Do you know that acid reflux can make your breath bad and damage your dental health? While the most common symptom of acid reflux is heartburn, there are some other rare symptoms, including Sinus pain and headaches, chronic cough, hoarse sound, and overproduction of mucus.
Despite the symptoms, acid reflux is a crippling condition for which you can use over-the-counter medications. However, these medications accompany different excruciating side effects, for which many individuals look upon a holistic solution such as CBD.
CBD is a phytocannabinoid present in the Cannabis plant. CBD oil is well-known for its therapeutic effects, including better mood, pain relief, improved sleep, and stress reduction. Besides these, CBD can also help with GERD and acid reflux. Here we will tell you how CBD can help with GERD and acid reflux.
What are Acid Reflux and GERD?
The gastrointestinal or digestive system is one of the most delicate and complex human body systems. Any upsetting gastrointestinal function can lead to excessive production or backward flow of the gastric acid.
This movement of gastric acid in your stomach via the throat and esophagus tract is known as acid reflux. Moreover, gastric acid’s back and forth movement in the esophagus can damage its lining.
Apart from damage, this also triggers discomfort around the upper abdomen, leading to severe heartburn. You can encounter the most common symptom of acid reflux after a heavy meal, caffeine shot, or a drink or two of alcohol.
Besides heartburn, nausea, upset stomach, and swallowing problems are common symptoms. Moreover, it also leads to voice hoarseness, throat soreness, a sour aftertaste, and bad breath in the mouth.
Is Acid Reflux and GERD the same?
Gastroesophageal reflux (GER) is the medicinal term for acid reflux. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is the title when it evolves towards a more severe condition and causes chronic medical conditions.
The indicators of GER and GERD are similar, and heartburn is one of the most prominent. In addition, GERD may recur more frequently, two or three times a week.
Food digestion problems, acidic water, difficulty eating, coughing, and wheezing are all physical symptoms of GERD.
Risk Factors for GERD
Several contributing factors that can induce acid reflux or GERD are:
- Eating huge meals
- Improper food swallowing
- Eating lots of Spicy food
- Smoking and vaping
- Consuming alcoholic beverages
- Taking more caffeine
- Using Aspirin
- Hereditary problem
- Pregnancy
- Overweight
- Stomach pain caused by taking levothyroxine at irregular intervals
- Hiatal hernia (type of hernia that occurs in the stomach)
CBD Oil for GERD and Acid Reflux
While several medicines are available to tackle GERD, people usually prefer organic solutions like CBD. CBD can work for GERD and Acid Reflux, but to know how it does help with the problem, you need to understand the Endocannabinoid System (ECS) and its role in your body.
To maintain your overall wellbeing and regulate bodily functions, you need to stimulate ECS. The ECS comprises three main ingredients: endocannabinoids, receptors, and enzymes. The chemicals produced within the body are the endocannabinoids, while the receptors are cell signals that activate certain body functions.
An example of this can be the lock and key mechanism where the endocannabinoids act as a key to unlock the specific receptor to trigger the activity. These receptors are present throughout the body, and depending on the position in the body, they perform the function.
The ECS governs various biological activities, notably sensory feelings, memory, anti-secretory activities, and pain perception, and plays a crucial part in your general health.
Cannabinoids in the cannabis plant influence gastrointestinal movement and play an important role in gastrointestinal acid secretion, the same as endocannabinoids within your body.
CBD interacts with the endocannabinoid system and can help GERD sufferers lower acid production, which induces heartburn.
By lowering inflammatory symptoms and mucosal irritation, CBD and ECS can help stop or lessen the impact of GERD. It may also aid in reducing gastric motility.
How Does CBD Work for Acid Reflux and GERD?
CBD can certainly help with acid reflux and GERD as it yields the following benefits for the people using it for the said problem.
CBD Helps for Pain Controlling
The most common symptom of GERD is the pain gastrointestinal tract. CBD is long hailed for its analgesic properties since it activates the receptors to induce calming sensations, which can alleviate pain from the gastrointestinal tract.
