Best CBD Gummies for Anxiety: 5 CBD Edibles for Stress Relief
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When anxiety hits, it can be hard to focus on anything other than how bad you feel in both your body and mind. Or if you’ve been living with anxiety for a long time or you’re stuck on a waitlist for traditional treatment, you could start to feel hopeless.
So what can you do?
Consider CBD, more specifically CBD gummies. The bite-sized treats are pre-loaded with an exact dose of CBD, offering a natural remedy for reducing stress. By calming the mind, CBD gummies can potentially reduce your anxiety symptoms right when you need it.
Available in a wide range of potencies and a staggering array of flavors, there will be a CBD gummy that suits your individual needs, whether you’re a CBD newbie or a CBD connoisseur.
We’ve researched dozens of premium CBD brands to find the best CBD gummies for anxiety to help you get your stress under control.
Best Overall CBD Gummies for Anxiety: Yum Yum Gummies Gummy Bears
Best Full-Spectrum CBD Gummies for Anxiety: Feals The Gummies
Best Tasting CBD Gummies for Anxiety: Soul CBD Gummies
Best CBD Gummies to Promote Sleep: Redeem Therapeutics CBD + CBN Sleep CBD Gummies
Best CBD Gummies for Boosting Mood: FOCL Feel Good Gummies
How Does CBD Help With Anxiety?
Involved in maintaining balance in several key bodily and psychological functions, the endocannabinoid system consists of millions of cannabinoid receptors. CBD is known to interact with these receptors in the brain and nervous system, which has been theorized to boost serotonin signaling.
As low levels of serotonin can result in depression and anxiety, if CBD can increase levels of this neurotransmitter, it may be able to help reduce anxiety symptoms.
Best CBD Gummies for Anxiety in 2023
Best Overall CBD Gummies for Anxiety: Yum Yum Gummies Gummy Bears
Say so long to stress with the Yum Yum Gummy Bears from Diamond CBD. Looking and tasting just like candy, the CBD Gummy Bears offer a discreet and convenient way to get a soothing dose of CBD, whenever you need it.
Each tasty bear is infused with 10mg of CBD isolate to help promote a sense of calm in the body and mind, whilst not affecting your focus or energy levels. Plus, thanks to a fairly low dosage of CBD, you can take these CBD gummies several times a day, to help keep you balanced throughout difficult days.
Each batch of gummies is sent for extensive third-party testing to ensure that the potency of CBD is as advertised, that there is zero THC and that there are non-detectable levels of contaminants such as pesticides, heavy metals and microbes. No hidden nasties here.
Pros:
100% vegan
Zero THC
Independently lab tested
Specs:
CBD Type: CBD isolate
Size: 150 count
Strength: 10mg CBD per gummy
Flavor: Sour
Best Full-Spectrum CBD Gummies for Anxiety: Feals The Gummies
Feel all the benefits of the hemp plant with the Full-Spectrum CBD Gummies from Feals. Each gummy is infused with a total of 21.5mg of cannabinoids, including 20mg of CBD and 1.5mg of THC, along with minor cannabinoids and terpenes. When combined together, these compounds work synergistically to amplify the calming benefits overall.
Tantalize your taste buds with a zingy and uplifting tangerine flavor, balanced with a light dusting of sugar. The flavorings are all-natural, as is the entire formulation, which also happens to be vegan, cruelty-free and non-GMO. Delicious and good for the planet.
If you need extra peace of mind that the gummies are safe, the results of third-party lab testing show that the concentration of CBD and THC is as advertised and that the gummies have non-detectable levels of impurities and toxins.
Pros:
100% natural
Vegan and gluten-free
Subscribe and save 30%
Specs:
CBD Type: Full-spectrum
Size: 30 count
Strength: 20mg of CBD per gummy
Flavor: Tangerine
Best Tasting CBD Gummies for Anxiety: Soul CBD Gummies
With so many delicious flavor variations, there is sure to be a Soul CBD Gummy that suits your personal taste. Whether you go for a classic strawberry, slightly more exotic pina colada, or the intriguing mystery flavor, you’ll get a gummy that is completely natural, gluten-free and vegan.
Choose between a potency of 10mg or 25mg of CBD per gummy - the lower potency contains the perfect microdose of CBD to manage mild anxiety symptoms, while the higher potency may help you cope with lingering anxiety and help promote sleep.
