Shane here from the bearded hempster! A common question I get asked when it comes to CBD products are they as good as OTC pain relievers like Ibuprofen, asprin, tylenol and other analgesics. I think the bigger question to ask is are analgesics the right solution for symptomatic pain relief. I would like to dive into this topic of CBD vs Painkillers and address the elephant in the room.
I think as a society we have what I like to call “Redundant Band-Aid Syndrome” we have all been there…I will give you a personal experience of my own.
I got a really bad case of food poisoning while travelling in Los Angeles. It was sushi! I love sushi actually a bit of a sushi snob, the food poisoning went away but that’s when the symptoms began. terrible bloating, nausea, stomach cramps overall pain. Something just wasn’t right with my stomach. so thinking that I was still fighting some violent sushi poisoning demon. I began to take ibuprofen to seek relief. BIG MISTAKE! the pain only got worse and the nausea continued. So i made a doctors appointment like any person in their right mind so you’d think. Doctor says well it sounds like allergies or an ulcer (in relation to my nausea) and stomach pain I was having. She advised me to take 20mg of omeprazole daily for 4-6 weeks and see if that improves my symptoms. That should have been a red flag for me right there but in society we put trust in the medical system to provide solutions when we break down, funny how so many of us only go to the doctor when something is wrong! what’s to fear right? So off I went to Walgreens to pickup my OTC omeprazole and so it began. The journey of Redundant Band Aid Syndrome…shortly after taking omeprazole my acid reflux issues went away but the bloating, the nausea got worse…Fast forward 3 weeks into treatment..an Emergency. I was at home all of a sudden I felt extremely nauseated, cold chills, numbness. I thought the worst and drove to the emergency room. After blood test, EKG, Ultrasound, CT scan and a big ass medical bill. I was given the all clear….but yet the symptoms remained…puzzled and feeling defeated my gut no pun intended was telling me your system is out of balance. Now going through and learning about the endocannabinoid system during my studies at natural healing college they tell you when your digestive system is out of balance your whole body reacts. I knew something was not right. So I decided to act and take an alternative approach. I stopped the omeprazole and pain relievers began taking our 25 MG Full Spectrum CBD supplements in combination with probiotics and digestive enzymes and relief after 72 hours. I was suffering for 4 weeks on traditional suggested medicine and a alternative change of course healed my symptoms. No side effects no crazy nausea or dizzy spells. Relief at last. Like so many people that take medicine..let’s dive deeper into the Redundant Band-Aid Syndrome.
Redundant Band-Aid Syndrome – I call it a health crisis epidemic- Stay Woke!
So what is redundant band-aid syndrome? I made it up…but as humans when we are in pain we focus on the symptom and not the cause. We end up going to the store to pickup pain relievers to mask or band-aid a symptom (some like to call it reducing the pain) but then something happens another symptom pops up then we need further medication to provide relief and the poisonous cycle continues. It’s very normal to see people on 4-5 different medications all due to symptomatic side effect consequences. Why is it not health crisis currently? The medical industry (pharma) is in the money business and imagine if there was a miracle cure pill that cured all diseases, all pain, all cancers, all ailments. The medical industry would be defunct and bankrupt! so what can we do about it?
CBD as an alternative. – It may work…but only if you try it.
I am not gonna go be a cult preacher about CBD vs painkillers changing the world but I will tell you CBD works but results can vary. CBD short for Cannibidiol is chemical compound of the cannabis sativa plant but unlike it’s cousin THC, CBD binds with receptors in the body to get you healthy not high! Full Spectrum CBD that we carry uses all parts of the plant creating the entourage effect…but that’s pretty deep and for another blog post. CBD is not a symptomatic pain reliever but what I like to call a homeostasis modulator. CBD goes into our system and creates homeostasis or what we know as a balance in our system. This does not mean it boost’s everything. Think of it as a good mechanic that knows how to properly tune your body. If something is amiss then CBD goes into tuning mode similar to how adaptagens work. Our body naturally makes endocannabinoids but are usually deficient or out of wack due to medicine, chemical toxicity, environmental toxicity, stress and just flat out being in western society’s evolution of what is correct and right. Everyone has heard of fight or flight responses. Our bodies go into this emergency state on a regular basis when our bodies are imbalanced putting pressure on our entire system, Immune, Digestive, Cardiovascular, Cognitive function, nervous system…pretty much your entire body. When this system is imbalanced your endocannabinoid system is not functioning correctly. CBD realigns that system. America comprises less than 5% of the global population but uses 80% of the world’s opioids — 99.7% of the global supply of hydrocodone. Something is majorly wrong here! something has to change.
CBD vs. Painkillers (pharma) : PAINKILLER – The Oxymoron
Functionally, narcotic and analgesics work by blocking the “receiving” end of this pain sensation pathway; that is, they sever communication between the body’s various tissue systems and the central nervous system.
The pain-mediating effects of CBD, on the other hand, are not as systematically understood, though it is known that compounds like CBD function by interacting with the body’s endocannabinoid system, which is a central regulatory network that functions in maintaining whole-body homeostasis.
What’s lesser-known, however, is the fact that CBD also manipulates pathways within the opioid system and performs many of the same pharmacologic functions as high-strength narcotics. For instance, active cannabinoids, just like opioid painkillers, have been shown to reduce pain-inducing inflammation, trigger the release of endorphins, block the nociceptive pain sensation pathway in the central nervous system (CNS), alleviate neuropathic pain, and act as a muscle relaxant more like a body tuneup than a patch on a problem. CBD works on a cellular level as well. You can see why CBD vs. Painkillers is a big topic of discussion in the news, online forums and amongst the medical industry.
CBD on a Cellular Level – light at the end of the tunnel
In 2012, French scientists reported the presence of cannabinoid receptors on the membranes of mitochondria, the energy-generating organelle within cells. This discovery laid the groundwork for subsequent investigations into the role of the endocannabinoid system in regulating mitochondrial activity, which is critical to how cells function. Defects in mitochondria have been linked a wide range of neurodegenerative, autoimmune and metabolic disorders — Alzheimer’s, schizophrenia, autism, cancer, epilepsy, diabetes, cardiovascular and neuromuscular disease, and more.
A growing body of scientific data indicates that cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), two key components of the cannabis plant, can affect mitochondria, both directly and indirectly. It turns out that many of the biological pathways that involve mitochondria — including energy homeostasis, neurotransmitter release, and oxidative stress — are modulated by endogenous and exogenous cannabinoids.
By effectively neutralizing free radicals and mitigating oxidative stress, antioxidants confer a broad range of therapeutic benefits — from slowing down the aging process to reducing the risk of DNA damage linked to cancer. THC and CBD are both potent antioxidants, according to the U.S. government, which filed a patent on the antioxidant and neuroprotective properties of cannabinoids based on research from 1998. This patent underscores one of the great hypocrisies of federal drug policy, which disingenuously maintains that cannabis has no medical value.
An Alternative Approach
While some companies will push CBD as a cure all. We won’t say that…in fact we won’t say it cures anything, but what we know of CBD to be true is it balances your overall system and overall health. There is tons of scientific data and research to back it up and we highly recommend all people to get educated and get some knowledge behind the studies of CBD and it’s many health benefits also understanding that the medical industry is in the money business and that misinformation is abundant due to potential for lost revenue. We always recommend the alternative so you don’t fall into the unfortunate issue of redundant band-aid syndrome.
I really hope that all of you can find relief through alternative measures even if that does not include CBD products. Your body will thank you!
If you are interested in any of our CBD products or would like a consultation on what product you should get. Contact Us.
-The Bearded Hempster