With CBD oil becoming more and more popular, the number of people willing to experiment with the products increases by the week. CBD products are currently being used to relieve many disorders, including epileptic seizures, chronic pain, anxiety, inflammation, and several more. Recently, people who have issues with snoring while asleep have begun wondering if a CBD product could help them get a better night’s rest?
More often than not, if you have issues with snoring, there’s a much more important medical problem that needs attention. Because of this, if you are someone who snores enough that it wakes other people or yourself, you might want to consider visiting a doctor. This will determine exactly how serious of a problem you are up against. Possibly, you simply should put more effort into sleeping on your side. Or, maybe, there’s something seriously wrong that needs to be addressed. Either way, seeing a doctor will tell you where you need to begin with finding relief.
Before going any further, we need to be very clear about something. No, CBD oil is not a miracle cure for snoring. That being said, using CBD oil products can provide you with relief from snoring. This is because it can help with a few of the problems that have been associated with snoring. In order to better understand exactly how this works, we need to discuss exactly what causes snoring.
Why do I snore?
Snoring is a result of several different conditions or problems. Some of the more common causes may include but aren’t limited to, allergies, nasal congestion, or having a cold. People who use a muscle relaxer, smoke, and/or drink alcohol may have issues snoring while asleep. In case you are wondering, no, there is nothing unhealthy in regard to snoring in itself. However, there are a few conditions concerning sleep that are unhealthy which may result in snoring.
Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a sleeping condition that will happen when a person stops breathing and then starts again throughout the night. More often than not, this doesn’t just happen once. It will usually happen several times throughout the night and may lead to some major health issues. You will find three primary types of sleep apnea.
Obstructive sleep apnea
Of the three sleeping conditions we will be listing, obstructive sleep apnea is the most common. This is the result of a person’s throat muscles becoming too relaxed. Because of this, the individual will experience an obstructed airway. This tends to be more common with individuals who have a larger than average neck circumference or are overweight.
Central sleep apnea
Central sleep apnea is a result of the brain being unable to send the correct signals to the muscles used for breathing. This will more than likely result in sleep being interrupted, stopping and then starting again.
Complex sleep apnea syndrome
If you are someone who suffers from both of the previous two conditions, you have complex sleep apnea syndrome. With this syndrome, the muscles in your throat become relaxed as well as the brain being unable to control the muscles used for breathing.
Symptoms
If you have this sleeping condition, there may be several different symptoms you experience. Because these symptoms will commonly overlap each other, it may be difficult for an individual to identify exactly which type of sleeping disorder he or she has. Here are a few of the more common symptoms people will experience.
Sleepiness during the daytime
Due to the fact a person is not getting the proper amount of sleep throughout the night, more than likely, they will be more tired and feel sleepy throughout the day. Yes, there are several people who will start to feel tired during the afternoon. This is completely normal. That being said, if you are getting tired all throughout the day, every day, this could be a major sign that you are not getting the proper rest due to a sleep condition.
Headache
Yes, many people experience headaches for several different reasons. However, if you are getting headaches regularly during the week not long after first waking up, this could be a red flag that something is wrong while you are sleeping.
Not breathing at night
It’s common for someone who shares a bed or a room with another person during the night to have the other person notice they are having problems with starting and stopping to breathe at night. If you have a sleep disorder, this is one of the more common symptoms you will experience.
Dry mouth
According to a recent study, more than 30 percent of people who suffer from a sleeping condition will experience an unusually dry mouth upon waking up (1). This tends to happen as a result of a person’s mouth staying open while they are asleep.
Loud snoring
If you are suffering from a sleep disorder, this is another common symptom that will bother other people just as much as it does yourself. When a person’s tissues in their throat become too relaxed, as they breathe in and out during the night, the relaxed tissues begin vibrating. Keep in mind, many people snore for several different reasons. If you snore while sleeping, this doesn’t exactly mean you are suffering from a sleep disorder.
