The world is shifting towards natural alternatives to traditional wellness medications, with cannabinoid-based products becoming the top priority for millions of people across the globe. Thanks to the 2018 farm bill, you can legally buy CBG oil, CBD gummies, or CBN tinctures in almost all American states now.
Derived from industrial hemp plants, these compounds have many healing and therapeutic effects. Using them regularly can help you with everyday anxiety, stress, and sleep issues. The best part is that they are not addictive, and are made from 100% natural ingredients to support your health holistically.
The lack of severe side effects, easy availability, and drastic positive effects have made cannabinoid-based popular among people from all walks of life. Nurses, students, doctors, firefighters, and politicians, are all using cannabinoid products actively to keep a balance in their lives. But which one is best for you? What’s the difference between CBD, CBG and CBN? Well, that’s exactly what we’ll explore in this article so that you can make an informed choice.
What are Cannabinoids?
Before we dissect them individually, let’s first get a grip on what cannabinoids are. Before we dissect them individually, let’s first get a grip on what cannabinoids are. Cannabinoids are natural plant compounds that are mainly present in cannabis sativa plants.
When we consume them in the form of gummies, oils, vapes, or beverages, they enter our bloodstream and start to improve the efficiency of our bodies’ endocannabinoid system. This endocannabinoid system is a complex cell signaling network that is essential to maintaining a state of balance in our body.
It does so by modulating various bodily functions like our sleep cycles, mood, energy, appetite, stress levels, pain perception, memory, and anxiety levels. Cannabinoids like CBG, CBD, and CBN make this endocannabinoid efficient by improving the endocannabinoid absorption power of CB1 and CB2 receptors.
This creates an entourage effect in our body, and we feel more relaxed, focused, and in better control of our body. All the pain numbs down, anxiety goes away, and sleep becomes more deep and restful. When you take full-spectrum CBD products, you get to experience the deep therapeutic effects of more than 100+ cannabinoids, flavonoids, and terpenes.
However, individual cannabinoids have their effects, and you can effectively use them separately based on the condition you are planning to treat. That’s why it’s important to understand how CBG, CBD, and CBN differ so that you can incorporate them into your wellness routine accordingly.
What is CBD?
CBD stands for cannabidiol. It’s the most popular, studied,d and widely used cannabinoid. CBD is mainly extracted from hemp plants, which have only trace amounts of psychoactive cannabinoid THC. CBD is completely nonintoxicating, so you can not get high or dizzy from using it. It’s pretty well tolerated by the human body and hardly causes any side effects, even at very high doses.
You can buy it in the form of tinctures, sprays, balsam, capsules, softgels, gummies, shampoos, bath bombs, and even beverages. In fact, it’s the very first cannabinoid on which an FDA-prescribed drug called Epidolex recently got greenlit for public use.
Studies show that CBD has huge potential in the treatment of neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, and Huntington’s disease. It also has the potential to help patients suffering from ADHD, Epilepsy, and PTSD disorders. Now let’s take a look at its general health benefits for everyday use.
Potential Health Benefits
- Pain & Inflammation releif
- Faster recovery from delayed onset muscle soreness
- Relief from nausea during chemotherapy
- Relief from itchy and dry skin
- Everyday anxiety & stress relief
- Sexual wellness
What is CBG?
CBG stands for Cannabigerol. It’s another major cannabinoid commonly known as the “mother of cannabinoids”. The title is apt because CBD, THC, and CBC form when acidity from CBG breaks down over time in growing cannabis sativa plants.
That’s why it’s found mainly in young and immature plants, and extracted through a special C02 extraction method. This makes it a bit rare and slightly expensive as compared to other cannabinoids.
Just like CBD, CBG is also completely nonintoxicating. It’s mainly used for its strong anti-bacterial, aunty inflammatory, and neuroprotective properties. But there’s more to it, let’s take a closer look.
Potential Health Benefits
- Treatment of ocular diseases and glaucoma
- Relief from inflammatory bowel disease
- It may stop the growth of certain cancer cells
- Strong neuroprotective effects
- May increase appetite
- Antibacterial effects
- Potential to keep kidneys safe from nephrotoxicity
- General anxiety, stress, and sleep management
What is CBN?
CBN stands for Cannabinol. It’s popular as the best cannabinoid for improving sleep quality and skin health. CBN is also the very first discovered cannabinoid and was discovered in 1940 by Thomas Wood when he and his colleagues extracted it as the first cannabinoid from cannabis extract.
It’s mainly found in dried or mature cannabis plants because it from when THC breaks due to prolonged exposure to heat, moisture, and light. In a way, it’s a much weaker form of THC, so it’s not intoxicating but can be slightly psychoactive at high doses. Its strong sedative and relaxing effects make it a perfect cannabinoid for those who have sleep troubles.
Potential Health Benefits
- Improve circadian rhythm and overall sleep quality
- May increase appetite
- Affect TRPV1 receptors to reduce itching and redness
- Protects brain cells from damage
- Anticonvulsant
- Anti-inflammatory effects
- Reduce oxidative stress
- Protects neurons against ferroptosis
The End Note – What’s the difference?
To sum it up, the major difference between CBG, CBD, and CBN lies in how and at what stage they synthesize in cannabis sativa plants and their different effects on the endocannabinoid system. For sleep, CBN may work best; for kidney health and eye diseases, CBG oil is a good option; and for everyday stress and anxiety, CBD is the best choice.
If you want to experience the positive effects of three cannabinoids, then it’s best to opt for full-spectrum gummies or tinctures. You can buy them legally from high-quality brands like Colorado Botanicals. Whichever cannabinoid-based product you end up choosing, make sure to incorporate it slowly with low doses in your wellness routine. Also, increase your water intake to avoid dehydration and nausea.
