Can CBD Help Ease Vertigo Symptoms?
CBD has had a major impact on the wellness scene over recent years. We’ve seen this phytocannabinoid cropping up in all sorts of products that are used to help soothe tension and ease discomfort.
With so much praise for CBD’s calming capabilities, there are a lot of questions about what ailments CBD may help in relief.
If you experience chronic vertigo symptoms, you may be wondering if CBD could provide a natural form of relief. While CBD does not directly ease symptoms of vertigo, its ability to affect our wellbeing in other ways may be beneficial.
What Is Vertigo?
Vertigo is the sensation that the world is spinning around you. For some, this can happen when you are up high up and looking down, or even just when you move quickly from sitting to a standing position.
Almost 40% of Americans experience vertigo at least once in their life, but for some, it can be a more common occurrence for some. Vertigo can last for just a few seconds or multiple days at a time.
If you experience chronic vertigo, it can increase your risk of falling and interfere with your ability to complete everyday tasks.
What Causes Vertigo?
Vertigo may be caused by various possible issues, including stress, certain medications, extended bed rest, or an inner ear issue.
While it is important to speak to a doctor to find the root cause of your vertigo and how to best improve it, you may also be looking for immediate solutions to help resolve dizziness when it happens.
Along with feeling like the room is spinning, vertigo can also cause nausea, vomiting, and a lack of balance, making it challenging to go about your day.
What Is CBD?
CBD, or cannabidiol, is one of better known plant-derived cannabinoids naturally found within the Cannabis sativa plant.
CBD can work with the body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS), which is an internal communication network made up of cannabinoid receptors that is believed to help regulate biological functions and maintain balance within the body.
How Does The Endocannabinoid System Work?
The endocannabinoid system is able to send chemical messages throughout the nervous system to help respond to and regulate a wide range of body functions.
Studies suggest that the ECS plays a role in sleep, appetite, mood, and pain regulation.
The brain can form chemical messages known as endogenous cannabinoids (or endocannabinoids) as needed. Researchers have found two main endocannabinoids: anandamide and 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG).
These endocannabinoids can bind with receptors throughout the body, including CB1 receptors prominent in the brain and CB2 receptors commonly found in immune cells.
Endocannabinoids can activate receptors they bind to, triggering biological responses. The immediate effects of endocannabinoids are often a source of temporary support, as the body’s enzymes can easily break endocannabinoids back down to their basic form.
How Does CBD Affect The Endocannabinoid System?
Because CBD is molecularly similar to our own endocannabinoids, CBD can work within the ECS to help restore balance as needed.
While scientists are still learning exactly how CBD works within the ECS, current research suggests that CBD can help extend the life of endocannabinoids by blocking enzymes from breaking them down as quickly.
Some researchers also believe CBD may modulate certain receptors, although it doesn’t bind directly with either CB1 or CB2 receptors.
Can CBD Help With Vertigo?
Currently, there is no evidence that CBD is suited to directly treat or help ease vertigo. However, it may help soothe symptoms that can accompany vertigo episodes, such as nausea.
Studies suggest that CBD can help ease nausea by supporting endocannabinoids that work with cannabinoid receptors in the digestive tract. The ECS can also help stimulate appetite by managing communication between the gut and the brain.
Can CBD Worsen Vertigo Symptoms?
CBD does occasionally cause dizziness for some users, especially when taken in high doses, so if you are trying CBD for vertigo, it is best to start with a low amount and see how it makes you feel. If using CBD exacerbates your vertigo or dizziness, stop using it right away.
CBD may also worsen your symptoms if your vertigo episodes are triggered by low blood pressure, which is the case for some.
CBD can help lower blood pressure by relaxing blood vessels and limiting oxidative stress. While this benefits many users, it could be counterproductive if you already have low blood pressure.
Speaking to a doctor to identify the cause of your vertigo can help determine if CBD is right for you.
What Can Help Ease My Vertigo Symptoms?