The organic and natural gummies are infused with CBD isolate, meaning that they are 100% THC-free. This is verified by third-party testing lab testing, which also confirms that the gummies are free of impurities.
Pros:
Certified organic hemp
All-natural ingredients
Gluten-free and vegan
Specs:
CBD Type: CBD isolate
Size: 30 count
Strength: 10 or 25mg of CBD per gummy
Flavor: Pineapple and mango, seriously sour, raspberry, strawberry, orange cream, pina colada, passion fruit and mystery
Best CBD Gummies to Promote Sleep: Redeem Therapeutics CBD + CBN Sleep CBD Gummies
When anxiety causes your thoughts to race at night, keeping you awake, reach for the CBD + CBN Sleep Gummies from Redeem Therapeutics. Each serving contains 25mg of CBD and 10mg of another cannabinoid, CBN, which has been shown to promote relaxation and have a soothing effect.
To make sure you get a restful night’s sleep the gummies also contain additional sleep-boosting ingredients:
Melatonin: By helping to regulate your circadian rhythm, this naturally-occurring hormone can help you fall asleep faster and for longer.
Sleep-promoting botanicals: Lemon balm, chamomile and passion flower extracts are linked to improving sleep quality and easing the symptoms of anxiety.
Griffonia seed extract: As a source of 5-HTP, griffonia seed extract may help boost serotonin levels to improve mood.
Thorough third-party lab testing confirms the cannabinoid content and shows that the gummies pass testing for contamination from the likes of heavy metals, solvents, pesticides and potentially-harmful microbes.
Pros:
Natural and organic formulation
Sleep-promoting botanicals
Subscribe and save 30%
Specs:
CBD Type: Broad-spectrum
Size: 10-count or 60 count
Strength: 25mg of CBD per serving
Flavor: Honey lemon, orange cream and watermelon mint
Best CBD Gummies for Boosting Mood: FOCL Feel Good Gummies
Anxiety can have a detrimental effect on your mood and this is where the Feel Good Gummies from FOCL come in. Feel calm and uplifted with a single gummy that contains a soothing and slightly euphoric blend of 25mg of CBD and 3mg of THC.
Each gummy also contains 250mg of L-Tyrosine, which acts as a precursor to the “feel good chemical”, dopamine, therefore potentially improving cognition and lifting mood. And then there is the flavor — an invigorating and zingy blood orange that is all-natural, just like the rest of the gummy’s ingredients.
FOCL sends its entire product line for independent lab testing to make sure they meet the brand’s high standards for quality, potency and purity.
Pros:
100% natural ingredients
Mood-boosting formulation
Vegan, non-GMO and cruelty-free
Specs:
CBD Type: Full-spectrum
Size: 30 count
Strength: 25mg of CBD per gummy
Flavor: Blood orange
How We Picked the Best CBD Gummies for Anxiety
As the FDA doesn’t regulate CBD supplements, we had to go the extra mile to make sure we’re only recommending the best CBD gummies. Here are some of the key criteria we took into account.
Production Process
WIthout FDA regulation to rely on, we had to get creative when it came to looking for indicators of quality and safety. How a CBD brand manufactures its products is important in the quality of the end result. We made sure brands produce their gummies in facilities that are compliant with current good manufacturing practices (cGMP).
This ensures CBD supplements are being produced in facilities with proper monitoring and control of the manufacturing processes, helping guarantee safety, quality, purity and potency.
How CBD is extracted from the hemp plant also plays a role in the quality of a CBD supplement. There are two main methods — CO2 extraction and solvent extraction.
Our preferred method is CO2 extraction. By extracting CBD from plant material in a high-pressure CO2 chamber, you get a clean hemp oil with a high yield of CBD.
As solvents — like ethanol — are used to release cannabinoids in solvent extraction, there is a risk of contaminated hemp oil in solvent extraction. Therefore if this was a brand’s chosen method of solvent extraction, they are required to have third-party test results that show non-detectable levels of solvents.
Reviews
To learn more about the CBD gummies on our list, we took a good look at verified customer reviews. They are a valuable source of information in a number of areas including the taste and texture of a gummy, the value for money, the effectiveness and the benefits experienced.
