Can CBD Help You Quit Smoking Tobacco?
CBD could help you deal with the anxiety and agitation that comes with trying to stop smoking. CBD effects the brain in a similar way as nicotine, providing you with a calming experience but without being addictive.
There's no doubt about it, quitting tobacco cigarettes is a challenge. That’s because nicotine is one of the most addictive substances in the world. If you’ve ever tried to stop smoking tobacco once and for all, you’ve most likely experienced the discomfort of nicotine withdrawal. Only six percent of consumers are able to quit in a given year, despite it being a well-known risk to health.
Nicotine withdrawal symptoms include intense cigarette cravings, irritability, heightened stress, headaches, sleep disturbances, sweating, chills, fatigue, anxiety, and mood swings. These symptoms are usually strongest within the first week after quitting, and like any withdrawal process, the likelihood of relapse is highest at this point.
While there are dozens of nicotine-based products, including e-cigarettes, to help reduce cravings, recent studies have pointed out that CBD is also a powerful and useful tool that helps many people kick their tobacco smoking habit. Here’s a guide with everything you need to know about how to use CBD to help quit that unhealthy tobacco addiction.
CBD For Quitting Smoking Tobacco: What The Research Says
In past years, two exciting studies on CBD to quit smoking were released, both performed by the University College London. The first one, from 2013, gave 12 dependent smokers a CBD inhaler to quit smoking and another 12 smokers a placebo inhaler to use when they had a cigarette craving.
Researchers found that those using the CBD inhaler reduced their cigarette intake by 40 percent, while those using the placebo had no significant change.
Researchers speculated that “drugs that alter the endocannabinoid system may be an effective treatment for nicotine addiction,” but more studies were needed.
The second one came out in May 2018. It was a double-blind, randomized study where 30 dependent smokers were given 800 mg of CBD orally or a matched placebo.
They were then shown “pictorial tobacco cues” and were examined for withdrawal, cravings, heart rate, and blood pressure. In real life, these “tobacco cues” could be situations where the chance of relapsing is highest, like parties, drinking, or friends smoking.
What they found was interesting: a single 800 mg dose of CBD could help reduce the appeal and “pleasantness” of cigarette cues compared to the placebo group, especially when participants had abstained from cigarettes overnight.
How Does CBD Help Stop Smoking Tobacco
The way CBD can help you defeat nicotine needs may come as a surprise. CBD does a lot more than offering a healthier substitute for a cigarette.
For starters, CBD can engage some of the same cell receptors as antidepressant drugs, which are often used to treat nicotine addiction. This releases feel-good neurotransmitters like serotonin that help cut those cravings.
Most smokers have their triggers. Whether it’s pairing a cigarette with a morning cup of coffee or sneaking out for a few puffs when feelings of anxiety creep up at work, over time, specific images, feelings, or habits become associated with the release tobacco provides.
Unfortunately, the more these habits are rewarded by a cigarette, the more the two behaviours become connected in your brain. Soon, when a person sees a cup of coffee or begins to feel the first signs of anxiety, these triggers transform into cigarette cravings.
In turn, the more that a person continues to reward these behaviours with tobacco, the more that the behaviour becomes consolidated into memory. In this sense, tobacco addiction really is a vicious cycle of learned memories and reinforced behaviours.
CBD is a non-intoxicating compound found in the cannabis plant. It doesn’t get you high, but preliminary studies have shown a potential host of medical benefits, including anxiety and pain relief.
The Best CBD Products To Quit Smoking Tobacco
CBD Vapes
CBD Oil
CBD oils are great products to use to quit tobacco. They usually come in convenient pocketable droppers and are precisely dosed for fast-acting CBD-induced effects. A 2018 study found that a daily dose of CBD Oil reduced tobacco cravings for people who were trying to quit. You can't go wrong with a full-spectrum National Hemp Service CBD Oil, they have the best value-for-price products on the market. Check out this low-strength CBD Oil or this high-strength CBD Oil
CBD Mushroom Chocolate
Another option is this brain-boosting CBD chocolate with rare cacao and adaptogenic mushrooms. This vegan dark milk chocolate bar contains a blend of four organically grown mushrooms chosen for their adaptogenic qualities; Chaga, Cordyceps, Lion’s Mane and Reishi. Adaptogens are natural substances that promote brain function and help the body adapt to stress. Adaptogenic mushrooms combined with CBD can reduce the stress and anxiety caused by tobacco withdrawal. Check it out here
Comments
Jo Wilkinson - October 11 2022
I am doing stoptober and I brush my teeth when I get a cravings but I cant always do that when I’m out so I think I will try a cbd vape to help too