adverse health, a lack of social interaction and a poor workplace experience.
While many antidepressants can combat depression, they have many adverse side effects. CBD oil is still a relatively new treatment but has promising results.
However, is CBD actually good for depression? Continue reading to learn how CBD helps with depression, what the research suggests, the side effects, and more!
How Does CBD Oil Help With Depression?
CBD oil can help alleviate symptoms of clinical depression and many anxiety disorders. It does this in numerous ways by interacting with several cannabinoid receptors in the brain. However, which specific receptors in the brain interact with CBD oil, and what does it do to those receptors?
It Interacts With The Serotonin Receptors
Serotonin is an essential hormone that stabilises mood and increases happiness. Due to its properties, it can be vital when maintaining mental health, to the extent that a doctor or mental health provider will often prescribe serotonin supplements for depression.
CBD interacts with your serotonin receptors by activating the specific receptors that improve your mood and alter how your brain responds to the serotonin that already resides in your system.
The way that CBD affects the serotonin receptors can produce similar effects to antidepressants and some anti-anxiety medication.
It Reduces Your Cortisol Levels
Cortisol is essentially your body’s primary hormone for stress. It develops anxiety and stress levels in your brain, which makes it a harmful hormone for someone with depression. It can also increase blood pressure and cause rapid weight gain.
CBD oil can disrupt the cortisol production process in the brain, which lowers stress levels, helping those suffering from anxiety and depression. It has a clear anti stress effect and also possesses anti anxiety effects.
What Does The Research On CBD Oil For Depression Suggest?
Although more research on CBD for depression is required, the current research suggests that it can help those with depression and possesses several qualities suggesting its worth as an antidepressant.
A New Zealand-based study on 400 patients suggests that CBD oil can have stimulating effects on multiple ailments and that people can use it to treat depression and other mental health disorders. Whilst being a general study, it concludes that patients using CBD oil see a reduction in symptoms, including depression symptoms.
Another test written in a 2018 review states that its results (from animal studies) show that CBD has sustained antidepressant like effects and can relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Specifically, one study on mice compares the effects of CBD for depression to the effects of the antidepressant imipramine.
Are The Other Parts Of the Cannabis Plant Good For Depression?
CBD is a primary chemical compound in the cannabis Sativa plant; the other one is THC. CBD contains anti-inflammatory effects that can help relieve symptoms of pain, anxiety and depression. However, THC doesn’t possess these properties but does possess psychoactive effects that provide a high.
However, can THC reduce depression symptoms? Its calming properties can help reduce stress over the short term, but if you consume a lot of THC, it can cause stress and anxiety, which can potentially lead to depression.
Despite the research being minimal, large THC consumption can also lead to psychosis and schizophrenia.
Can Hemp Derived CBD Products Help With Depression?
Hemp derived CBD products have far less THC than recreational cannabis products deriving from the marijuana plant. Because of this, they are better for treating depression (they also have natural health benefits on top of this).
However, these products still have 0.3% THC, which is still enough to raise anxiety levels and potentially cause depression whilst not being a large amount.
What CBD Side Effects Are There For Depression?
While CBD can have a positive effect on those with anxiety and depression, it can still cause various side effects.
Some of these side effects include:
- Weight fluctuations; weight loss is most likely because CBD can reduce appetite.
- Tiredness; can affect CBD users at night or in the middle of the day.
- Diarrhea
Although these side effects can occur, they are rarely a serious concern for patients. If you take a larger dose of CBD, there will be a higher likelihood of these side effects appearing. However, if you are on a low amount of CBD treatment, you are unlikely to encounter these side effects.
The research by the World Health Organization currently states that CBD is a safe product.
Other than direct side effects, the most significant risk of taking CBD is that it can interfere with numerous other medications. CBD can interfere with prescription medications including heart rhythm medication, blood thinners, thyroid medication, seizure medications, and more.
If you take other prescribed medications, you should talk with your doctor about CBD to determine if it will interfere with your existing medicines.
Is CBD Better Than Traditional Depression Medication?
