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Anyone who has periods can experience menopause. It usually happens between the ages of 45 and 55, but can sometimes be earlier. It occurs when hormone levels decrease, causing periods to stop, and common symptoms include:
- Anxiety
- Mood swings
- Brain fog
- Hot flushes
- Irregular periods
The above can start years before your periods stop and carry on afterwards. Unfortunately there really is no clear timeline when it comes to menopause. And as you can imagine, this can have a huge impact on relationships, work and day-to-day life in general.
Recently, people have started to consider CBD for menopause symptoms due to the many potential medical benefits. With the help of licensed clinics like Alternaleaf, medical cannabis is available on prescription for 50+ conditions. Easily find out if you’re eligible by completing our 30-second online questionnaire.
However, whilst some people may have reported positive personal experiences of CBD oil for menopause relief, there’s next to no scientific evidence to support this. It’s why part of our goal at Alternaleaf is to push medical cannabis into the mainstream. We’ll be exploring CBD for menopause below.
How CBD Affects Hormones & the Endocannabinoid System
The cannabis plant produces over 100 cannabinoids, or compounds. Tetrahydrocannabinolis (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are two of these natural compounds, and they’re what you’ll see most often when researching medical cannabis. The main difference is that THC can produce a ‘high’, while CBD doesn’t. And remember, whilst there is evidence to give a general idea of how both THC and CBD may react with the body, they can affect every individual differently.
We’ll be focusing on CBD in this article, but we have lots more information on our Cannaverse blog about both CBD and THC for other symptoms and conditions.
Both compounds work by interacting with your body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS), a messenger and receptor system that is integral to homeostasis (the management of balance) within the human body. The ECS influences and modulates pretty much every single function within your body, directing, correcting and managing your overall health. And it plays an important role in menopause.
One of the core components of the ECS are the cannabinoid receptors, which includes CB1 and CB2. They’re one of the main reasons behind why medical cannabis might work so positively on so many different conditions. Many experts believe that, by consuming compounds like CBD, it’s possible to interact with these receptors.
But, can CBD help with menopause? In theory, yes, CBD could potentially influence the effects of menopause, including mood regulation, pain, inflammation and temperature regulation.
Benefits of CBD for Menopause Symptoms
Unfortunately, no research has been done on CBD and menopause specifically, or CBD for hormonal imbalance in menopause. But, there is evidence to show the potential of CBD on specific symptoms. For example CBD has the potential to relieve chronic pain, improve sleep and reduce inflammation.
CBD for hot flashes and night sweats
Whether it’s due to hot flashes, night sweats or something else entirely, a lot of people going through menopause say they have difficulty sleeping. But remember the ECS? Well, it also plays a role in the sleep-wake cycle. This suggests CBD could therefore influence sleep. But there’s no clear evidence for this for people suffering from menopause symptoms.
Mood Swings
Again, there’s no clear evidence to back how CBD may help with mood swings as a symptom of menopause. But we do know CBD has the potential to interact with the ECS, which can regulate mood.
This study also highlights how medical cannabis strains high in both THC and CBD can have a positive impact on anxiety symptoms - something that could potentially come with the uncertainty of menopause. CBD and THC can sometimes be greater together, due to a phenomenon known as the entourage effect.
We have lots more information on cannabis and mental health here.
CBD for managing menopause pain
In 2017, a review of around 10,000 studies concluded there is “substantial evidence” to support cannabis for chronic pain, and this could potentially include menopause pain. But as we’ve previously stated, there are no specific studies on people with menopause.
Choosing the Right CBD Product
CBD dosage for menopause symptoms isn’t something you really need to worry about too much if you’ve got a medical cannabis prescription from a licensed clinic like Alternaleaf. Our clinicians will choose an effective product with the right levels of CBD and THC to suit your symptoms and condition. They’ll discuss this with you in video appointments, to make sure you’re fully comfortable with what’s being prescribed.
However, if you’re looking to purchase a CBD product over the counter, the main thing to pay attention to is the CBD concentration and mg per dose. The higher the mg, the stronger the CBD concentration. But, over the counter CBD isn’t always properly regulated, and therefore you can’t always rely on the dosing. An alternative would be to buy CBD products from Alternaleaf’s Pharmacy, Montu Pharmacy. And because they’re non-prescription products, you can order them without a prescription, but still trust the source you’re purchasing from.
Another thing you may want to look at is full-spectrum, broad-spectrum and isolate. Put simply, the difference between these three types of CBD is the compounds they contain.
If any CBD product features a range of things extracted from a cannabis plant – like terpenes (the part of any plant that produces its smell), essential oils and up to 1mg of THC per packet or container – it is classed as full-spectrum.
Broad spectrum is similar, in that it can contain a wide range of cannabis plant compounds, yet it has no more than a trace amount of THC.
Lastly, isolate is pretty much as it sounds: pure CBD or THC with no other compounds. CBD isolate is typically derived from hemp plants, which have very low THC content, while THC isolate is extracted from cannabis plants with higher THC levels, ensuring that only the THC remains.
We go into much more detail on the above here.
Safety, Risks, and Considerations
Every medication comes with potential side effects, and medical cannabis is no different. However, some side effects can vary depending on personal factors such as your past use, physiology and health condition, as well as consumption method (for example oil, vaporiser, edible), and THC and CBD content.
Don’t worry too much, and if you’re ever concerned, speak to your doctor. They’ll explain everything in detail ahead of prescribing any medication. But, some potential risks and side effects to keep in mind include:
- Fatigue
- Diarrhea
- Changes in appetite
- Changes in weight
- Drowsiness
- Dizziness
- Dry Mouth
- Increased Appetite
- Psychoactive Effects. However, the ‘high’ feeling cannabis can be associated with is much more controlled with medical cannabis due to the advice of your clinician.
Also keep in mind that medical cannabis could potentially interact with other medications. And, like we mentioned above, CBD products purchased over the counter are not as strictly monitored as what you’d purchase from a licensed clinic.
Summary
Right now, there’s no real evidence on: CBD and Medical Cannabis for Menopause: Can They Help?
But, by continuing to study the ECS, we may further understand how CBD and medical cannabis could potentially relieve symptoms of menopause. It’s always important to speak to your Doctor or clinician if you’re considering medical cannabis.
If you have any questions, or want to learn more, head to the Alternaleaf website.