Causes
Many people don’t realize just how many muscles they have in their throat. When these muscles become too relaxed, the result will be the muscles blocking our airway. As a result, a person with sleep apnea will be unable to get the correct amount of air when breathing while asleep. Because of this, the blood will have a lower amount of oxygen than it needs.
This is detected by the brain. When this happens, the brain will take action resulting in an individual being woken up from their sleep. Normally, this process happens so quickly that the person will not remember it happening when they wake up for the day. That being said, it is a long enough time that REM sleep is disturbed. REM sleep is the deepest stage of sleep a person has while sleeping. To say the least, this sleep is needed.
When the body is woken up by the brain, it can result in the person beginning to snore. Every night, this could be happening anywhere from five to 30 times a night. With this sleep disorder, this is the most common cause. But, a form of the disorder that is far less common happens when the body doesn’t receive signals sent by the brain that the body needs to breathe. For a short period of time, the person will not be breathing whatsoever. It’s not uncommon for these people to be gasping for air when they wake up and then struggle to fall back asleep.
Complications
When this sleeping condition goes on for too long without being treated, it can result in the person suffering from very serious health problems. Here are a few that are more common.
Problems with the heart
If you are having issues with this sleep disorder, the levels of oxygen in your body are going to continue to drop with more and more time. Because of this, the cardiovascular system, mainly the heart, will experience strain. This will create problems that could lead to a stroke, atrial fibrillation, even a heart attack. Suffering from high blood pressure is also a common effect for many people.
Exhaustion during the day
As a result of a person not getting the amount of sleep they need, throughout the day, they can expect to be constantly fatigued. This can lead to a person being more irritable than usual and difficulty being able to concentrate. They can end up feeling drowsy during activities that are usually normal such as driving or watching television.
Diabetes
While there is still plenty of research being done to figure out exactly how and why certain studies show this sleep disorder can give people a higher chance of developing type 2 diabetes.
How CBD oil can help with sleep disorders
According to preliminary research, if you are someone who is suffering from a sleeping disorder that causes you to snore, CBD oil might be exactly the relief you have been looking for. A study that was completed in 2002 at Illinois University examined the patterns of breathing of mice while they were sleeping (2).
The effects of both oleamide and THC on the sleeping patterns were the focus of the study. The more of these cannabinoids the mice were given, the more stabilized their respiration was while sleeping. When the study was finished, another trial, this time on humans, was performed by the lead researcher using dronabinol, a medication containing cannabis.
There were similar cannabinoids in this medication to the ones given to the mice. The study found an overall 32 percent decrease with sleep apnea. It was found that even greater relief from the symptoms happened with the patients who were given a higher dosage of the medication.
Currently, if you need relief from vomiting or nausea, you have a reason to take dronabinol. In the future, hopefully, the drug will begin to be sold for those looking for relief from sleeping disorders as well.
Related: CBD Oil For Sleep
Other ways CBD may be able to help
If you snore or suffer from other symptoms of sleep disorders, there are also other ways using CBD can help. According to research, CBD is able to help individuals with Parkinsons’ disease. This is because CBD is able to reduce REM behavior disorder. With this disorder, the REM sleep cycle is disrupted. Instead of being paralyzed in their sleep, people are led to acting on their dreams, making them less likely to wake up, interrupting their sleep.
The effects CBD can produce on a person’s deep sleep still needs plenty of research. However, discovering this could end up being helpful with people that have a disturbed deep sleep cycle during the night. Also, there has already been researched completed determining a person with PTSD is able to increase the amount of deep sleep they get with the use of CBD.
If you are someone who has difficulty falling asleep, using CBD oil can help you fall asleep quickly. This has the potential to be safer than using sleeping pills that can have effects such as being tired throughout the day and dizziness, as well as being addictive. On top of this, because it can be used to reduce a drowsy feeling, CBD can help people remain more alert during the day. This plays a role in helping someone quickly fall asleep after laying down and experiencing a deeper sleep throughout the night.
As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, simply snoring doesn’t always mean a person is suffering from a sleep disorder. This being said, by using CBD, you may be able to improve the quality of sleep you get through the night, which will minimize snoring on its own.