CBD can relieve symptoms similarly to antidepressants and has antidepressant effects. However, is CBD oil a better option than prescribed antidepressants?
One difference between antidepressants and CBD oil is that antidepressants have significantly more side effects. The potential side effects of some medication consists of:
- Stress and anxiety (this only really occurs if the dosage is large or incorrect)
- Sickness; can include physically being sick.
- Constipation or diarrhea.
- A loss of appetite that can lead to substantial weight loss.
- General drowsiness can occur during the day or at night.
- Headaches and dizziness.
- Sexual dysfunction side effects include reduced sex drive, difficulty getting an erection and difficulty achieving an orgasm.
CBD only has a few of these side effects, so it is a far safer product than antidepressants. However, there isn’t enough research to state that CBD can fully replace antidepressants. So unless your doctor says otherwise, you should continue to take your antidepressant prescription.
What Types Of CBD Oil Depression Products Are Best In NZ?
When you consider using CBD for depression in New Zealand, there are many elements you need to consider.
You have to know what CBD type is best for depression, what CBD products are available, and what CBD products are legal in New Zealand.
What Form Of CBD Product Is Best For Depression?
There are many CBD products to choose from in New Zealand. The main variations between the products are the dosages and the method of use.
The product you’ve likely heard of is CBD oil. You take CBD oil by dropping the dose underneath your tongue. After this, you hold the CBD oil for up to 60 seconds and then swallow it. It is excellent for travelling straight to the brain’s receptors, which is why it is the most popular form.
If you don’t like the process of taking CBD oil, a good alternative is a CBD oral spray, which you take by spraying the correct dose into your mouth.
There are also various edible CBD products, such as tablets, lozenges, gummies, etc. Some CBD users prefer these products because packaging states the exact dose of each edible CBD product, making the process easier.
There are also CBD vapes, which doctors can prescribe as an effective alternative to CBD oil.
There are also CBD topicals like creams, patches and gels. These products are best for targeting pain but can also provide anti-inflammatory effects for depression.
Are CBD Products Legal In New Zealand?
The only way to obtain a CBD product legally in New Zealand is to have a prescription.
If you want a CBD product that your doctor doesn’t have immediate access to, they can import it from overseas if possible. You can also use Ministry of Health approved non-prescription CBD products if your doctor has sent a special recommendation approval letter.
If you have depression and want to take CBD on an overseas holiday with you, there are some aspects you need to remember:
- First, you must have your official prescription letter on your person.
- Second, you must legally declare your CBD product on a country entry form.
- Third, the CBD product must be in its original packaging.
- Finally, the CBD product has to be less than a three month supply to qualify.
Conclusion: Is CBD Oil Good For Depression?
Despite needing further research in the future, the current research states that CBD can have very positive effects on depression symptoms. For example, it can increase serotonin levels in those with low serotonin, increasing mood and reducing stress.
CBD isolate is the best type of CBD to take for depression, as it has no THC in it. THC can cause significant stress, which is a symptom of depression.
While side effects come with CBD, they aren’t persistent and are minor when we compare them to the extensive list of antidepressant side effects.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can CBD Oil Improve My Mental Health?
CBD can be a fantastic solution to relieve mental health symptoms. Examples of mental health disorders CBD can help include anxiety disorders like social anxiety disorder and PTSD and mental disorders like depression.
CBD helps with these disorders by increasing your serotonin level (the hormone for happiness and positive interaction) and decreasing your cortisol level (the hormone for stress).
How Long Will It Take For CBD Oil To Help My Depression?
The length of time it takes for CBD to help with depression depends on a few aspects.
It depends on the CBD dose you take and how often you take it. If your prescription is a higher dose, you will see a reduction in symptoms faster.
However, if you consistently take a high dose of CBD oil for depression, you will start to feel the therapeutic effects less and less.
Is CBD A Better Option Than Antidepressants?
The most significant difference between CBD’s effects and antidepressant effects is that CBD has far fewer side effects.
With CBD, you can get drowsy, lose appetite, and get diarrhea, but antidepressants can also make you dizzy and sick, give you headaches, and cause sexual dysfunction.