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Cannabidiol (CBD) is the latest hemp craze that’s sweeping the nation. It’s an important part of the hemp plant that could be responsible for treating many health issues without altering a person’s mental clarity. It’s even started to become a thing for both professional and amateur wrestlers.
According to Fred Rosser who was once called Darren Young in the WWE league, CBD among professional wrestlers is incredibly common. “90 percent use the CBD. 90 percent of the cast. Yes, I'm sure they do. Yeah, in fact, when I was there, I was using the CBD. I got concussions; they shook me a couple of times. And when you have to go from city to city going 500 kilometers from the city to the city, I just couldn't do it. So, the CBD helped me.”
Bobby Lashley, Enzo Amore, Mark Dae, and others have also shared their experience using CBD to treat anxiety, pain, inflammation, and more.
Wrestling is not the only sport where CBD has become a staple for some athletes. MMA boxers, basketball players, football linebackers, golfers, swimmers, and many other athletes have started using CBD to treat a variety of health and wellness ailments. There are a variety of choices at your disposal.
1. Treats Anxiety
Even professional athletes who perform their sport weekly feel anxiety. They might feel pressure to do better or simply be nervous in front of a crowd. CBD has helped many people relax in the face of intense pressure, and it could help wrestlers as well.
The best way to take CBD oil is by holding it under the tongue for a couple of minutes before swallowing. This increases absorption, and there are many flavors to make it a more pleasant experience including citrus CBD oil, peppermint, lavender, rose, and more.
2. Combats Addiction
Prescription opioid pain medications are one of the biggest problems for those facing addiction. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, 18 million people misuse their prescriptions and about 3.3 percent become addicted to painkillers.
Since injuries in wrestling and the need for painkillers often go together, it’s important to find a better alternative, and CBD could be it. It’s not addictive and could ease pain as well as these painkillers.
While many sports leagues ask that their athletes don’t use CBD during a game, the president of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), R. Bruce Tharpe, says that he thinks CBD makes a fantastic medical alternative for those who are injured in the sport.
“Too many people in the US have become victims of opioid addiction and death as a result of the over-prescription of pain medications and pharmaceuticals by doctors. Unfortunately, over the years we have seen a large number of untimely deaths as a direct result of prescription drug use, and many of those deaths may have been avoided had the medicinal use of cannabis been legalized and more widely accepted… The National Wrestling Alliance is taking a progressive public position toward the advocacy of medicinal cannabis use by wrestlers and other athletes for the treatment of pain.”
3. Improve Addiction Recovery
If an athlete becomes addicted to painkillers or other substances, there’s promising research that CBD could help them overcome the disorder. It’s believed that CBD could modify circuits in the brain that contribute to addiction. Some studies show that daily doses of CBD could reduce a person’s craving for their substance of choice and handle the withdrawal symptoms.
4. Cuts Down Pain and Inflammation
A body that’s as well used and abused as a wrestler’s likely experiences pain and inflammation often. Inflammation increases pain and makes it difficult to perform as well as you need to at your sport.
CBD could possess anti-inflammatory and anti-pain properties that bring down swelling and promote healing.
5. Faster Recovery
If you’re reducing the inflammation, you’ll be in line for a faster recovery. Slow recovery times have put many wrestlers off their games, delaying their practice schedules and even keeping them from wrestling in a match.
CBD’s repairing properties could promote faster recovery for athletes who are itching to get back in the game.
6. Better Sleep
If you’re into holistic recovery and performance improvement, a better night’s sleep is essential. A good night’s sleep is essential to help your body with cognitive processing and recovery. While you sleep, it repairs brain cells, logs memories, repairs muscles, reduces inflammation, and promotes better overall health.
CBD has been linked in many scenarios with a better night’s sleep. Users say that it helps them fall asleep faster and sleep throughout the night. They wake up feeling refreshed rather than groggy, making it a better alternative to sleeping pills.
7. Could Prevent Dementia
Wrestlers are too often seeking medical attention for a head injury like a concussion. This kills precious brain cells that are required for cognitive processing and memory categorization. With time and repeated incidents, it can lead to severe memory loss and dementia.
Along with taking precautions to avoid head injuries, wrestlers could take CBD regularly. It might help to restore lost brain cells and improve cognitive function.
8. Acts as an Antipsychotic
Another unfortunate effect of a head injury like a concussion is that it can cause mental health problems down the road. This is not always the case; it depends on the severity of the hit, the frequency of the hit, and where the hit occurred.
In any case, some preliminary studies suggest that the best CBD oil might have antipsychotic effects. If a wrestler develops a psychotic disorder as a result of a head injury, it could help.
9. Reduces Muscle Cramps and Spasms
Every active athlete is familiar with the pain and annoyance of muscle cramps and spasms. These serve a purpose in your body, as it tells you that you’re too tense or there’s too much lactic acid in your muscles. However, it’s very inconvenient during a match.
CBD could reduce muscle spasms, cramps, and the associated pain and inflammation. It’s important that wrestlers take care of their bodies to avoid these painful effects anyway, but CBD is there if they need it.
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