How Does CBD Improve Sleep?

CBD Improves Sleep

In today’s non-stop, always-connected internet culture if there’s one thing most people neglect it’s sleep.  Our phones are constantly calling to use for just one more tweet, YouTube video or Facebook scroll.  And the blue light emanating from our devices has been proven to suppress melatonin, the natural hormone our bodies produce at night to trigger sleep. And if you do sleep, the quality of sleep is usually subpar at best.  The American Sleep Association reports that 50-70 million adults have a sleep disorder.  That’s close to 1/5 of the entire U.S. population!

Three of the most commonly reported sleep disorders are insomnia, sleep apnea, and restless leg syndrome. Here’s a quick breakdown of each condition and its symptoms:

• Insomnia – This is a sleep disorder in which people have difficulty falling or staying asleep. People with insomnia will wake up often during the night and having trouble getting back to sleep, leaving them unrefreshed and fatigued the following day. A number of factors can cause insomnia, including illness, pain and depression.
• Sleep apnea – A potentially serious sleep disorder, sleep apnea causes a person’s breathing to be interrupted during sleep. People with sleep apnea often repeatedly stop breathing during their sleep, which, as you can imagine, can be a serious risk. This is either caused by a blockage in your airway or when your brain fails to signal your body to breathe.
• Restless legs syndrome – RLS is a sleep disorder that causes an intense, often irresistible urge to move the legs. It typically occurs in the evening, making it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep. Certain medications can cause RLS, as well as illness and psychological issues.

Whatever the cause of these sleep issues the answer is clear, you need not just more sleep but better-quality sleep.  It’s makes no difference if you get the recommended 7-8 hours but wake up 3-4 times a night, that’s not quality sleep.  Each night you get insufficient sleep you accrue a sleep debt that has farther reaching effects than just feeling tired.  Feelings of stress, lack of energy and risk factors for things like depression and other conditions all increase when you consistently live life in a sleep debt.

How do you combat sleep issues?  Something many people are trying with great success is CBD.  Many people report taking CBD in some form a couple hours before bed has a calming effect that greatly increases their ability to get a peaceful night’s sleep.

What Is CBD?

CBD (cannabidiol) is one of over a hundred different compounds found in the hemp plant.  CBD is part of a group of compounds known as cannabinoids.  Cannabinoids have been found to offer a variety of therapeutic benefits both anecdotally and via research studies.

Scientific studies on CBD specifically have found it to be safe (there are no known side dangerous side effects), non-intoxicating, and a potential treatment for a wide range of conditions. Sleep disorders are one of the most popular reason to use CBD.

Can CBD Help You Sleep?

One of the biggest ways CBD is helping people improve their sleep is by reducing pain.  Per the CDC, as of 2016 an estimated 50 million adults were living with chronic pain, and I can only imagine that number is increasing.  Research has discovered that CBD has pain relieving properties. Therefore, if the pain is stopping you from sleeping well, CBD may be effective at reducing the pain and helping you get to sleep and stay asleep.

Another way CBD is helping people improve their sleep is by reducing anxiety. A number of studies have shown CBD to have potent anti-anxiety properties. If you are less anxious overall it stands to follow that you will sleep better at night.

Sleep Research

Along with much anecdotal evidence for the use of CBD to help with sleep issues, there are also scientific studies providing the evidence we can turn to.  Here are 3 such sleep studies:

Study 1

Looking at the effect of CBD on the sleep-wake cycle, this study found that patients given varying amounts of CBD increased their overall time asleep. This includes the amount of REM sleep, which is the restorative part of your sleep cycle where waking experience is converted into lasting memories.

Study 2

This study tested whether CBD could help insomniacs with their condition. It found that subjects who received the highest dose of CBD (160mg) reported having slept significantly more than those receiving placebo.

Study 3

In this review of the current literature up to 2014, CBD oil was shown to hold promise for REM sleep, and excessive daytime sleepiness.

How Much to Take for Sleep?

CBD has been shown to be extremely safe, even at high doses.  That being said, it’s still recommended to consult your doctor prior to beginning CBD, especially if you take prescription medications to avoid any potential conflicts.

When first starting out with CBD, it is always recommended that you begin with a relatively small dose and gradually increase until you attain the desired effect. A small dose would be in the range of 10-25mg.

However, if you are using CBD to induce sleep, a slightly higher dose might be more effective. This is because CBD is what’s known as a “biphasic” compound.  This means it can have completely different effects in low and high doses.  For example, alcohol is also biphasic where it acts as a stimulant until blood levels reach 0.05%.  After 0.05% continued consumption causes sedation.

A low dose of CBD in the morning, therefore, might work well for staying bright and alert during the day. When evening comes, a higher dose, may be more suitable. Again, we are all unique and the right dose for some may not be for others so trial and error is key.

The only real way to find what works for you is to experiment with doses until you find your sweet spot.  As stated before, always start with a low dose of CBD and gradually titrate your way up until you find the dose that works for you.

If this article has been helpful, check out our CBD soft gels with melatonin to help you improve your sleep today!