Menopause can be both sad and liberating. Ironically, it’s sad because it signals the end of fertility. At the same time, it’s liberating because it means there’s no chance of an unwanted pregnancy. It is a time in a woman’s life where significant changes occur.
Dropping estrogen levels can make your life miserable. Lower levels of estrogen have been linked to weight gain, mood swings, and hot flashes, amongst others. Can CBD Oil help?
See all CBD oil benefits here.
In this post, we’re going to look for CBD and menopause. Can CBD make menopausal symptoms more bearable? Some say that it can. We’d like to know what the science says, though. Let’s find out right now.
Symptoms of Menopause
The symptoms of menopause vary from one woman to the next. According to the Mayo Clinic, you’re considered menopausal if you’ve had no periods for at least a year. Other symptoms include:
- Periods become irregular
- Hot flashes
- Vaginal dryness
- Mood swings
- Chills
- Problems sleeping
- Night sweats
- Gaining weight
- A slower metabolism
- Dry skin
- Thinning hair
- Breasts lose volume and fullness
What Causes Menopause?
Menopause is perfectly natural in most women. 1% of the population might experience early menopause. i.e., menopause before the age of 40.
Causes for menopause include:
- A natural slowing down of the reproductive system
- Chemotherapy or radiation treatments
- Having a hysterectomy
- Ovarian insufficiency is a cause of premature menopausal symptoms
Ways to Handle Menopausal Symptoms
Dealing with these symptoms naturally boils down to taking better care of yourself. Let’s go through some natural ways to reduce your discomfort.
Make Sure You Get Vital Nutrients
Getting enough Calcium and Vitamin D is an excellent place to start. Estrogen helps keep your bones healthy. Without it, you’ll need these nutrients to prevent osteoporosis. It’s also worth noting that a diet rich in fruit and vegetables can help to prevent demineralization of the bones.
Manage Your Weight
Having a higher body mass index is linked to having more hot flashes. In the study, participants who lost ten pounds or at least 10% of their body weight saw a significant reduction in symptoms.
Keep a Food Diary
This will help you to identify triggers that exacerbate symptoms. Caffeine, sugary snacks, and spicy food are usually best left off the menu.
Eating Foods With a High Phytoestrogen Level
Foods like soy protein contain high levels of phytoestrogens. These foods can reduce the severity of symptoms by mimicking estrogen in the body. Many people prefer this natural alternative to hormone therapy. We recommend speaking to your health care provider about your options.
CBD Oil and Menopause
Let’s get to the good stuff. Cannabis has been used since ancient times to make the change of life smoother. Why do we think that CBD oil might help? Let’s see:
- CBD supports the health of the endocannabinoid system. This system, in turn, regulates the endocrine system. It’s not going to restore estrogen production. It can, however, be useful in balancing hormones like insulin. Uncontrolled insulin levels in the body can cause weight gain.
- The oil may be able to prevent mood swings. At the very least, it’ll help you feel calmer and on a more even keel. It could have anti-depressant effects as well.
- The inflammation-fighting properties of CBD could be useful during menopause. The change often causes levels of inflammatory compounds to increase. CBD could calm that response. The analgesic properties could be helpful if the inflammation causes pain.
- CBD oil can be effective in treating insomnia.
- It’s a vasodilator, and this could prove useful in managing vaginal dryness.
Cannabinoids and the Endocrine System
This study shows that the endocannabinoid system supports the healthy functioning of the endocrine system. Will this help with your hot flashes? That’s unlikely. Where it can help, though, is to keep your hormones on an even keel.
That, in turn, can prevent mood swings. A balanced endocrine system is also important in controlling hormones related to weight gain, like insulin, leptin, and ghrelin. If these hormones are out of whack, it becomes a lot harder to manage your weight.
For some people, CBD oil effectively suppresses the appetite. This could be useful in preventing weight gain later in life. Before you stock up, though, there are studies that show that CBD increases the appetite.
It’s a little bit of a gamble here because CBD affects different people differently. The only way to know for sure is to try it. If you find that it causes an increase in appetite, there are steps that you can take.
Making sure that you have a stock of healthy snacks is one. Taking the oil late at night, as close to bedtime as possible, is another.
Our opinion is to try it and see how it goes. The study showing that CBD suppresses appetite involved the injection of the compound. It might, therefore, be prudent to avoid edibles and other oral applications here.
Preventing Mood Swings
CBD oil has been proven to be effective at reducing anxiety. It’s also been shown to have an anti-depressant effect. Both properties can make the transition smoother for you by calming racing emotions.
