Do CBD Bath Bombs Really Work?
The short answer? It depends. If your goal is to have a nice relaxing soak in the tub after a stressful day, the answer is yes. If you’re hoping that CBD bath bombs live up to some of the claims made online the answer is sadly, probably not. As a topical application for CBD a bath bomb is not as effective, measurable, tested or really regulated as other topical CBD applications. The key aspect of using a topical CBD product and the part that makes it most effective is that it requires dwell time, as in, time to soak into the skin. This is why high quality CBD topicals are made with beeswax, olive oil, shea butter or similar fat/oil based carriers; to hold the CBD against the skin to provide targeted and concentrated absorption. Soaking in a beautiful rainbow colored bath, as gorgeous as it smells will probably not produce nearly the same results.
1. What are some of the claims CBD companies make around CBD bath bombs?
A quick internet search, Instagram scroll or Facebook lurk produced hundreds of CBD enhanced bath products from CBD infused bath salts to the trend of the moment, CBD bath bombs. A scan of the top 20 CBD bath bombs available to buy online produced the following claims:
Calms anxiety
Relieves stress
Produces relaxation
Reduces Pain
Treats Severe Pain
Purifies Skin
Relieves Pain
Relieves Sore Joints, Muscles and one brand claims BONE PAIN
Reduces aches and pains
Induces mental clarity
Promotes happiness
3. How are bath bombs supposed to work?
The human body is covered in tons of specialized receptors specifically trained to turn CBD into medicine. This system is called the endocannabinoid system or ecs for short. Your skin is covered in them. That’s real science, not woo. Human skin soaks up CBD that is topically applied and puts it to work where it’s needed. But, a bath bomb is not actually a CBD topical and soaking in a tub of diluted CBD oil is not an accurate way to therapeutically dose CBD.
3. Wait, so why do CBD baths feel so awesome then?
Well that answer to that is simple, taking baths is nice! In fact, the list of health benefits of a warm bath is quite similar to the health claims for CBD bath bombs (minus curing bone pain) and that awesome part? You can take one without spending $20 each time.
When it comes to understanding the full scope of the benefits of CBD oil on your health, it can be a bit overwhelming to sort out the facts from fiction. After all, an oil that can somehow simultaneously treat acne and arthritis pain sounds too good to be true. While there are a lot of wildly inaccurate claims about what CBD oil can and can’t do floating around on the internet, actual science backs up CBD’s measurable effectiveness on overall skin inflammation, scars, acne, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, eczema and dry skin.
How does the endocannabinoid system (ECS) regulate skin?
Although the best studied functions over the ECS are related to the central nervous system and to immune processes, experimental efforts over the last two decades have confirmed that cannabinoid skin signaling plays a pivotal role in skin homeostasis, protection, and healing. When skin’s natural balance is disrupted, illness can occur. Common skin ailments that are a result of homeostatic imbalance in the skin are: atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, scleroderma, acne, pigmentation disorders, keratin diseases, skins tumors, and itchy skin.
The benefits of topical CBD are not limited to skin homeostasis and wellness. Because of the way the ECS receptors in the human body work, CBD is moves from the skin into the body where is also interacts with the other body systems like your immune system, central nervous system and brain to reduce inflammation, reduce stress and bring you body into balance.
Based On That Information, It Sounds Like CBD Bath Bombs Are A Great Idea. What Gives?
Let’s take a look at the strength, average cost and ingredients of several popular CBD bath bombs. A few details worth noting, because bath bombs are not edible and are considered topical CBD for regulatory reasons, many companies do not disclose if the CBD is organic, full-spectrum, isolate, manufactured from bio-mass or tested for strength and contaminates. So when comparing MCBD’s full-spectrum, organic CBD products to a bath bomb the comparison is not always apples to apples.
Anastasia Filipenko is a health and wellness psychologist, dermatolist and a freelance writer. She frequently covers beauty and skincare, food trends and nutrition, health and fitness and relationships. When she’s not trying out new skincare products, you’ll find her taking a cycling class, doing yoga, reading in the park, or trying a new recipe.
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