If you have ever had chickenpox, decades later you could develop shingles because it comes from the same virus. This nasty rash can cause all sorts of trouble causing pain, redness, and itchiness. Because it is a skin rash, can CBD help with shingles?

Cannabidiol has shown in studies that it can kill viruses. However, they have yet to run any definitive tests on CBD and shingles exclusively. So, while we don’t know if CBD hemp oil can cure shingles, we do know that it may be able to help with some of the symptoms that arise.

What Is Shingles?

Shingles is a painful rash that happens to people who have had the chicken pox. After you recover from chickenpox, the virus stays in your body inactive. However, something could wake the virus up causing the individual to develop shingles.

Risk Factors Of Developing Shingles

• Being over 50
• Having HIV or AIDS
• Physical trauma
• Being under a lot of stress
• Taking medicine or substances long term that negatively affects your immune system

Symptoms Of Shingles

• Pain in your skin
• Itchy rash
• Red skin
• Oversensitivity
• Blisters
• Ulcers
• Fatigue

How CBD May Be Able To Help With Shingles

Shingles are painful! Cannabidiol (CBD) has shown in studies that it may be able to help reduce your sensitivity to pain. It can do this by elevating the endocannabinoid anandamide, which binds to the CB1 receptor. Binding to this receptor helps to mediate neurological functions in your body, including your sensitivity to pain.

Shingles cause inflammation in the skin which is why you see that painful red rash when you have them. Putting a CBD hemp oil topical on your shingles may be able to help decrease the inflammation which is another way that CBD can help with the pain.

Cannabidiol elevates the endocannabinoid 2-AG which binds to the CB2 receptor. The CB2 receptor is in charge of regulating the immune system, and elevating 2-AG has shown to help calm down the immune effects which in turn reduces inflammation.

Talk With Your Doctor

Medical cannabis is not a known cure for shingles, so you still need to see a doctor if you are experiencing an itchy rash. You can spread shingles with open blisters, so it is important to be careful knowing you have this condition. Talk to your doctor about using CBD oil for your shingles, and then stop by our shop and check out our wide variety of topical ointments that may be the right option for you.

[author name="Sarah Potts" bio = "Sarah Potts has been writing about the wonderful benefits of cannabis for CBD Instead since 2017. Medical cannabis has changed her life and her goal is to show others how it might help them as well." email="pottscontent@gmail.com" twitter= "pottstato"]

Not everyone gets to bask in the cool breezes of northern states and countries, some of us are boiling alive in the south. This added moisture from the sweat with friction is causing people to chafe in places the sun doesn’t shine, but CBD oil may be able to help.

Cannabidiol (CBD) works as an inflammatory as well as a tool to help combat pain. While CBD can’t make you cool down, it may be able to help you with your chafing through reducing your skins swelling, the pain, and possibly even help your rash heal.

Why Does Our Skin Chafe?

Why on earth does our skin hate us so much? If you work in a warehouse, go for runs outside, or just are a heavy sweater, you have probably experienced the unpleasant sensation of your skin going raw. When you are sweating, and your skin starts to rub together, it causes irritation which calls the immune system out and can be quite painful if not taken care of. But there are ways you can try to avoid it.

How To Avoid Chafing

Stay Dry

If you are working out or you do a job where you sweat often, have a towel handy. Even if you have to excuse yourself to the restroom to give yourself a good wipe down, it is better than suffering from a rash.

Get Out Of Wet Clothes

If you just got back from a jog or you and your friends thought it would be hilarious to jump into the hotel swimming pool with your clothes on, change your clothes! Staying in wet clothes can make the chafing even worse.

Using Powder Or Gels

Using powders like talcum powder can help keep your skin dry, making you less likely to receive a rash. You can also use baby powder or anti-chaffing gels. Applying petroleum jelly is a favorite tool against chafing, it is all up to what you find to be the most comfortable.

Dress Right

If you are exercising, don’t wear cotton. Wear a material that helps with moisture. Your clothes should also have smooth seams to help reduce the amount of friction. Using compression shorts can help as well.

Using CBD On Your Chafed Skin

CBD topicals may be able to help by reducing the inflammation that causes the pain and itching. It has also shown in studies to help reduce your sensitivity to pain through elevating the endocannabinoid anandamide. But people with chafed skin want more than just relief; they want the rash to go away. And CBD might also be able to help with that as well.

Studies have shown that the endocannabinoid system helps to regulate skin cell growth. Because CBD acts as a regulator and enhances your endocannabinoid system, hemp oil topicals may be able to help speed up the healing process.

Have you used CBD oil to help with your skin chafing? Tell us about it in the comment section below!

[author name="Sarah Potts" bio = "Sarah Potts has been writing about the wonderful benefits of cannabis for CBD Instead since 2017. Medical cannabis has changed her life and her goal is to show others how it might help them as well." email="pottscontent@gmail.com" twitter= "pottstato"]

Summertime is here, and we hope that you’re using your sunblock! Of course, we aren’t creatures of perfection, and sunburns can still appear. If this happens to you, keeping some CBD topicals nearby can come in handy because CBD has the ability to help you with your sunburns!