Testing
Reputable CBD brands will send their entire product line off for third-party testing and will make the results easily accessible to the consumer via a certificate of analysis (CoA). A CoA should show:
The CBD potency is as advertised
The potency of additional cannabinoids and that the level of CBD is 0.3% or below
Analysis of the terpene profile
There are non-detectable levels of contaminants, including pesticides, herbicides, heavy metals, solvents and potentially harmful microbes.
Quality Ingredients
The best CBD gummies start with a good quality hemp plant. Therefore, we checked if a brand disclose their source of hemp, favoring those that source from domestic growers that use organic farming methods. This helps guarantee a quality hemp extract that is free of pesticides, herbicides and insecticides.
Furthermore, we know it’s easy to get blindsided when a brand lists its ingredients and all the supposed ‘benefits’ they have. Therefore, we only choose CBD gummies that contain evidence-backed ingredients i.e. ingredients that have been shown in research studies to have benefits.
What to Look For When Buying CBD
Here are a few things to consider when you're shopping for CBD gummies or CBD on the whole.
Potency
The appropriate potency of CBD for you is dependent on a number of factors, such as body weight, tolerance, targeted concern and severity of the concern. You can find help selecting the right potency of CBD gummy for you, with a CBD dosage calculator.
If you’re new to CBD it’s wise to stick to the lowest recommended daily dose for you, just to minimize your risk of side effects.
What it helps
CBD supplements can be targeted towards different concerns with the inclusion of additional active ingredients in the formulation. For example, CBD topical balms are typically targeted to healing skin conditions or providing local pain relief, but with the addition of soothing oils, it can provide a relaxing aromatherapy experience.
When looking for a CBD supplement for anxiety, check for additional ingredients that are known to ease stress and promote anxiety such as b vitamins, chamomile, passion flower and tyrosine.
Form
If you like CBD gummies, it’s worth exploring other CBD supplements that are available. For example, if you like dosing on the go, CBD capsules are a good alternative to gummies. Or if you want a little extra help winding down in the evening, there are a wide range of CBD beverages that could help you.
Other forms of CBD supplements include oils and tinctures, vape liquids, topicals, bath bombs, oral sprays and more.
Flavor
Gummies are great and they come in a staggering variety of flavors from fruity and sweet, to tangy and sour. So, shop around. You’re sure to find a quality CBD gummy in a flavor that suits your own personal taste - pun intended.
It can be quite useful to have a gummy you know you’re going to enjoy in those times when anxiety saps your appetite or makes it difficult to swallow.
Price
How do you figure out if a CBD gummy is selling for a fair price? Without FDA regulation it’s not easy. However, we advise a healthy level of skepticism if a CBD gummy (or any CBD supplement) is selling for a price significantly lower than its competitors.
Cheap prices are often an indicator of poor quality supplements, made via substandard manufacturing processes with subpar ingredients. When considering a CBD gummy check for information on the manufacturing process (cGMP-compliant is a big plus) and the ingredient list. If the formulation is all natural and organic you can be confident that you’re paying for a good quality product.
What is CBD?
CBD, otherwise known as cannabidiol, is one of the 100+ cannabinoids found in the hemp plant. It’s becoming increasingly popular as a health and wellness supplement as it’s associated with a number of benefits including promoting relaxation, relieving stress, easing pain and improving skin conditions.
Unlike THC, CBD is non-intoxicating (no ‘high’) and appears to have no dependency issues (i.e. non-addictive). Furthermore, CBD is well-tolerated by most people and if side effects do occur, they are typically mild and temporary.
Benefits of CBD
Anxiety is just one of the health and wellness concerns CBD can help you with. Research shows that the interaction of CBD with receptors in the endocannabinoid system throughout the body can produce a variety of health benefits, including:
Relieving several types of pain - including post-recovery pain, localized pain, arthritic pain and neuropathic pain - by acting as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory.
Reducing the frequency and severity and PTSD symptoms including nightmares and reliving past traumas.
Promoting relaxation and improving sleep onset, sleep quality and sleep quantity, thanks to a mild sedative effect.
Protecting against certain neurological conditions including multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.
Easing the symptoms of withdrawal from opioid addiction.
