Yo, what’s good? It’s your boy Dan here, and today we’re talking about how seniors are starting to get hip to CBD. You know, the cannabinoid that’s all the rage these days. But the real question is, should they be adding CBD oils and extracts to their daily routine?
For real though, it’s a big deal for seniors to finally be considering cannabis as a legit medical herb instead of some dangerous drug. Especially since they grew up during prohibition and all that jazz. But it seems like there’s good reason for all the buzz around cannabinoids, with CBD being the preferred choice for most seniors.
Let’s face it, getting older means dealing with some serious health problems. And unfortunately, a lot of seniors end up taking pharmaceutical drugs with a bunch of side effects. But scientists are working hard to uncover anti-aging lifestyle changes that work to soften the blow of time and offset those symptoms of degeneration. So some researchers have started looking into CBD as a potential solution.
One of the biggest issues seniors face is pain. I mean, if you’re over 60, chances are you’re dealing with some kind of pain related to previous injuries or just from general wear and tear on your body. That’s where cannabis comes in as a pain-reliever, sometimes even better than prescription medication. Cannabinoids can help reduce pain related to arthritis, cancer, neuropathy, spasticity, headaches, migraines, ALS, fibromyalgia, MS, post-operation and post-injury recovery, and spinal cord injuries and diseases.
But did you know that the endocannabinoid system (ECS) is also emerging as a promising target in the field of musculoskeletal medicine? Yup, it shows up everywhere from tendons and fascia to bone cells, joints, and pain signaling pathways. There are studies looking into modulating the ECS using cannabinoids like CBD, using animal models of joint pain to see what they’re capable of.
Some researchers even tested CBD as a topical treatment for arthritis in a lab environment in 2016. Turns out transdermal CBD gel can significantly reduce joint swelling, pain, and inflammatory biomarkers in rats. And get this – our cannabinoid receptors might also play a role in preventing osteoporosis! A lab study showed that CB1 receptor activity protects against age-related bone loss by regulating the bone mass and life cycle of bone marrow cells.
So it’s no surprise that researchers have started testing cannabinoids in models of bone breaks and degeneration. For example, a 2015 study examined how CBD interacts with osteoblasts (the cells that lay down new bone tissue) when it comes to fracture remodeling.
Inflammation and oxidative stress underpin myriad neurodegenerative disorders. So ongoing studies are pitching CBD against models of these conditions to look for signs of antioxidant abilities along the way. A review of recent research titled “Neurological Aspects of Medical Use of Cannabidiol” collated all preclinical and clinical findings carried out investigating the effects of CBD alone. The potential role of CBD in Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, MS, Huntington’s disease, ALS, cerebral ischemia was examined but its employment needs further confirmation from well-designed clinical studies.
And let’s not forget about sleep disorders! Sleep quality is important to prevent age-related neurodegenerative diseases, but sleep issues are very common among seniors. Elderly people are frequently prescribed sleeping pills which cause dependency and a wide range of side effects. But ongoing clinical trials are pitching cannabinoids including CBD against involuntary muscular contractions that often disrupt sleep.
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death across the world and they strike most severely in elderly populations. Researchers aren’t entirely sure how CBD affects the heart and cardiovascular system as a whole yet but ongoing studies are testing the cannabinoid for its effects on this system including blood pressure changes, cardiac arrhythmias, hypoxia-ischemia, and cardiovascular damage caused by diabetes.
Lastly, let’s talk about digestive and gastrointestinal complications that can add to the clinical picture as a result of age-related cell deterioration and inflammation within the digestive tract. Moreover, seniors often suffer from loss of appetite which causes weight loss, tissue weakness, and mental issues. Ongoing studies are trialing CBD against reduced appetite, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), colitis, and Crohn’s disease.
So how can seniors use CBD? Even if most elderly folks haven’t experimented with CBD yet more and more patients have already been able to reduce their prescription drug intake upon taking cannabinoids (not just old folks ya dig). A wide variety of forms exist including pills, isolate crystals, salves, edibles sprays oils tinctures etcetera which can be swallowed or absorbed under the tongue making consumption easy even for seniors or impaired individuals. With today’s booming demand for CBD new products are constantly being developed to target different needs and conditions including formulas specifically tailored to the aging population.
So there you have it folks – even though scientific findings are ahead of most countries’ medical cannabis laws – senior citizens are finding out about this natural herb that can provide relief from various health problems without all those pesky side effects. So don’t sleep on the benefits of cannabis!
