You already know that CBD may help anxiety, insomnia, chronic pain, and more, but can CBD oil lower triglycerides?
There’s been a lot of research, much of it still ongoing, into the uses of CBD for so many things. Even our fur babies are benefiting from the powerful abilities CBD oil may have — for stress, separation anxiety, thunderstorm fear, and more.
But when it comes to triglycerides and cholesterol, the science is still new. There’s considerable promising research, but we are still in the process of learning how CBD affects triglycerides.
What are triglycerides?
Triglycerides are a type of fat (lipid) found in your blood. Whatever calories you consume that aren’t immediately used are converted into triglycerides and stored in your fat cells. Later, they are released by hormones to be used for energy. If you tend to eat more calories than you burn (especially calories high in carbohydrates — so easily the tastiest foods), you are at risk for having high triglycerides.
But what does this mean?
High triglycerides are an indicator of increased risk of stroke, heart attack, and heart disease because they can contribute to the thickening of artery walls or even the hardening of the arteries themselves.
When triglyceride levels rise too high, it’s often a sign of other conditions that increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. Other signs of these conditions include too much fat around the waist, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, high blood sugar, and abnormal cholesterol levels.
Much like triglycerides, cholesterol is a similar organic compound. Both compounds occur naturally in our bodies and are essential at normal levels. But if the concentrations in the blood grow too high, they are silent dangers that increase the risk of heart disease and more.
What really matters in order to maintain health is a proportion between cholesterol and triglycerides.
So can CBD oil lower triglycerides?
Research is still new to determine the usefulness of CBD on triglycerides. Some studies have shown that CBD can increase metabolism levels. This would allow the body to process those extra calories and burn off the excess fat more quickly.
Similarly, some promising results have found that CBD is capable of decreasing cholesterol levels. And a 2011 study did state that CBD treatment modulates cholesterol homeostasis in microglial cells, and pretreatment with MBCD reverses this effect without interfering with CBD’s anti-inflammatory effects, but no further studies have corroborated these findings.
Both hemp and cannabis (the basis of CBD) contain omega 3, omega 6, and polyunsaturated fats, which promote good heart health and are pivotal in maintaining good cholesterol levels. All of this signals the benefits of CBD in lowering triglycerides.
Can CBD oil lower triglycerides? Maybe! More studies are needed to discover the effectiveness of CBD in addressing triglyceride levels, but the science is promising. In the meantime, there are several ways to incorporate CBD into your life to possibly treat stress. Take a look at our online store to explore the method best suited for your lifestyle.