Some women become highly irritable during the change. If you’re one of them, it’s worth trying CBD oil. If you battle with tense muscles during this trying time, a topical application of the oil can help your muscles to relax.
To use it for this purpose, it’s best to take it orally.
The Anti-Inflammatory and Pain-Relieving Effects
Researchers often argue about what the benefits of using CBD are. There are many claims out there. Many of these claims remain unsubstantiated. Some of the claims, however, have been scientifically proven. CBD’s anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties have both been scientifically proven.
During menopause, the body may produce a higher level of inflammatory compounds. The reason for this is that estrogen has an inhibitory effect on some forms of inflammation. When the estrogen levels drop, this inhibitory effect is blunted.
This increases the likelihood of suffering from degenerative conditions like arthritis.
CBD’s anti-inflammatory properties could help to protect against that. If the pain has already set in, CBD oil can become a valuable part of your pain management treatments.
A Vaso What?
A vasodilator causes the blood vessels to expand. This, in turn, increases blood flow to the area. There is scientific evidence that CBD is a vasodilator. As a result, we’ve seen a range of vaginal suppositories being developed.
These are said to reduce vaginal dryness. It does make some sense. With increased blood flow, the vaginal wall could become more stimulated. This, in turn, could encourage it to produce lubrication.
Is it a surefire thing? We have our doubts. We have explored the issue more fully in our “CBD Oil and Vaginal Dryness – Can CBD Really Help?” post. If you’re interested in learning more about vaginal dryness, that’s a great place to start.
Are There Concerns to Be Aware Of?
Yes, there are concerns here. The first question most people as is whether or not using these products will make them high. The answer is, “No,” as long as you stick to low THC versions. For CBD oil to be legal in the States, it must contain less than 0.03% of THC.
THC is also a cannabinoid with some useful healing properties. Unfortunately, it’s also the compound in weed that makes you high. That’s why it’s illegal.
Why are we raising this point? The current craze for CBD has led to the market being flooded with products. Some are well-made, others are not. When buying one of these products, it’s prudent to check whether or not the lab allows independent testing.
Reputable labs do this and are happy to provide the results. With other products, you’re taking something of a risk because you don’t know what’s in there. There might not be enough useful compounds, or there might be too much THC.
Another danger comes with the generally held belief that CBD is a cure-all. People are dosing themselves, their kids, and their dogs because this is a natural product. Arsenic is also natural. Would you feed that to your child?
It’s a pretty extreme example, granted. Especially considering that the WHO considers CBD as safe. The reason that we’re warning people is that there’s no evidence about the long-term effects of using these compounds.
As a result, we’re loathe to recommend using them with wild abandon. We do believe that CBD has secured its place in modern medicine. We’re sure that further investigation will reveal even more evidence that it’s beneficial.
That said, we do recommend sticking to the smallest possible dose to start with. It’s a highly effective remedy – even a few drops is efficacious. You don’t need to guzzle it down to get the benefits.
What’s the Verdict?
Overall, we feel that CBD can help you to manage some of the symptoms of menopause. The balancing effect on the endocrine system could prevent weight gain due. The anti-depressant and anti-anxiety effects could help with mood swings.
The anti-inflammatory effects certainly look promising. Overall, CBD could be a useful tool in managing the change.
FAQs About CBD Oil for Menopause
Question: How Can CBD oil help in menopause?
Answer: CBD oil might help people having menopause or menopausal symptoms because it helps you to balance/regulate your endocrine system. The endocrine system is one who helps you balance your hormones.
Question: What are the symptoms of Menopause?
Answer: Some of the most common symptoms of menopause include hot flashes, mood swings, problem sleeping, slow metabolism and gaining weight.
Question: What is the cause of Menopause?
Answer: Slowing of the reproductive system, chemotherapy, hysterectomy, and ovarian insufficiency is the most common cause of menopause.
Question: What are the ways to handle menopausal symptoms?
Answer: Make sure you get vital nutrients, manage your weight, and eating foods with high phytoestrogen levels are just some of the ways to help you handle menopausal symptoms.
Question: Are there studies pertaining to the effects of CBD in the endocrine system?
Answer: Yes. Some studies show that the endocannabinoid system supports the healthy functioning of the endocrine system.
Question: Can CBD oil prevent you from having mood swings?
Answer: CBD oil has been proven to be effective at reducing anxiety. It’s also been shown to have an anti-depressant effect. Both properties can make the transition smoother for you by calming racing emotions.
Question: Are there concerns to be aware of using CBD oil to help you in menopause?
Answer: Yes. It is usually recommended to stick to the smallest dosage to find its efficacy. Don’t just guzzle it down to get the benefits. Misusage can lead to other problems.
