Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of Americans have reported increased feelings of anxiety, depression, and loneliness and it’s likely to only get worse as the pandemic drags on. In fact, last year the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that at least 41 percent of U.S. adults struggled with their mental health, with 31 percent reporting anxiety symptoms due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents of school-aged children have been hit especially hard with many having to make substantial adjustments in their lifestyle in order to juggle working from home while also helping their children with remote learning. Young adults have also reported feeling increasingly isolated from friends and family members and have reported increased levels of loneliness, depression, and anxiety.
These types of mental health challenges often manifest in difficulty sleeping or concentrating, feelings of worry or sadness, increased substance use, changes to appetite, overthinking, and can even lead to depression. Pharmaceuticals, such as sleep aids and anti-anxiety medications might be effective for some; however, the negative side effects and the possibility of addiction are common fear and occurrence. Because of this, many Americans are choosing alternative therapies, such as hemp-based products that include CBD and, more recently, CBDA.
For those who haven’t heard of CBD before, also known as cannabidiol, it is the second most prevalent active ingredient in cannabis. Unlike THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, which is the chemical responsible for most of marijuana’s psychological effects, CBD is derived directly from the hemp plant or manufactured in a laboratory and does not cause psychoactive effects—in other words, it won’t cause you to get high.
The big difference between CBD and CBDA is that most CBD products use extreme temperatures and other harmful processes to extract cannabinoids from the hemp plant to produce hemp extract, also known as hemp oil. This damages the natural cannabinoid acids and the medicinal properties found in the plant. Instead of consuming CBD, more and more people are now turning to CBDA products that are produced using raw, living hemp to ensure they are consuming the healthy compounds that naturally occur in the plant.
Inesa Ponomariovaite, a holistic health professional and founder of Nesas Hemp, has developed the world’s first living full-spectrum organic CBDA hemp extract. Her product has been used by thousands of people worldwide to help them deal with a wide range of mental health challenges, including helping to promote better sleep, stabilize their moods and ease mental tension.
Her product is backed by a growing body of research that shows products that use CBDA can help improve the amount of serotonin activity in the brain, which helps to moderate emotions and balance people’s moods. CBDA has also been shown to have 100 times the serotonin receptor (5-HT) affinity compared to processed CBD. The 5-HT receptor is the active target for the popular class of antidepressant medications known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or SSRI. SSRI drugs affect depression by causing the brain to maintain higher serotonin levels, which can give a lift to people who may feel depressed. Serotonin is also one of the molecular messengers in the central nervous system known scientifically as neurotransmitters because they provide instant messaging services to hundreds of thousands of neurons. This means that CBDA can provide a new, helpful and plausible solution for people afflicted with stress, anxiety, and depression in addition to those who suffer from seizure disorders.
In addition to CBDA providing a hopeful solution for stress, anxiety, and mood stabilization, a recent study by researchers at Oregon State University shows that CBDA in addition to CBGA has the potential to combat the COVID-19 virus.
This latest study only adds to the growing body of research that indicates cannabis has many therapeutic and medicinal properties that can help improve people’s physical and mental health, which is why so many Americans are choosing to try CBDA products.