Understanding CBD and Back Pain

Many people suffer back pain. Whether it’s from a hard day at work or playing around with the kids, back pain can be debilitating and make everyday tasks difficult to complete. CBD is an all-natural remedy that has become extremely popular over the last few years.

The reported soothing effects of CBD on your muscles are why people believe it’s so effective in relieving back pain. In this blog post, we will talk about what CBD is, why people get back pain, and how you can use CBD to potentially alleviate your back pains.

The Back Pain Epidemic

The back pain statistics are staggering. Around 80% of Americans will suffer from back pain at some point in their lives.

Back injuries can be caused by many things, and the severity varies depending on what’s happened to cause them. The most common causes for back injury include:

occupation-related activities;
sports or recreational activities such as running, biking, skateboarding, or horseback riding;
accidents and falls;
poor posture during everyday tasks like driving, lifting groceries, gardening, etc.;
illness or infection (such as pancreatitis);
and spinal tumors and disc herniations.

What Is CBD and How Does It Work for Back Pain?

CBD, short for Cannabidiol is a compound found in the cannabis plant. CBD interacts with receptors on nerve cells and helps regulate neurotransmitter release related to pain perception. In other words, back pain relief from CBD comes from its ability to help relieve inflammation as well as promote relaxation of muscles that are tight or spasming because they’re compensating for injured back muscle tissue.

What’s more, it also seems like CBD can work synergistically with certain medications such as opioids by lessening their side effects while still providing effective relief. That means you don’t have to worry about your back problems getting worse when you take an opioid medication.

How to Use CBD for Back Pain

CBD can be used in several ways to relieve back pain. CBD is available in many forms, including oils and tinctures that can be taken orally or applied topically to the skin (think salves, creams, and freeze-rollers).

For people who have chronic back problems – whether because of injury or degenerative conditions like osteoarthritis – an extra-strength tincture may be more effective. It might also make sense to try a muscle rub made with an oil containing CBD that’s been diluted with jojoba, which penetrates more deeply than other carrier oils such as coconut or olive.

Both topical and oral use of CBD has shown limited success in clinical trials for pain relief. A Phase 2 clinical trial using CBD transdermal gel (designed to be taken through the skin of patients) in 320 patients with knee osteoarthritis over 12 weeks showed, surprisingly enough, only a very small difference in pain among those who used CBD and those who got a placebo. However, the study did see increases in physical movement for the CBD group.

Side Effects of Using CBD for Back Pain

CBD is a non-intoxicating compound that doesn’t produce any psychotropic effects, unlike THC. There’s also no evidence of potential for abuse or addiction with CBD because it does not affect the same brain receptors as other substances such as opioid drugs, nicotine, and alcohol.

Some people can experience dry mouth, fatigue, or drowsiness when taking CBD oil for back pain because it affects the hypothalamus and other brain regions that control these functions.

Pregnant women should not take CBD until more clinical research is done to back up safety claims. Doctors don’t know enough about how CBD might affect a fetus’s development.