If you are experiencing vertigo often, it is best to speak with your doctor to help identify the cause and find the best ways to manage your symptoms.
Staying hydrated, standing up slowly, and practicing certain balancing exercises may help ease vertigo symptoms for some. If you’re taking medication responsible for your vertigo, your doctor may recommend changing medication.
Your doctor may also suggest including more potassium-rich foods such as tomatoes or antioxidant-rich foods like berries and citrus fruits in your diet and may help identify potential food-related triggers such as caffeine or alcohol.
Getting enough sleep may also help with some instances of vertigo, as can managing stress.
While CBD doesn’t directly provide relief for vertigo and may increase dizziness for some, it may help target underlying triggers for others. For instance, if lack of sleep or stress is causing your vertigo symptoms, CBD may help provide some relief.
CBD and Sleep
Studies suggest that poor sleep quality may trigger vertigo symptoms for some.
Our resting hours are prime time for the body to reset, as production of the stress hormone cortisol is reduced and the immune system has time to hyper-focus on any areas that need support. A lack of high-quality sleep can negatively affect body function, and may make some more susceptible to vertigo episodes.
By promoting relaxation and supporting sleep quality, CBD may help limit instances of sleep-related vertigo.
When taken shortly before bed, CBD can work within the body to prolong the effects of endocannabinoids like anandamide (referred to as “the bliss molecule”) in the brain, which can help settle the mind and shift the body into sleep mode.
CBD may also help block stress-causing molecules from binding to serotonin receptors, which can help promote feelings of rest that stress is known to interfere with. In a study that found CBD could help reduce stress in most users, many also reported improved sleep quality accompanying consistent CBD use over the course of a month.
CBD and Stress: Does It Help?
Vertigo symptoms are often caused by changes in the inner ear, known as your vestibular system. While stress does not directly cause vertigo, it can affect the part of the inner ear responsible for balance.
During periods of stress, the body produces high levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol may affect the inner ear by disrupting neurotransmissions between the brain and vestibular system.
So how can CBD help reduce stress before it sets off a dizzy spell?
By engaging with the endocannabinoid anandamide and neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and dopamine, CBD can aid the ECS in regulating mood and lowering stress levels.
Alternatively, experiencing vertigo may also heighten your stress levels. The feelings of vertigo can be worrying, and for some who experience vertigo often, it can lead to nervousness about the possibility of vertigo coming on during certain situations.
Luckily, CBD can help calm the mind and promote relaxation when nervous thoughts are creeping up on us.
If CBD doesn’t worsen your dizziness, using it to relieve some of the stress that accompanies vertigo can help lower cortisol production and ease tension throughout the mind and body.
CBD Without The THC
While THC–the psychoactive cannabinoid found alongside CBD in the cannabis plant–can provide benefits for some, one of its most common side effects is dizziness, meaning it may not be right for those with vertigo.
Most CBD products derived from the hemp plant contain trace amounts of THC, but here at Peels, we do things a little differently.
At Peels, we source our CBD from organic orange peels. We use a process called cyclic terpene assembly to turn the aromatic terpenes in citrus peels into bioidentical CBD. Our CBD works exactly the same as the CBD found in hemp, but because there is absolutely no THC in orange peels, there will never be any trace of THC in your Peels CBD.
Bottom Line
CBD does not directly ease vertigo symptoms and may even worsen dizziness for some.
However, CBD can help ease nausea that some experience with vertigo and help reduce stress, tension, and improve sleep quality when used consistently – all of which may impact the frequency of vertigo symptoms.
If you’re interested in incorporating CBD into your wellness regime, Peels’ freshly squeezed CBD oil is here to support you.
Sources
Cannabinoid Agonists for Nausea and Vomiting | Gastroenterology Nursing
Relationship between sleep quality and dizziness | Plos One
Brain activity of anandamide: a rewarding bliss? | NIH
Cannabidiol in Anxiety and Sleep: A Large Case Series | The Permanente Journal