On the contrary to the over-the-counter analgesics, CBD oil is a safer choice for GERD sufferers. As the patient might suffer chest pain, throat pain, or stomach pain, painkillers like ibuprofen, aspirin, and opioids will only worsen.
According to a Swedish study, when particular cannabinoid receptors are active, they exert pain-relieving properties throughout the body, along with the gastrointestinal tract. This indicates cannabinoids present in medical Cannabis may be useful in treating acid reflux disorders.
CBD connects with the gastrointestinal system’s delicate muscular tissues. It relaxes and relieves the peristalsis, the movement of wastes and foodstuff through the digestive tract. It also regulates Lower esophageal sphincter (LES) activity to reduce spasms and irregularities.
For that, CBD can be the best option since it effectively diminishes pain, protecting you from painkillers that can only make your condition worse. While the prescribed medicines can induce side effects, CBD will relieve your pain without galling your gastrointestinal system.
Cannabis Hinder the Secretion of Gastric Acid
One of the jobs of ECS is to hinder gastric acid secretion. When CBD stimulates specific receptors in the endocannabinoid system (ECS), it can lower stomach acid secretion. When those receptors are active, a person’s risk of experiencing heartburn and other GERD symptoms is reduced.
While clinical experiments on the implications of Cannabis on acid reflux have yet to be done, preliminary research suggests that cannabinoids might aid in the inhibition of gastric juice secretion.
Cannabinoids were proven to alleviate stress-induced ulceration in rodents in a study. As a result, experts claim that cannabidiol may aid in inhibiting stomach acid production in people.
Moreover, Cannabis could be beneficial for GERD patients since certain cannabinoids are proven to heal the stomach mucosa.
Anti-Inflammatory Properties of Cannabis
The burning feeling occurs when gastric juice from the stomach begins to stream up to the esophagus because of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). The persistent discharge of gastric acid back into the stomach may induce inflammation.
These inflammations frequently cause acid reflux and GERD. According to one study, CBD oil has anti-inflammatory properties to help avoid heartburn and control acid reflux complaints.
Additionally, several pieces of research revealed a link between how CBD interacts with the receptors of the human endocannabinoid system to control gastric acid secretion. To back up this theory, a review of research published in the Asian Pacific Journal of Medicine concluded that ingesting cannabis compounds or CBD can prevent a Body from mucosal damage.
CBD additionally interacts with endocannabinoid receptors in the digestive organs, preventing peristalsis (involuntary muscle spasms) and inhibiting stomach acid from refluxing into the esophagus.
CBD Decreases Stress
Stress and anxiety are correlated to GERD and acid reflux. CBD oil is widely regarded for its anti-anxiety properties. People widely use CBD oil for anxiety and stress since it is proven to help you feel relaxed while not inducing euphoria or psychoactive effects.
Your psychological wellness is intertwined with your gastrointestinal system. Which makes GERD and stress go toe to toe with each other. So, minimizing the stress-related symptoms decreases stress-associated illnesses such as stomach pain and unsettled stomach.
What is the Right CBD Dosage for Acid Reflux?
Despite the prevalent CBD usage among people, FDA food and drug authorities have not regulated many CBD products. Hence there is no standard recommended dosage of CBD for acid reflux or GERD. So it’s on you to decide the best-suited dosage for yourself.
The CBD dose varies from individual to individual and certainly depend on various factors that are:
- Your Gender
- Age and Weight
- The problem you are trying to tackle
- Your metabolism
- Previous CBD involvement
Generally, medical experts recommend starting low and slow by taking and increasing the dosage until you see your desired effects. The minimum dosage of CBD is approximately 1-6 mg for every 10 pounds of your weight. Moreover, you can keep track of your dosage according to its effects on your problem.
Are there any Side Effects of CBD for Acid Reflux?