Why Do Sunburns Hurt?

Sunburns hurt because of your immune system. The ultraviolet wavelengths damage skin cells which cause your skin to react in inflammation. Your skin trying to heal this damage is what the sunburn is. Cannabidiol (CBD) has shown in multiple studies that it can help with pain and inflammation, making it a valid option for helping with sunburns.

CBD For Sunburns

Cannabidiol interacts with the body’s endocannabinoid system, which is how it can help with so many different ailments from seizures to stubbed toes. By elevating endocannabinoids produced in our body, CBD oil may help with the pain and inflammation caused by sunburns.

The first endocannabinoid that hemp oil elevates is 2-AG which helps mediate immune functions in the body. This is how scientists think CBD helps reduce inflammation. Hemp oil also elevates an endocannabinoid called anandamide that helps mediate neurological functions, which is how researchers suspect CBD can help dull your sensitivity to pain.

CBD has also shown in studies to work as an antioxidant. When you are in the sun, your skin is being exposed to free radicals which can wreak havoc on your skin making you age more quickly and cause skin damage. Cannabinoids like CBD hunt down these free radicals and destroy them, reducing the amount of damage done.

Stay Safe

Even though you can use CBD topicals that may be able to help with the pain and damage, that doesn’t mean you should be careless in the sun. Excessive skin damage from the sun can result in skin cancer. It’s important to use protection on your skin anytime you know you are going to be in the sun. It’s best to put the sunscreen on before you go outside by at least thirty minutes to give the chemicals a chance to bind to your body and be able to work most effectively.

[author name="Sarah Potts" bio = "Sarah Potts has been writing about the wonderful benefits of cannabis for CBD Instead since 2017. Medical cannabis has changed her life and her goal is to show others how it might help them as well." email="pottscontent@gmail.com" twitter= "pottstato"]  

While we often talk about THC and CBD, there is another cannabinoid found in cannabis that can help with fungal infections called cannabichromene (CBC). While CBD has shown that it could have slight anti-fungal properties when getting rid of something like athlete’s foot, full spectrum hemp oil or full plant cannabis is the way to go.

Fungus is so hard to get rid of because the cells contain a nucleus like plants and animals do. When you try to kill the fungus, often it can lead to very unpleasant side effects because of the similar biology between our cells and fungus’. Finding a treatment that harms the fungus and not our cells is a difficult task, but one that might be able to be accomplished by hemp oil.

How Does CBC Work With Fungus?

Full spectrum hemp oil containing CBC can help with athlete’s foot because of CBC’s antifungal properties. Antifungals like CBC work by stopping the cells from multiplying in fungus. This creates an environment where the fungus cells begin to die off.

How To Use CBD For Athlete’s Foot

One great thing about CBD is how many different ways you can use it. If you have a fungal infection like athlete’s foot, you can take the full spectrum oil orally to help combat the condition. You can even use the same tincture directly on your skin to get to the source of the problem quickly. An added benefit that CBC has is, like CBD, it can help relieve pain.

How To Avoid Athlete’s Foot

There are also ways you can avoid athlete’s foot so that you don’t have to take medication for it. Making sure you wear shoes or sandals in public spaces, and if you refuse shoes make sure your feet are dry. Keeping up regular hygiene on your feet is also very important, and make sure your feet are completely dry after each wash. If you live with someone who has athlete’s foot, don’t share your socks, shoes, or towels with them because then you could get it, too.

Some people have oily skin that causes them to shine in the light and get pimples. Others have dry skin that cracks and gets irritated. Then we have the lucky group who has to deal with both types of skin on their face. Whatever category you might fall in, CBD topicals can help you find relief.

Oily Skin

When your body overproduces oil, it can lead to acne which causes pimples and inflammation. The endocannabinoid system plays a huge role in your skin’s health by regulating oil production, cell healing, and fighting off pathogens that may try to enter through cuts or scrapes. When your body isn’t doing its job in maintenance, CBD oil may be the solution to your problems.

Cannabidiol can mediate oil production from your sebaceous gland, making sure that you still get oil on your skin, but you aren’t bathing in it. Because of its relationship with the cannabinoid receptor CB2, cannabidiol can also reduce the inflammation caused by acne and pimples. Since CBD acts as a regulator and not something that inhibits or promotes specifically, it can also help with dry and cracked skin in almost the same way.

Dry Skin

When your skin is dry, it isn’t retaining moisture or is lacking the proper amount of oil. If your skin is water dry, using topicals after you take a shower when your skin is still damp will help keep the moisture locked in. Making sure that you are drinking more water is also a must when it comes to skin that is lacking this type of moisture. If your skin is oil dry, that means that it isn’t producing enough oil. Using CBD topicals can help by regulating your submucous glands and encouraging them to produce more oil.

[How To Tell The Difference Between Oil and Water Dry Skin]

Our hemp oil topicals are also blended with essential oils that can have your skin looking and feeling healthy. Check out our shop and get your CBD solution today!

