Does CBD help with hangovers?

The weekend is the time to kick-back, relax, and have a good time. It’s also the time you’re likely to enjoy a refreshing wine or beer. However, you’re likely to pay for the indulgence with unbearable anxiety, nausea, and headaches. Good reasons to take some CBD?

At a high level, a hangover is the immediate body’s response to chemical imbalances such as excess production of cytokine, which results in inflammatory reactions like nausea and headaches, enzyme conversion, high levels of acetaldehyde, a byproduct synthesized as the body metabolizes alcohol, and dehydration. No symptoms are leading to a hangover; you know you have it when you see it. Hangover symptoms include dehydration, fatigue, nausea, moodiness, headache, and inattention.

The science of hangovers

Surprisingly, scientists still study little about the hangover phenomenon. A few studies suggest that once alcohol gets into the bloodstream, it affects the body’s normal biological functioning. In contrast, others suggest alcohol withdrawal is at the center of hangovers. Whatever the explanation, one thing is for sure, a hangover is troublesome. It all starts with the liver. The liver metabolizes ethanol in alcohol, converting it to acetaldehyde, a hangover-inducing toxin that causes liver detoxification. The entire ethanol metabolism is split into two phases. In the first phase, ethanol goes through complex enzymatic pathways and is eventually detoxified by cytochrome, an enigmatic enzyme present in the liver. In the process, the free radicals formed are quarried by antioxidants. Alcohol overindulgence beyond this point results in increased toxicity, thereby overworking the liver. In the second phase, liver metabolites are mixed with toxins like acetaldehyde produced in phase one and rendered light-weight compounds or water-soluble. In this form, they can easily be excreted from the body safely without the risk of increased toxicity. Hangover symptoms vary widely among persons. Some experience little to no symptoms, while others experience severe hangovers. There are several homemade hangover cures, but they aren’t as efficient to get the job done right. Some have also been discovered to do more harm than good. Although at infancy, studies are already pointing to what scientists have been suspecting for a long time: CBD possesses powerful healing properties.

Common hangover remedies

Everyone has their ‘go-to’ hangover remedies, whether it’s a cup of coffee, coconut water, sugary drinks, electrolytic drinks, sleeping it off, sweating it out, waiting it out, medications, eating either unhealthy or healthy foods, or even having another alcoholic beverage. Very few of these remedies have gone through any substantial scientific scrutiny, but they are good as long as they ease the hangover. However, going by what is documented about hangovers and their symptoms, more people turn to hemp-derived CBD products for corrective relief. And there’s a reason for that. Cannabidiol attenuates pain, relieves nausea, eases inflammation, and helps manage anxiety. All these sound like symptoms of the worst hangover.

How CBD relieves hangovers

Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of the 113 cannabinoids found in the cannabis plant and is majorly found in hemp plants. Unlike tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), CBD is non-psychoactive as it doesn’t come with the mind-altering effects associated with marijuana. Instead, it’s widely used for medicinal purposes, all thanks to its antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiepileptic, and anti-anxiolytic properties. The existence of the endocannabinoid system, only discovered in the early 90s, explains the effectiveness of CBD in managing hangovers. The endocannabinoid is a complex biological system consisting of cannabinoid receptors widely known as CB1 and CB2. Research studies suggest that the receptors regulate vital functions in the body like appetite, sleep, immune response, and pain. Excessive alcohol consumption can significantly interfere with these receptors’ functionality, therefore putting the endocannabinoid system (ECS) off-balance. Fortunately, CBD can get ECS back on track and restore homeostasis through its interaction with the CB1 and CB2 receptors. Your body needs a serious boost when you have a hangover. CBD is a superior antioxidant. Some studies show thta is superior to vitamin C and E. Therefore, if consumed after a drinking frenzy, it could put back vitamins into your body and alleviate free radical damage by flushing toxins, such as acetaldehyde, out of your body.