Can CBD Increase My Focus and Performance?
Whatever the circumstance is and the justification you give for lack of focus, its results can be detrimental. Although lacking focus is a characteristic of situations when boredom takes over, struggle to focus is not a flimsy issue like boredom. As you find difficulties in focusing on tasks you are obliged to do, it begins to affect the quality of your daily lives.
Lack of focus and cognitive performance is caused by multiple factors that often come in combination. The ability of CBD, the hemp-derived cannabinoid that now stands at the height of its fame for its therapeutic benefits has encouraged clinical trials and research that investigates its potential to improve the focus and performance of users.
Reasons Why You Face Trouble To Concentrate
From serious health conditions to common distractions, several factors can affect your concentration and focus.
Stress
Our body reacts to high stress levels by releasing cortisol, one of the stress hormones. The chemical helps in regulation of body metabolism, with it being released in higher levels into the bloodstream as a result of stressful situations. Higher levels of cortisol make it difficult for us to concentrate. So the next time you are struggling to concentrate when under stress, know that it is the high cortisol levels in your body that is influencing your condition.
Lack Of Sleep
Sleeplessness can be associated with several health conditions, emotional trauma etc. It can in itself be a disorder as in the case of insomnia. If you wake up several times in the night for no apparent reason, it is possible that your sleep cycle is unregulated.
It is when you sleep that your body heals itself and the systems shut partially to get the much needed rest. If you have sleep troubles, it is going to affect the normal functioning of the body and you will find it difficult to handle routine activities. Lack of sleep makes it difficult for you to concentrate in your work or studies even if you try whatever you could do about it.
Distractions
Being surrounded by distractions makes it difficult to do even the simplest of tasks. Imagine yourself in a situation when the television is playing in the background and you are writing an important official email. The simple task becomes difficult because of the distraction.
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)/Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)
ADHD is often regarded as a children’s or adolescent’s disorder but facts tell something different. Adults too are prone to ADHD. The difference in the brain activity and brain development of people with ADD and ADHD affect their attention and focus adversely. The disorders ADD and ADHD affects our concentration ability and exhaust you at the end of the day after several attempts to keep ourselves focused. It is common that many turn to medications that help improve focus but many of the therapeutics turn out to be addictive. CBD is a better take here as it not being a habit-forming medication is guaranteed.
How Does CBD Help Gain Better Focus And Concentration?
The influence of CBD on the receptors of the endocannabinoid system is the key to the therapeutic benefits offered by it. It is equally influential in regulating our physical and mental health. Multiple body functions like moos, appetite, pain sensation etc are governed by the ECS, with the responses mediated through the endocannabinoid receptors. Cannabidiol targets the ECS receptor but not directly as in binding to the active sites of the receptors. CBD influences the endocannabinoid receptors in an indirect way to influence their response.
CBD improves concentration and attention in many ways and some possible ways are discussed below.
Reduces Stress And Helps The Body Get Enough Rest
It is while you sleep that your brain recovers and our body gains the energy to start things afresh in the morning. When you find trouble to sleep, the levels of cortisol in the body is on the rise that can affect your reaction times adversely.
Even though cortisol is influential in deciding the fight or flight response of the body while in panic situations, its release in high levels can affect your cognition ability adversely. Multiple clinical studies have confirmed that CBD interferes with cortisol secretion to check its levels going above the normal. In one 11-member human study, the participants were given doses of CBD or placebo to determine the effects they could cause on cortisol, plasma prolactin and growth hormone. Although the levels of growth hormone and prolactin remained unchanged, a significant drop in cortisol levels was noticed in people who received CBD doses.
Regulation Of Mood And Energy
The digestion process plays a significant role in maintaining vitality, the stage with characteristic concentration and attention. Balanced level of dopamine is crucial in ensuring the attention and focus, with its deficits causing troubles in concentration. On the other hand, higher dopamine levels could lead to impairment of memory and attention. CBD helps regulate the dopamine levels in our system to ensure ideal concentration and attention.
