Does CBD Lower Blood Pressure?

CBD might be one of the most popular products in the health supplement market. These antioxidants are getting lots of attention when it comes to people fighting chronic inflammation. Experts routinely point out that this problem contributes to various conditions, including cancer, diabetes, and high blood pressure. CBD is steadily gaining popularity in the health and wellness sector thanks to its potential to restore a state of homeostasis to the body. And that may include keeping blood pressure in check. Commonly known as cannabidiol, CBD comes from the cannabis plant. After its extraction, the manufacturers add a carrier oil to make it safe for consumption.  The primary purpose of the carrier oil is to dilute as well as improve CBD’s shelf life. You can thus get CBD variety of CBD oils infused with different types of carrier oils that slightly modify their taste. It is also worth noting that CBD oil doesn’t contain THC, the psychoactive compound in marihuana. Hence, CBD is safe for most people to use, including hypertensive patients who have cleared use with their doctors. So, does CBD lower blood pressure?

Understanding High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a condition where one’s blood pressure is considerably higher than normal. The normal blood pressure level is 120/80mmHg levels, and hypertensive patients can routinely reach more than 140/90mmHg. The increased blood pressure may result from narrowed blood vessels, hardened blood vessels, and high cholesterol levels, among other factors.

Studies show that more than half of the American population has/will be diagnosed with blood pressure at some point.  It is for this reason that health experts recommend leading an active and healthy lifestyle. Keeping your body healthy and strong lowers your chances of suffering from hypertension and related conditions.

High blood pressure can be fatal unless you actively take measures to mitigate its development.  While doctors will prescribe medication to help bring the pressure down, adding CBD to your regimen might help manage it. So, you might be wondering, ‘does CBD lower blood pressure?’ Understanding the common causes of blood pressure will help you understand how CBD might help.

The Most Common Causes of High Blood Pressure

There are things we as a society have come to accept as normal that can, in fact, cause us to develop high blood pressure. These are:

Stress

Stress is one of the leading causes of high blood pressure. This is because stress causes inflammation of body tissues and cells. Learning to manage stress can help reduce your chances of suffering from high blood pressure.

Obesity (Overweight)

Being overweight is another risk factor for high blood pressure. This is commonly due to the accumulation of cholesterol and fat in and around blood vessels. An excess of it will ultimately cause them to thicken/constrict.

Lack of Sleep

Sleeplessness can trigger increased heart rate, soon to develop into hypertension. While this might not be an issue at first, prolonged lack of sleep can have a devastating effect on your overall health.

Poor Eating Habits and Lifestyle

Eating anything that comes your way, especially processed foods, is an express ticket to obesity and high blood pressure. Some of these foods, particularly fast foods, are high in preservatives and saturated fats, most of which end up in your arteries. Leading a sedentary lifestyle will also exponentially increase your risk of contracting heart-related conditions too.

How Might CBD Lower Blood Pressure?

CBD works by interacting with the endocannabinoid system (ECS) of the body to help regulate blood pressure. The compound particularly binds on CB1 and CB2 receptors spread throughout the body.  One of the results of this interaction may be the regulation of blood pressure.  CB1 receptors are present in the lungs, adrenal glands, blood vessels, brain, and heart. Thus, they play a crucial role in regulating blood pressure.

On the other hand, CB2 receptors spread throughout the immune system, the nervous system, and some are also in the brain. These receptors are responsible for increasing or lowering blood pressure in response to specific triggers. These include injury, chronic stress, poor diet, and infection.

5 Ways CBD Oil Could Help Fight Hypertension

CBD enthusiasts are starting to swear by CBD to remedy high blood pressure and some other conditions. Below are some of the ways CBD may help regulate and lower blood pressure:

CBD Relieves Stress and Anxiety

Stress and anxiety can trigger heightened heart rate that results in a relatively higher than normal blood pressure.  Panic attacks, stress, and anxiety are all too common in today’s fast-paced world. The only way out of this is to learn how to manage it. Panic attacks, for example, are mostly a result of vasoconstriction whereby blood vessels limit how much blood passes through.  Taking CBD oil capsules or tinctures may, however, help bring stress and anxiety levels down. Thus, it may also help normalize blood pressure.  This is because CBD packs potentially relaxing properties that might calm the nervous system down while triggering a sense of relaxation. By calming the nervous system, your heart rate normalizes and, thus, reduces blood pressure.

