CBD for Hypertension

The heart is possibly the most crucial organ in the human body. It is responsible for providing and regulating blood for the rest of the body. Veins carry oxygen-poor blood to the heart for re-oxidation, while arteries carry oxygen-rich blood and other nutrients away from the heart for redistribution.

The pressure that is generated within the arteries plays a crucial role in the state of general health. When blood pressure is too high (common) or too low (less common) it creates some pretty serious health risks that need to be addressed immediately before other complications develop.

Fortunately, it’s possible to combat these potential blood pressure problems even before they develop. To do this, many patients have started using cannabidiol (CBD) as a form of treatment instead of traditional medications. To learn how CBD can be used to effectively combat high blood pressure, it is important to first learn about the condition being treated.

Patients diagnosed with high blood pressure (hypertension) are prescribed beta-blockers to reduce the overall workload of the heart. However, there are other types of medications that are designed to dilate blood vessels or prevent the production of specific chemicals that are linked to narrowing of blood vessels. There are a variety of different pharmaceutical medications to choose from, although each one comes with a number of possible side effects.

Not surprisingly, many patients have chosen to avoid these potential risks by taking an alternative, natural approach that focuses on more long-term solutions, such as leading a healthier lifestyle and proper diet. Cannabidiol (CBD) fits perfectly into this alternative form of therapy and is already widely known and highly researched.

What is CBD?

Cannabidiol is a 100% natural by-product of plants that the World Health Organization (WHO) has deemed safe in November 2017 during the 39th Meeting of the Expert Committee on Drug Dependence (ECDD). Its international disclosure states that CBD is “safe, well tolerated, and not associated with any significant adverse public health effects.” Furthermore, the WHO stated that CBD does not induce physical dependence nor does it have any potential risk of abuse.

Cannabidiol and blood pressure

Dr Khalid Jadoon And his colleagues carried out a study to find out how Cannabidiol would affect blood pressure. Nine healthy volunteers participated in the study; each was given 600 mg of CBD or a placebo and then monitored. The researchers found that although Cannabidiol showed an increase in heart rate (HC) by +10 beats per minute, it also showed a decreased systolic blood pressure (BP) by -6 mm HG. The report concludes: “These data show that acute administration of CBD lowers resting BP and increases stress BP in humans, associated with increased HR.” In a nutshell, while CBD increases your heart rate, it also lowers your blood pressure at the same time.

Side effects

When considering cannabidiol as a form of long-term treatment, we look at one particular study conducted by Pharmacology that focused on potential adverse side effects that may be related to long-term use of CBD. The experiment looked at 23 participants consisting of 8 healthy volunteers and 15 patients with epilepsy. The researchers administered CBD to each participant daily for a full month and monitored for any adverse effects. The report concluded: “…CBD was tolerated very well by patients and volunteers and no signs of toxicity or serious side effects were detected on examination.”