Why Does Our Skin Age?

Your skin’s health has a lot to do with what you consume, what you expose it to, genes, and your lifestyle. Some may find their youth escaping much quicker than others because of their exposure to sun or smoking cigarettes. Though over time, no one can escape the fact that your skin loses elasticity.

After you hit the ripe old age of twenty-years-old, your body stops producing 1% of its collagen levels each year. Once you reach forty, your collagen is no longer produced.  The collagen and elastin fibers will clump together, thicken up, and break resulting in wrinkles and aging lines. By the time you are in your 50s, sebaceous oils glands are smaller, and your skin becomes more easily damaged and broken.

How Can CBD Help?

When the sun is kissing your skin, it is also spreading free radicals which can damage your skin cells. Other environmental factors like smoke and pollution attack the skin in the same way. CBD oil has shown in studies to be an anti-oxidant which means it protects the skin from these free radicals.

CBD also shows it may elevate the levels of collagen produced in the body. Not only is cannabidiol great for bone health, but this function is also beneficial to your skin. CBD creams aren’t trying to make your skin absorb collagen, so they are different from most creams. Collagen is too large to be absorbed through the skin. CBD topicals may work so well because they are elevating the chemical from within.

If you’re thinking about using skin cream for your wrinkles using CBD can help you achieve more youthful looking skin as well as help repair damage, check out our shop today to pick up some CBD cream and hold onto that young skin for just a little bit longer, or keep it alive as long as you can.

[author name="Sarah Potts" bio = "Sarah Potts has been writing about the wonderful benefits of cannabis for CBD Instead since 2017. Medical cannabis has changed her life and her goal is to show others how it might help them as well." email="pottscontent@gmail.com" ]

Why CBD Works For Acne

You develop acne because your body is producing too much oil. When you’re going through puberty, your hormones are going crazy. Just like you, your body is trying to figure stuff out. It’s pretty much a warzone going on in your body. If you’ve ever remodeled anything before, you know first hand it gets worse before it gets better.

Your body is covered in hair, most of it you just can’t see. That means your body is covered in hair follicles, which is where the sebaceous glands are which produce the oil. You need this oil because it waterproofs and lubricates your skin and hair. But when you have too much, it can build up in those glands turning into whiteheads, blackheads, or just annoying bumps you can’t seem to get rid of.

Now, this is where CBD oil comes in. The cool thing about CBD oil is that studies show it acts as a regulator. If your body wasn't producing enough oil, it would tell your body to tighten up and get it’s act together and provide the oil your body needs. But in your case, you don’t want any more oil production. CBD may instead reduce the oil production in your skin, preventing it from building up and creating pimples.

Inflammation is also a problem when it comes to acne. Your skin can start hurting to the touch, and it can even become painful applying any treatment to your skin. CBD oil has shown in studies to reduce inflammation, which takes some of the red puffiness out of your skin and reduces the pain you feel from even the slightest bit of pressure.

Acne sucks, but it usually doesn’t last forever. Unfortunately, the scars can. Take care of your acne today with our CBD topicals so you can have that smooth skin back and feel amazing in every selfie you take.

Do You Have Eczema?

Eczema is a type of dermatitis that causes inflammation of the skin. Researchers aren’t sure what the exact cause is, but they think it has something to do with the immune system overacting to an irritant. Things like eating certain foods, the weather, fabrics, and stress can make the condition worse.

Symptoms Of Eczema

• Dry and itchy skin
• Rashes on the face or joint areas
• Peeling or flaky skin

Cannabidiol (CBD) interacts with the Endocannabinoid System, helping it keep the body regulated. The endocannabinoid system has two sets of cannabinoid receptors that interact with primary functions of the body, CB1 and CB2.

CB1 receptors are found all over the body like CB2 receptors. However, they are more densely populated in the brain. When endocannabinoids stimulate this receptor, they control the functions of the neurological system. This includes things like your mood, sleep schedule, sensitivity to pain and metabolism. CB2 receptors regulate the functions of the immune system, which is why CBD oil can help with eczema.

Hemp oil doesn’t just make the redness go away; it also takes away the pain and itchiness. Because it elevates an endocannabinoid called anandamide, taking CBD makes the body less sensitive to pain. Trying to stop scratching eczema is half the battle, so taking away those itches can help those sores heal faster.

Other Skin Benefits of CBD Oil

People with eczema don’t just choose CBD for the cooling relief they get when they use it. These marijuana topicals also help your skin’s cells. CBD promotes a healthy life cycle in cells while inhibiting excessive oil production. This helps with acne, oily skin, and easily damaged skin. CBD also helps reduce wrinkles by being an antioxidant. It cleanses your skin from free radicals protecting the collagen and elastin.

For eczema, steer clear of lotions heavy with perfumes because it can agitate your skin even more. Topicals with soothing ingredients like peppermint or eucalyptus are some of the best CBD oil products for eczema. Stop by our shop to see what salves and lotions we have to offer, and for severe spread out cases, you should check out our bath salts!