Does CBD Increase Testosterone?
CBD’s popularity is on the rise, and for good reason. Emerging science is starting to give us a sneak peek into what this amazing and natural compound can do.
Used by athletes and fitness enthusiasts around the world, CBD can improve your workouts, enhance your energy levels, promote deep and restful sleep, and even speed up your recovery.
It turns out, CBD can also raise the all-important male hormone, testosterone. The question is, how?
About CBD
If you aren’t familiar with the basics of CBD and how it works, now might be the time to brush up on your knowledge. Even if you have experience with CBD, this short section will be your quick and easy reference guide.
So, what is CBD?
It’s a natural compound found in cannabis. It occurs with other cannabinoids like THC. However, unlike THC, CBD doesn’t cause the infamous ‘high’. On the contrary, it enhances your mental clarity, improves muscle recovery, reduces anxiety, and promotes deep sleep.
It’s legally used around the world by athletes and professionals who’re looking to enhance both their mental and physical capabilities.
The research on CBD is still in its infancy, but things are heating up. Emerging research shows that CBD can, among many other things, also support healthy testosterone levels. Read on as we explain how…
Does CBD Increase Testosterone?
CBD is known for promoting balance and homeostasis of the body. It’s been suggested that if your testosterone is low due to an imbalance, CBD could aid in fixing that – bringing your T levels back to normal. It doesn’t seem to increase your test above normal levels, though.
But in which ways exactly does CBD influence your test production? Let’s have a look:
Stress
CBD is well-known for boosting your body’s resilience to stress. It reduces cortisol, a stress hormone that wreaks havoc on your health and testosterone. Now, don’t get me wrong, cortisol is not a bad hormone per se. We need it for many things, but it becomes problematic when there’s too much of it constantly in the system. Read: when you’re stressed all the time.
Cortisol and testosterone aren’t good friends. One negatively impacts the other, and if you’re under chronic stress, then your test might not be as high as it could be. Taking CBD can help manage stress release, giving your male hormone room to thrive.
Sleep
Sleep is critical for testosterone production. Just one week of poor sleep can reduce your T levels by a whopping 15%. In the real world, this means less energy and strength in the gym, poor focus, and lackluster performances in the bedroom.
Luckily, CBD can help. It’s one of the best natural sleep aids; killing anxiety and stress to help you achieve deep and restful sleep. Your testosterone will naturally benefit from it too.
Testosterone Oxidation
It turns out that CBD might reduce the breakdown of testosterone in male’s testes. There was an animal study that showed that CBD reduces the oxidation of T in the testes. By doing so, it helps to prolong testosterone circulation in your blood. Increasing your total (and perhaps even free) T levels in the process.
Other Benefits of CBD
If you’re someone who trains regularly, you’ll want to maximize every aspect of your performance. This includes not just your testosterone but also recovery, endurance, mental focus, and motivation. CBD can help with many of these things. You can even combine it with other supplements for added performance benefits.
However, it’s important to note that CBD can interact with certain medications. If you do take any, be sure to talk to your doctor to ensure you’re OK to take CBD. Better be safe than sorry!
Having said that, here are the additional benefits you’ll experience from taking CBD:
Improves Focus
CBD might enhance your mental focus. One way it achieves this is by reducing cortisol. As we said, this stress hormone has detrimental effects on not just your T levels but also mental abilities like focus.
However, CBD also supports your serotonin, the mood-boosting brain chemical. When you’re in a better mood and less anxious, it’s only natural that you’ll be able to focus and concentrate better. Which is interesting because you’d typically associate cannabis with drowsiness and inability to focus. The thing is, THC is the one responsible for drowsiness. When you take CBD in isolation, you only get more mental clarity.
Enhances Recovery
Hard training inevitably causes microtears in your muscles. This is great, it means your muscles get the opportunity to recover and grow stronger when you rest. CBD aids this process by improving your recovery time and reducing inflammation. It’s also shown to be effective for pain reduction. Meaning it will reduce soreness the day after you trained.
Protects Your Cells From Damage
Not only does CBD help to prevent oxidation of testosterone in testes. It acts as an antioxidant in other parts of your body too. Because of this, CBD is potent at supporting:
- Test production
- Physical performance
- Cellular function
Anything Else to Consider?
While it does look promising, CBD is no magical solution for boosting your testosterone, muscle mass, and fat loss. You’ll still have to put in the work in the gym and in the kitchen if you want serious results.
Also, as we already mentioned, research on CBD and its benefits is still in its early stages. Most of the studies have been performed on animals. Until more human evidence comes, it might be smart to have a healthy dose of skepticism when it comes to these things.
Wrapping Up
Whether you’re a male or a female looking to get leaner and stronger, there are many safe ways to support your natural test production. From eating T-boosing foods and doing resistance training to taking CBD.
As we’ve seen, CBD is a natural and legal compound that could give your workouts a boost. While the evidence still isn’t clear on how potent CBD is, combining it with a healthy and active lifestyle seems like the best way to get the most out of it.