There is great promise surrounding the non-intoxicating cannabidiol (CBD), one of the most important components of the cannabis and hemp plant. The substance helps to regulate the body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS) and is therefore being styled as a natural treatment for a long list of conditions, including chronic pain, arthritis, anxiety, depression, psychosis and fibromyalgia. But what is the best way to consume CBD for the best effect: from my experience its vaping CBD but lets look at the science.
As more studies are conducted on these illnesses and the effect that CBD can have them, we are starting to get a more complete picture on how the compound may be beneficial, and how it can have the most potent therapeutic effect. Hence why we see so many CBD products on the market, such as tincture oils, creams, edibles and concentrates. And, of course, CBD e-liquids and vape oils.
Vaping in general is enjoying a huge boom, and an increasing reason for this is the CBD industry. In addition to CBD e-liquid, concentrates and dry herb can also be vaporized, providing the user has a compatible device.
But why vaping other over consumption methods? Here are four reasons for vaping CBD.
Speed of delivery
Certain ailments require rapid treatment if they are going to be effectively managed – this is particularly the case with pain. Patients who need therapeutic relief on-demand may not be helped by edibles, but CBD e-liquid tends to work much better because it works quickly, thanks to how the CBD enters the bloodstream and interacts with cannabinoid receptors.
After turning on the vaporizer, the device will get to operating temperature within a few seconds – the user can then start inhaling the warm vapor which contains activated CBD. The vapor is sucked into the lungs, where it permeates the walls of the alveoli, and passes into the bloodstream.
As well as treating pain, fast-acting CBD is also a more efficient way for anxiety patients to self-medicate, as it helps to kill off a panic attack or bout of overthinking before it takes over the mind.
For those who need a more intense CBD hit than they are getting from vape juices, try vaping concentrates instead – CBDistillery’s isolate concentrates are renowned for their high potency.
Higher bioavailability
If CBD has one downside right now, it’s the size of the molecules which often translates to low bioavailability – in layman’s terms, this means that CBD can be inefficient. This is exacerbated with orally-consumed products like edibles. There are high hopes that nanotechnology may significantly enhance CBD’s bioavailability in the future, but for now, vaping is the way forward.
Increased bioavailability
CBD molecules are quite big, and not all can be successfully absorbed into the bloodstream. The percentage that can is referred to as the bioavailability. Each CBD consumption method has a different bioavailability, but vaping outdoes all the rest, including sublingually-absorbed tincture oils.
A higher bioavailability means that a smaller dose of CBD is needed with vaping than other products to experience the same effect, making it a more cost-effective form of treatment. This can make a massive difference for regular CBD users who need to take multiple doses per day.
Vaping is safer than smoking
Research into the short and long-term effects of vaping has picked up in recent years, as governments don’t want to make the same mistakes with vaping that they did with smoking. The good news is that vaping is considerably healthier than smoking, according to this study from Public Health England. As opposed to smoking, there are no carcinogens formed with vaping, and nor does tar accumulate in the lungs and negatively affect lung capacity. Furthermore, from an efficiency perspective, since there is no burning involved with vaping, no CBD is lost in the heating process.
Moreover, vaping can be a more pleasant experience than smoking, as the lower temperatures allows for better appreciation of the flavor of a strain.
CBD vaping is non-psychoactive
CBD is non-psychoactive and will not produce a high no matter how you take it or how much you consume. CBD is non-intoxicating because of how it affects the ECS. Instead of binding with the mood-altering CB1 receptor, CBD inhibits activity at this receptor as an antagonist, and actually initiates an anti-psychotic effect which could theoretically help with treating psychosis and schizophrenia.
Now that non-psychoactive, hemp-based CBD vape options from brands like Kanna CBD are available to the public, we can expect the stigma around cannabis to decline at an even faster rate. All ages can benefit from CBD, and the absence of severe side effects means many are prepared to experiment.
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