CBD Oil Is A Vasodilator

Vasodilation is the process in which blood vessels widen to allow more blood to pass through. This process may occur naturally as the body tries to regulate and normalize blood pressure. Many cases of high blood pressure are a result of vasoconstriction and high cholesterol levels. High blood pressure may also occur if the RAAS (renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system) malfunction, causing arterioles to vasoconstrict.

CBD might restore normal blood pressure by inhibiting the production and release of renin hormones, hence vasodilation. The presence of CBD in the blood may also help the RAAS system to ‘reset,’ allowing your blood vessels to relax and widen up. This makes it possible for blood to flow naturally and puts blood pressure back to normal. Although more clinical research is required, many people attest to feeling much better blood pressure-wise after taking CBD supplements. Many researchers also believe adding CBD oil to your regimen can help reduce sodium retention in the body. Less sodium retention further lowers one’s risk of hypertension, among other chronic conditions.

CBD Packs Potent Anti-Inflammatory Properties

Chronic inflammation relates to the development of higher blood pressure. Inflammation is the body’s natural way of defending itself from foreign and harmful compounds/microbes. Yet, there are times when it will persist for unusually longer. This leads to the production of C-reactive proteins, compounds that trigger a hormonal imbalance and increased heartrate/ blood pressure. CBD appears to pack potent anti-inflammatory properties that may help fight cell inflammation by inhibiting the production of the C-reactive proteins.  It’s rich nutritional profile also makes it easier to fight/relieve cell oxidative stress, restoring the body’s hormonal balance.  All this is in addition to CBD interacting with the ECS to reduce the inflammation rates. Reducing arterial inflammation could be of much help in fighting high blood pressure.

Does CBD Help Regulate Hemodynamics?

Hemodynamics are the factors that regulate the movement of blood from one point to the next. Properly functioning hemodynamics allows the heart to pump blood at just the right pressure to ensure all parts of the body get oxygen and nutrients. On the other hand, a flawed system triggers a spike in blood pressure in an attempt to restore balance. CBD appears quite effective in restoring normal hemodynamics. It works by helping the body respond appropriately to stressors that might distort them. By improving response to these stressors, patients will begin to stabilize blood pressure even when in stressful conditions.

Triggers A Sense of Relaxation and Sleep

Enthusiasts use CBD as a remedy for stress and insomnia. This is because, on top of having stress-relieving, relaxing properties, many people report that CBD is also sleep-inducing. All those properties may help bring blood pressure levels down. Anxiety, stress, and sleeplessness can cause your blood pressure to spike to dangerously high levels.  Taking CBD may help induce a sense of relaxation so great that it makes it easier for you to catch sleep without much effort.  Most bodily processes tend to slow down while we sleep; this includes blood pressure, of course.

Using CBD For High Blood Pressure

CBD oil is a legal product in many states today, so you can safely use CBD even if you need to keep your blood pressure in check. However, it is advisable to check with your doctor to see if you are on any medications and intend to take CBD.  That said, adding CBD to your lifestyle may boost your heart health.  There’s, however, no specific dosage for CBD.  Experts thus recommend starting with a small dosage, then doing increments after that until you reach a sweet-spot.

Does CBD Lower Blood Pressure? – The Takeaway

So, can does lower blood pressure at the end of the day? The answer seems to be yes, although more research is needed. CBD appears to be quite effective in fighting and addressing the symptoms of high blood pressure. While conventional treatment for the same might be readily available, these drugs might have limited effect or come with side effects. High blood pressure ranks among the most common and fatal health conditions affecting millions of people today. Many people are looking for a long-lasting solution to the condition. With no risk of dependence/addiction and minimal side effects, CBD might be added to the group of best natural remedies for hypertension.