In addition to dopamine, serotonin activity is also important in deciding the focus and performance. Low levels of serotonin or weak movement of serotonin in the body causes sleep troubles and weakness. CBD influences the 5HT1A receptors in the body that are a subtype of serotonin receptors to improve focus and concentration.
Reduces The Symptoms Of ADD and ADHD
As the name suggests, Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) has hyperactivity as its iconic symptom. The symptom is especially evident in children where they seem to be restless and keep demanding attention. By regulating the functioning of the endocannabinoid system, CBD assists the cognitive functions and thereby offers promise in studies investigating its potential in treating ADHD symptoms.
Attention deficit disorder makes it difficult for students to pay attention to study sessions making it difficult for them to comprehend the sessions and focus on the studies. Evidence proving the effectiveness of hemp oil in improving the behavior and mental state shed light to the possibility of using CBD as a medication to treat multiple cognitive inefficiencies.
Ways of Taking CBD For Better Focus
Having realized the ways in which CBD makes positive contributions to attention and memory, you would be looking out for the methods of taking CBD for focus improvement. The vast selection in CBD category offers the users multiple methods of intake. Let us discuss some of the common ways of taking CBD for improving focus and performance.
Vaping
The bioavailability of vaping is making it an increasingly popular CBD intake method. The term bioavailability refers to the amount of CBD that reaches the bloodstream of a CBD user on using a CBD product, and the value varies according to the product type.
In the method, the vape product (CBD vape oil, vape flower etc) is heated inside vaporizing equipment like a vape pen and the vapors produced are inhaled. When you choose to vape in CBD, the cannabidiol content reaches your bloodstream through the permeable membrane of the lungs.
Sublingual Intake
CBD oils and CBD tinctures are the two sublingual CBD products that are quite popular among CBD users. The eliminated requirement of digestion process prior to CBD absorption into the bloodstream contributes to the improved bioavailability of sublingual CBD when compared to CBD edibles. In sublingual intake, CBD enters the user’s bloodstream through the sublingual glands, as you place the sublingual product under your tongue.
CBD oils contain CBD extract infused in suitable carrier oils like MCT oil, hempseed oil etc. The oil soluble nature makes the manufacturing process of CBD oils quite easy. Based on the hemp compounds contained in the hemp extract, CBD products can be classified into three spectrum options, full spectrum, broad spectrum and isolate CBD.
CBD tinctures are made by infusing CBD extract in alcohol base. In order to mask the raw taste of hemp, additional favors and herbs are often added to CBD tinctures. Increase in number of additional ingredients dampen the potency of CBD products, which is why CBD tinctures have lower potency than that of CBD oils that maintain a minimal level of ingredients. Most often, CBD extract and carrier oils are the exclusive contents of CBD oil.
CBD Edibles
CBD edibles are one of the CBD options loved the most for the hearty flavors they come in. Edibles are made by infusing CBD extract with traditional edibles like gummies, chocolate, brownies etc. Being no different from traditional edibles except for the fact that they contain cannabidiol, the option is highly appreciated for its discreetness. You do not have to worry about the prejudiced looks of people when you take it while in a public place or at the office. The easiest of intake methods offers you the freedom to take it from anywhere as you like it.
When you take CBD edibles, it has to be digested first before the CBD enters the bloodstream. The process reduces the amount of CBD that ultimately gets absorbed into the bloodstream, which is why it is advisable that the CBD dosages have to be significantly kept a bit high in CBD edibles when compared to other options like vapes or sublingual products.
Dabbing
The process of dabbing CBD is similar to vaping and the major differences are in the heating temperatures. Common CBD products used in dabbing include CBD shatter, CBD wax etc. Common equipments used to dab CBD are wax vaporizers and dab rigs.
In addition to offering general aid for improving focus and concentration, the ability of CBD to promote neurogenesis (regeneration of newer neuronal cells) contributes to reducing the cognitive damage caused by disorders like PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and aging. The capacity for neurogenesis makes CBD a promising medication in the treatment of memory loss disorders like Alzheimer’s disease.