While over-the-counter medication for GRD can sometimes yield serious side effects, CBD, on the other hand, has nominal side effects. However, we recommend consulting your medical expert before proceeding with CBD since they can recommend dosage and counter remedies for side effects.
The common side effect that individuals might encounter while using CBD are:
- Mouth dryness
- Anxiety
- Sleeplessness
- Fatigue
- Upset stomach
- Eyes soreness
- Tiredness
- Constipation
- Light-headedness
- Impaired balance
How to Choose CBD Products for Acid Reflux?
Many vendors sell CBD products for GERD and acid reflux, so we recommend choosing them wisely. At the same time we did research and reviewed the best CBD oils on the market.
Look For An Authentic Brand
Since the CBD market is not regulated enough, so chances are you might get into mislabeled or harmful CBD products. For that, we recommend doing your research before diving into the CBD world. you can:
- Check the customer reviews about their experience with the brands’ CBD products.
- Read the expert blog about the best CBD vendors.
- Check third-party lab results for the authenticity of their products.
Consult Holistic Physician
Individuals suffering from GERD and acid reflux symptoms should see a gastroenterologist first to consider their medication alternatives. CBD and its effects on inflammatory problems and stomach disorders ought to be recognized by homeopathic doctors.
Check Third-Party Test Results
The best approach to confirming the authenticity of the CBD products is to check their Certificates of Analysis (CoA) from an unbiased lab. This lab report confirms that the information on the label is the same as the product inside. Besides checking for CBD potency and profile, these reports also check for common toxins, including insecticides, solvents, and heavy metals.
The spectrum of CBD
The most important factor in getting CBD oil for acid reflux is the spectrum of CBD. You might already know that CBD comes in three different varietals that are:
- Full-spectrum CBD: It contains all the compounds found in cannabis, such as CBC, CBG, CBN, and THC, the psychoactive compound. However, the THC concentration remains less than the legal threshold of 0.3%.
- Broad Spectrum CBD: This type of CBD also contains most of the phytocannabinoid and chemicals of cannabis except for the THC, which has been removed during extraction.
- CBD Isolate: If you want to cherish the benefits of CBD only, CBD isolate is the best pick since it’s isolated from the rest of the chemicals in cannabis.
While there is a discussion around the workings of all three types of CBD, experts believe that full-spectrum CBD, due to the synergetic working of all the compounds in cannabis, induces the entourage effect.
A study published in Frontiers in Plant Science shows that the entourage effect boosts the endocannabinoid system’s main functioning. According to the study’s researcher, the whole-plant interaction explains that botanical extracts are more effective than isolated chemicals.
A controlled study on chronic pain sufferers confirmed the entourage effect. Opioid therapy using pure THC was unable to give meaningful comfort in contrast to a placebo. A whole-plant solution comprising both THC and CBD, on the other hand, generated significantly greater outcomes.
Broad-spectrum CBD products also trigger some entourage effects, albeit not as strong as full-spectrum CBD.
Third, CBD isolate may be preferred by those intolerant to other hemp chemicals or concerned about clearing a THC drug test. This product comprises 99 percent pure CBD and has the greatest dose per serving. On the other hand, CBD isolate does not create the entourage effect and is less dose-predictable.
Conclusion: Does CBD Help with GERD and Acid Reflux?
Acid reflux is a gastrointestinal disorder that causes stomach pain by causing gastric acid to overflow or “reflux” into the gastroesophageal canal. Several contributing factors to acid reflux include poor lifestyle habits( sugar-rich diet, spicy meals, smoking), anxiety, obesity, etc.
Persistent acid reflux problems can lead to a chronic condition termed GERD. The endocannabinoid system, which has transmitters in the gastrointestinal tract, works with CBD to reduce inflammation by modulating immune system function. It also reduces gastric acid secretion and increases gastrointestinal motility, preventing fluid backflow into the esophagus.
CBD appears to be a viable anti-acid reflux medication, though more thorough clinical studies are required to confirm its effectiveness. If you plan to use CBD for acid reflux and GERD, we recommend talking to a medical expert first.