Does CBD Tea Help You Sleep?

One much-talked-about weapon against insomnia these days is CBD tea, also known as hemp tea. What is it, exactly? How does it work? What are the benefits?

What is CBD tea?

CBD tea refers to a herbal tea infused with cannabidiol. Cannabidiol, commonly abbreviated as CBD, is a therapeutic compound whose popularity has grown tremendously in recent years. 

CBD comes from cannabis, the same plant that produces the psychoactive chemical tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Unlike its cousin, THC, CBD contains no psychotropic properties. That’s the primary reason medical marijuana experts recommend the compound for relieving several medical conditions. 

Pain and anxiety are the leading medical issues that cannabidiol is normally recommended for. CBD boosts the endocannabinoid system when consumed – the same system plays a crucial role in pain mediation and anxiety relief. 

Cannabidiol also contains potent antiemetic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, and antibacterial properties. That makes it effective against nausea, inflammation, muscle spasms, and bacterial infections, respectively. 

Insomnia is another medical condition that you can manage using cannabidiol-based products like CBD tea. There are multiple resources you can check out to read more about the therapeutic benefits of CBD tea.

What are the benefits of CBD tea?

• CBD tea helps regulate your sleep-wake cycle

We’ve already alluded to cannabidiol’s ability to boost the endocannabinoid system. We’ve also highlighted the role of the endocannabinoid system in mediating pain and anxiety. 

Besides influencing how your body processes pain and anxiety, the endocannabinoid system regulates our circadian rhythms, commonly known as our sleep-wake cycles. The system contains a series of receptors that run from the brain to the peripheral organs and tissues. These receptors interact with certain endocannabinoid neurotransmitters to signal the body when to sleep and when to wake up. 

Cannabidiol impacts the endocannabinoid system in a manner that aids how the system regulates your circadian rhythms. When consumed, particularly late in the evening, CBD tea may enhance the body’s access to its sleep-aiding neurotransmitters, such as melatonin.

• CBD tea alleviates pain

Pain is a leading cause of insomnia. With aching muscles and sore joints, you’ll find it difficult to fall asleep or sleep for longer blocks of hours. 

Drinking CBD tea before bedtime may help alleviate pain, allowing you to have a restful sleep. 

CBD tea relieves pain by boosting endocannabinoid receptors associated with pain mediation, such as vanilloid receptors. 

CBD tea may also mediate pain by increasing anandamide signaling. Anandamide is a neurotransmitter that plays a major role in the transmission of pain signals. CBD boosts anandamide signaling by blocking the enzymes that degrade it, such as fatty acid amide hydrolase.

• CBD tea combats anxiety

Anxiety and insomnia share a cause-effect relationship. So, treating anxiety is one way to enhance sleep quality. 

Fortunately, this is another area where cannabidiol tea has shown tremendous potential. 

CBD tea fights anxiety by increasing the secretion of ‘happiness’ hormones, such as serotonin and dopamine. The compound also produces a calming effect, which is necessary for keeping the jitters at bay. 

According to research, CBD tea may combat all major anxiety disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), widespread among people with insomnia.

• CBD tea shortens the time it takes to fall asleep

Known as sleep latency, in studies, CBD has been shown to shorten the time that it takes to drift from wakefulness to sleep. 

Normal sleep latency ranges from 5 to 30 minutes. However, people with insomnia may experience abnormally longer sleep onset time. 

Pain and anxiety are major causes of longer sleep latency. So, that cannabidiol is effective against these conditions makes CBD tea potentially shorten your sleep onset time. 

Further, cannabidiol is a potent sedative. CBD tea may help you drift off to sleep much faster, even if you’re not necessarily grappling with pain or anxiety. 

• CBD tea reduces REM sleep and dreams

Rapid eye movement (REM) is a sleep phase marked by rapid eye movements within the sockets, elevated heart rate, and heightened brain activity. According to sleep experts, much of the dreaming happens during REM sleep. 

Well, that shouldn’t be a problem unless you’re suffering from nightmares, as is often the case with people living with post-traumatic stress disorder. 

CBD tea can shorten or eliminate REM sleep, thereby reducing the risks of PTSD-induced nightmares. 

But CBD tea doesn’t just reduce REM sleep. It may also combat REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD). RBD is a medical condition where a person unconsciously acts out their dreams.

CBD tea disadvantages

As with any substance you rely on for a certain effect, you can become habituated to CBD. Sometimes it stops working as intended.

Also, CBD tea may interfere with certain medications or compound effects. For example, if you’re taking a medication that slows down your heart beat, CBD can dangerously compound that effect.

In addition, CBD can also reduce potassium in your body. If you’re taking certain diuretics like furosemide (Lasix) it can cause you to lose too much potassium.

Finally, CBD can also interfere with medications used to prevent seizures and with antidepressants as well.

If you’re on any of these medications, discuss possible interactions with a pharmacist or doctor.

A final word

CBD tea is a potential remedy for insomnia and many other sleep disorders. The drink combats insomnia directly by shortening the amount of time it takes to fall asleep and prolonging sleep duration. CBD tea can also relieve various leading causes of insomnia, including pain and insomnia.

For Further Reading:

Prevalence of chronic insomnia in adult patients and its correlation with medical comorbidities

Vanilloid TRPV1 receptor mediates the antihyperalgesic effect of the nonpsychoactive cannabinoid, cannabidiol, in a rat model of acute inflammation

Cannabidiol as a promising strategy to treat and prevent movement disorders?

Effect of illicit recreational drugs upon sleep: cocaine, ecstasy, and marijuana

Also on the blog:

CBD not legal everywhere, sometimes used questionably

Chamomile tea for sleep: the benefits of drinking at bedtime

About Jeffery Thompson:

Jeffery is a full-time content marketing specialist. He has been closely following the Health and CBD industry trends for quite some time. He has dabbled in various domains. On his off days, he likes to spend his time at the nearest animal shelter or nose deep in a book. Follow him on Twitter @Jeffery15217547.