Surely Youve Tried CBD By Now? – British Vogue

Whats become your lockdown coping mechanism? A fast and furious exercise regime? A daily dose of meditation? Or perhaps youve turned to CBD? One of the wellness industrys newest wonder ingredients, CBD tends to provoke mixed opinions. For some, its the holy grail of anxiety solutions. Others question whether it does anything at all; and some mistakenly think it might get them high. Divisive it may be, but CBD brands have recorded huge spikes in sales during the lockdown period. Premium brand Trip is a case in point, having witnessed a 420 per cent increase in sales since strict social distancing was introduced a figure that continues to rise daily.

Read more: How To Know If Your CBD Oil Is Actually Working

What can one ingredient actually do to help ease the pressure on the collective mental health of a nation? CBD works on a lot of levels in the body, says scientific advisor to The Drug Store Julie Moltke, whose book A Quick Guide To CBD is out in June. It interacts with and balances out the endocannabinoid system, as well as the serotonin system, which are involved in anxiety and depression. Studies have shown that CBD can help to reduce anxiety, as well as aid those with disorders like PTSD, OCD and SAD. A study conducted by Moltke herself found that, of those who take CBD, at least a third use it for stress and anxiety, and 75 per cent of those report that it reduces stress, she says. The majority of people use it for anxiety relief, says Olivia Ferdi, co-founder of Trip. But it can also be used for inflammation, pain relief, endometriosis and its even been medically proven to help the symptoms of epilepsy.

It slows down the mental overload that comes with anxiety and stress, conditions in which thought patterns can become repetitive. CBD helps create a bit more space in the mind, says Moltke, who likens our thoughts to a whirling glass of muddy water. Taking CBD helps it to settle, she says. When your thoughts (or the mud) come back down to the bottom of the glass, everything becomes more clear. Put simply, it regulates some of our innate systems in the body, creating more space and calming the mind.

Sounds like the perfect remedy for our fraught minds right now. In fact, in one survey, 39 per cent of consumers asked said they would be using more CBD as a result of the pandemic, and the figure rose to 49 per cent among millennials and Gen-Zers. Since Coronavirus hit were under way more stress, so CBD has become so much more relevant, says Ferdi. Anxiety has shape-shifted, and the way we look after ourselves our self-care rituals have come into question. Plant-based, preventative remedies taking as good care of yourself as is possible to fend off illness have become the new approach to our health.

Ferdi, who previously worked as a lawyer in the City, started Trip in 2018 after her now husband underwent knee surgery a few weeks before their wedding. He used CBD daily to minimise pain and inflammation, and made a miraculous recovery not just nailing the couples walk back up the aisle but also dancing all weekend, without crutches. The brand, which kicked off with a line of very tasty CBD-infused drinks, has been stocking an array of celebrity fans (Ellie Goulding included) fridges with its healthy, low calorie drinks, which are brilliant for easy CBD ingestion.

They taste good, too. Hemp [where CBD is extracted from] is very earthy and bitter, so the idea behind the drinks was to create something on-the-go, that was more understandable to a consumer and easy to enjoy, says Ferdi. We blended it with the adaptogen camomile [a herb thats said to alleviate stress], and natural botanical extracts that have good properties for stress in our bodies. Its CBD oils that have perhaps made the biggest market impact, however, and following a surge in demand in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak, she and her team have accelerated the launch of Trips new oil, which is available on its website now and from Selfridges next week.

Despite having broken through in health and beauty circles, Ferdi maintains that, for some, CBD still doesnt feel approachable, something she attributes to the fact brands like hers are banned from using sponsored advertising. Everything from Google ads to Instagram advertising are all blocked, because theyre owned by American companies who, in some states, have banned CBD. You have to rely on the product itself to do the talking for you, as an absence of marketing means people often dont feel they have enough information to buy into the product, points out Ferdi. With something that is both closely linked to, and sounds like, cannabis, categorised as a class B drug in the UK, communicating your message can be tough.

Brands are doing what they can to change the perception of CBD. Trips new oil tinctures dont come in khaki packaging decorated with illustrated marijuana leaves, for example, but chic, millennial-friendly pastel droppers. With blends of wild mint and orange blossom (and camomile to help ease stress), the earthy taste is a thing of the past, too. Its a similar story at Lady A, another brand that acknowledges how confusing the CBD market can be, and seeks to offer a sleek take on the products available everything from a Morning Tincture to supplements in minimalist packaging. CBII has gone down the traditional brown bottle route, but made it an apothecary-style experience its new CBD capsules contain 5mg of CBD and make incorporating it into your routine as easy as taking a daily multivitamin. Kloris, too, is an excellent choice for those wanting to get started on their CBD journey.

And to the sceptics? Id say give it a go, see how you feel. If you dont feel much, think about upping your dosage there is no right or wrong way of trying this thing, but its potential benefits for lots of different people are super exciting, says Ferdi. And if it wasnt working? The press would stop talking about it.

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Surely Youve Tried CBD By Now? - British Vogue