3 Surprising Benefits Of Cannabis Tea For Mental Illness

Cannabis is a natural compound that has been in use for medicinal, spiritual, and recreational purposes for many centuries. But cannabis has not been a popular herb due to a lack of understanding and robust clinical research on its properties. 

Despite the controversies, many people are already self-medicating with CBD with positive results. Moreover, the legalization of cannabis products is also spreading. It is now easy to find a cannabis dispensary in many towns in countries where cannabis has been legalized or decriminalized. 

Cannabis tea is your ordinary tea blended with cannabidiol (CBD). CBD is an extract from marijuana or hemp plants. Contrary to what many people believe, CBD is not psychoactive. Moreover, CBD has a different pharmacologic profile from most of the cannabinoids found in cannabis. 

What Research Says on Health Benefits of Cannabis:

Although cannabis still faces controversies, research shows that cannabis has potential health benefits that could cure even some debilitating chronic diseases. One of the major controversies regarding CBD is its action on the brain.  

Research has assessed the effect of CBD on several conditions. It shows that CBD has anti-inflammatory, anti-asthmatic, antiepileptic, analgesic, hypoxia-ischemia, anxiolytic, antitumor, neuroprotective, and antipsychotic properties.

It also has beneficial effects on the brain, improving your mental health and fighting mental disorders. Here are some of the reasons you should take cannabis tea to manage mental illnesses. 

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Cannabis Tea can Alleviate the Symptoms of Clinical Depression:

One of the major benefits of cannabis tea is that it can help alleviate symptoms of depression. Many people suffer from depression without having a reliable cure. Many conventional drugs for depression come with severe side effects that make them unsuitable for many people. 

Cannabis could fill this gap and help people with depression manage their symptoms effectively. Cannabis tea is rich in cannabinoids, including CBD and THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol). Studies on brain biochemistry indicate that CBD interacts with serotonin receptors positively that could boost mood. 

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When administered in low doses, THC inhibits serotonin reuptake. This keeps the levels of serotonin in the brain high.  Studies show that CBD exhibits strong antidepressant and anti-anxiety properties with both short- and long-term effects. 

Further studies on CBD shows that, unlike most antidepressants, it does not directly activate the endocannabinoid receptors in the brain. This shows that tea infused with cannabis is less likely to be addictive. 

The impact that cannabinoids found in cannabis tea have serotonin shows that cannabis tea could have a range of positive effects on the brain. Serotonin is a hormone mainly known to influence mood. However, this hormone is responsible for many functions, such as influencing happiness, emotional stability, and general well-being. 

Keeping serotonin levels at optimum is the hallmark of anti-depression medication. This provides strong evidence for cannabis tea’s effect on depression.

Anxiety and Panic Attacks:

Anxiety and panic attacks are common mental illnesses that are comorbid with depression or express themselves independently. About 5 percent of the global population experience panic attacks. For most of these individuals, there is no long-term solution to the condition

The good news for people with anxiety is that studies on the potential use of cannabis tea to manage panic attacks and anxiety have shown positive results. One review found that 300mg of CBD resulted in a considerable reduction in anxiety

A survey conducted in 2017 on cannabis users found that 41% of the sample population used cannabis to manage anxiety. In the same study, 40% of the subjects reported that they found cannabis more effective than other medications for relieving anxiety. 

Clinical studies also support the benefits of cannabis in treating anxiety and sleep complaints. Taking a cup of cannabis tea in the morning can alleviate anxiety during the day. You can also take it before going to bed for quality sleep.

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About 79% of subjects who use cannabis to treat insomnia experience reduced symptoms. Such evidence has made the medical world recognize cannabis’s potential benefits even though it remains in the sidelines as a conventional treatment. 

Despite doctors not recommending cannabis for mental illness, about 37% of Americans use cannabis for anxiety. Cannabis is promising as a treatment for anxiety and has no known long-term effects. Infusing it with your tea can help you to deal with stress better.

Cannabis For Psychosis

Psychotic conditions such as schizophrenia have remained a challenge for conventional medicine. Individuals with psychosis have an altered perception of reality. In advanced stages, the individual cannot differentiate between reality and illusion. 

New evidence shows that cannabis can alleviate psychotic symptoms and even improve cognitive function. Scans on the brains of psychotic individuals treated with cannabis indicate that cannabinoids can reset the brain biochemistry

The exact cause of psychosis is not known. However, scientists believe that extreme stress, trauma, mental illness, and substance abuse could have a role in the etiology of psychosis. 

Psychosis affects different sections of the brain, including the striatum, midbrain, and medial temporal cortex. Consequently, psychotic individuals lose brain functions controlled by these areas. 

The application of cannabis as mono-therapy has shown improvement in symptoms in treatment-resistant schizophrenia. Taking small doses of cannabis-infused in tea could help individuals with psychosis manage their symptoms. 

The exact mechanism of cannabis also remains unknown. Conventional antipsychotic medications work by attacking dopaminergic neurons. Cannabinoids found in cannabis tea do not affect neuron function, nor do they bind to their dopamine receptors.  

Evidence shows that cannabinoids increase the levels of anandamide in the brain. Anandamide is a neurotransmitter responsible for chemical transport in the brain, and its levels fall considerably in psychotic individuals. 

Conclusion

There is no doubt about the benefits of cannabis. Even if you don’t suffer from any mental health problems, infusing cannabis into your tea can help keep stress and anxiety at bay, as it will boost your mood.

Cannabis tea also provides a safe, natural way of taking CBD and experiencing its benefits. If you have respiratory issues or if you have sensitive lungs, ingestion offers a healthy alternative. 

But even if you keep the mental health benefits aside, taking the drink regularly offers a nutrient-rich drink that contains antioxidants, anti-inflammatories, and vitamins. This will help boost your immune system and provide valuable nutrients at the same time.

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