Drinking CBD: What Are The Benefits?
This post was last updated on July 17th, 2023
From vaping to edibles, CBD comes in a diverse range of forms and methods of administration. Growing trends and the recent passage of the 2018 Farm Bill has led to an ever-expanding range of CBD products with bars, restaurants, and cafes offering CBD-infused lattes, cocktails, and other beverages. Read on to learn more about CBD and why CBD-infused drinks might be one of the best ways to take it.
How Drinking CBD Works
CBD, or cannabidiol, is one of over 100 compounds found in cannabis plants known as cannabinoids. Next to THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), CBD is the most plentiful of these compounds. Unlike THC, CBD oil products are completely non-psychoactive, meaning that they won’t cause the high often characterized by taking cannabis.
Much of this comes down to how CBD works in the body. Cannabinoids operate on your endocannabinoid system, comprising a variety of receptors found throughout the body. The two main endocannabinoid receptors are known as CB1 and CB2 receptors. CB1 receptors are more common to the brain, while CB2 receptors are more common outside of the central nervous system.
Where THC directly affects these receptors (most commonly CB1 receptors), CBD indirectly affects these receptors and affects other receptors that regulate a variety of neurotransmitters.
All of this allows you to receive the potential benefits of cannabis without the high or psychoactive effects it comes with.
When you drink CBD, it travels through your digestive system, where it gets broken down and absorbed into the bloodstream. From the bloodstream, CBD travels to cannabinoid receptors throughout the body.
The Benefits of Drinking CBD
Versatility
Maybe the biggest benefit of drinking CBD is the sheer versatility. While businesses sell a variety of CBD-infused beverages, including cocktails, coffee, and water, you can just as easily purchase a CBD oil or tincture and drop it into your favorite beverage. This makes it easy to take your CBD, turning your soda, juice, or seltzer into a drink packed with potential health benefits. This also gives you full control over your CBD serving size.
Health Benefits
While more research is necessary, many experts agree that CBD may offer a variety of potential health benefits to numerous systems throughout the human body. This may include:
– Improved sleep
– Pain relief
– Reduced aches and joint pains
– Support for balanced moods
– Appetite stimulant
– Reduced nausea and vomiting
– General calm and relaxation
This comes from how CBD interacts with your body. Cannabidiol indirectly interacts with endocannabinoid receptors to encourage the release of your body’s natural cannabinoids. Furthermore, CBD also interacts with a variety of non-cannabinoid receptors. This includes opioid receptors (involved with pain regulation), dopamine receptors (involved in motivation and behavior), and serotonin receptors (involved in mood regulation).
Duration of Effect
The effects of drinking CBD tend to last longer than other forms of administration, like vaping or smoking. Your body’s metabolic process naturally takes a few hours, during which the CBD gradually gets absorbed into your bloodstream.
Discreetness and Convenience
More than anything, drinking CBD is convenient. You don’t require any extra equipment, and you can easily drop some CBD oil into just about any beverage you have on hand. That also allows for more discreetness when you’re out and about.
A Drawback to Drinking CBD
The only real drawback of CBD is the time it takes to feel its effects. When you drink CBD, it naturally has to go through your digestive system before it can reach your bloodstream, which means it can take some time before you actually feel the full effects. During that process, some of that CBD will also get broken down by the digestive process, leaving you with marginally less CBD than when you started.
Popular Types of CBD Drinks
While CBD tinctures offer a foolproof way to create your own CBD-infused beverages, ready-made CBD drinks are becoming more popular and easy to find. Here are some common concoctions that are hitting the shelves of cafes and grocery stores right across the country.
CBD Coffee
CBD Coffee is a match made in heaven with near-magical benefits, offering the energizing qualities of caffeine balanced by the soothing relief of CBD. Some coffee drinks are infused with CBD oil, while others are brewed using CBD-infused coffee beans. It may seem like a strange combination considering caffeine is designed to pep you up and give you energy where CBD is designed to calm you down, but some anecdotal evidence suggests that these two ingredients are complementary, offering the energy and mental focus of coffee without the jitters normally associated with caffeine.
Some experts theorize that these effects may come as a result of how caffeine and CBD interact with adenosine, a chemical in the nervous system. Among other roles, adenosine acts as a central nervous system sedative that regulates your natural sleep/wake cycle. Both caffeine and CBD inhibit adenosine signaling, which makes you feel more awake and alert and contributes to reduced inflammation.
CBD Cocktails
CBD and alcohol may also seem like a strange mix, however, recent studies suggest that mixing CBD with your cocktails may be beneficial. Animal studies suggest that CBD may counteract and prevent the neurodegenerative effects of alcohol, while other studies show evidence that CBD may protect the liver from oxidative stress caused by alcohol consumption. This is in line with evidence suggesting that CBD has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Granted, CBD will not prevent you from getting inebriated. Drink responsibly and in moderation.
CBD Kombucha
Kombucha is a fermented drink made from tea that has recently gained popularity for its potential to support digestive health thanks to its high probiotic content. Probiotics are the “good” bacteria that reside in your gut and are believed to provide a variety of potential benefits to your immune system and gastrointestinal health. CBD kombucha combines these probiotics with the soothing relief of cannabidiol.
CBD Water
Perhaps *the* breakout beverage trend of 2019, CBD Water can now be found on the shelves of health food stores and trendy cafes in most major cities. From sparkling waters to botanical sodas, brands like Bimble, Recess, and VYBES are creating CBD infusions hat combine CBD with a variety of healthy ingredients to keep you refreshed, elevated and hydrated.
Drinking CBD is an easy, hassle-free way to get your daily serve of CBD. If you’re not familiar with vaping or don’t have the time to bake up your own edibles, try a CBD-infused drink to elevate your mood and achieve calm, soothing relief at any time of the day or night.
Sources:
- https://www.leafly.com/news/science-tech/what-is-the-endocannabinoid-system
- https://www.wellandgood.com/good-food/cbd-coffee-healthy/
- https://www.wellandgood.com/good-food/mixing-cbd-alcohol/
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