CBD for Insomnia

To understand whether CBD can improve sleep, we first have to understand what causes poor sleep.

Many things can cause you to sleep badly. According to the Mayo Clinic, insomnia can be caused by:

mental health disorders,such as anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression
medication, which can disturb your sleep-wake cycle
physical conditions, such as chronic painandrestless leg syndrome
caffeine, especially when consumed late in the day
environmental factors, such as loud noises or an uncomfortable bed

If your insomnia is caused by external factors or related conditions, CBD may help by treating the causes of sleeplessness.

While research on CBD is still in its infancy, some research suggests that CBD can treat anxiety.

ResearchTrusted Source published in 2019 looked at whether CBD could improve sleep and or reduce anxiety. The study involved 72 subjects, with 47 experiencing anxiety and 25 experiencing poor sleep. The subjects were each given 25 milligrams (mg) of CBD in capsule form each day. In the first month, 79.2 percent of the patients reported lower anxiety levels and 66.7 percent reported better sleep.

Pain, which may also cause sleep problems, can be helped by CBD as well. A 2018 reviewTrusted Source in Frontiers in Pharmacology noted that there’s a fair amount of evidence to support the claim that CBD soothes pain. The authors note that by reducing chronic pain, CBD can improve sleep.

Other research tells us that CBD affects the sleep cycle. Research from 2014Trusted Source looked at four patients with Parkinson’s disease. It found that CBD improved the symptoms of REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD), a disorder in which a person acts out their dreams. RBD is associated with poor sleep and nightmares.

A 2017 review also noted that CBD may be helpful in treating RBD, and that it shows potential for treating excessive daytime sleepiness.

Grogginess, another symptom of insomnia, might also be affected by CBD. A 2014 reviewTrusted Source found that CBD could have the potential to promote wakefulness, based on both human and animal research. The authors noted they weren’t sure exactly how or why CBD promoted wakefulness in some instances.

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