Perhaps the most significant health benefit of CBD is in the treatment of epilepsy. In 2018, the FDA approved the first CBD drug, Epidolex, which is used to treat seizures in two rare epilepsy forms: Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome. Clinical trials demonstrated the CBD drug reduces the frequency of seizures in patients compared to those in a placebo group.
Types of CBD
CBD supplements come in three forms:
CBD isolate: Pure CBD with no other compounds from the hemp plant.
Broad-spectrum CBD: Contains CBD and all the other minor cannabinoids and terpenes of the hemp plant, but undetectable levels of THC. Terpenes are aromatic compounds that are associated with several therapeutic effects including acting as an inflammatory, antioxidant, sedative, pain reliever and more.
Full-spectrum CBD: Contains all the cannabinoids of terpenes of the hemp plant as well as 0.3% of THC. With full-spectrum CBD, the compounds of the hemp plant are believed to work together to boost the overall benefits.
Forms of CBD
CBD supplements come in a wide variety of forms, each having its own unique benefits. Let’s take a look at some of the popular forms of CBD:
CBD gummies: If you have problems swallowing capsules or don’t enjoy the natural earthy taste of CBD oil, CBD gummies offer a tasty and convenient way of getting an exact dose of CBD. CBD gummies are available in a wide range of flavors and potencies.
CBD oils and tinctures: Offering one of the fastest ways to feel the benefits of CBD, oils and tinctures are administered under the tongue. Here, CBD is absorbed quickly into the network of tiny blood vessels without having to go through the digestive system first. Like gummies, CBD oils are available in a variety of flavors and potencies.
CBD topicals: A great way to provide targeted relief, CBD topicals are creams or balms infused with CBD and nourishing ingredients that can help with localized aches and pains, as well as improve skin health. Some topicals are also infused with essential oils to produce a soothing aromatherapy experience.
CBD capsules: For convenient and discreet dosing on the go, CBD capsules provide a consistent dose of CBD whenever you need it. Capsules typically take longer to take effect as the outer capsule needs to be broken down before the CBD can be metabolized by the digestive system.
CBD vapes: Feel the effects of CBD almost instantly with CBD vape pens. When you inhale, vaporized CBD enters the blood vessels in the lungs for fast-acting effects. CBD vape liquids come in a selection of flavors and potencies, although you should be aware that it’s not easy to get a precise dose.
Side Effects of CBD
Although CBD is often well-tolerated, it can cause some mild side effects including:
Dry mouth
Red eyes
Appetite changes
Drowsiness and fatigue
Diarrhea
Nausea
In rare cases, CBD has been linked to seizures and impaired cognitive function. Furthermore, CBD can interact with medications you're taking, including some blood thinners and antidepressants. Therefore, before you start taking CBD gummies, or any other CBD supplement, you should speak to your doctor to ensure they are suitable for you.
Additionally, the FDA advises those who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or taking prescription medications should avoid CBD. This is because CBD can affect the regulation of reproductive hormones, particularly estrogen.
Other Ways to Cope With Anxiety
When you don’t have your favorite CBD gummies to hand, there are other self-care strategies you can use to help cope with lingering anxiety and when it hits out of the blue:
Breathing exercises
Measured and focused breathing techniques can help you manage your immediate feelings of anxiety. Square breathing is an incredibly useful technique when you feel anxious. Breathe in for a count of 4, hold for 4, breathe out for 4 and hold for 4 and repeat.
This technique takes the focus away from intrusive thoughts and onto the breath. Furthermore, by evening out your breath, your heart rate slows, which also helps to calm you down.
Call a friend
Sharing how you feel with a supportive friend can help ease your anxiety and make you feel less alone. It also serves as a good distraction technique by taking your mind off your worries and back into the moment.
Get active
One of the best ways to stop anxious thoughts is to get moving. Focusing on your body and not your mind can help relieve your anxiety, calm your mind and boost your mood. You don’t need to go to the gym. Low-impact exercise, such as walking and yoga, can help reduce stress and manage anxiety symptoms.
Progressive muscle relaxation
This exercise offers a great way to reduce the feelings of muscle tension that often come with anxiety, as well as providing another way of switching focus from the mind to the body. It’s really easy to do and it can be done pretty much anywhere:
Find a quiet spot
Close your eyes and slowly tense and relax each of your muscle groups, starting from your toes, moving upwards to your neck and head.
Hold the tension for three seconds and then release quickly.
Grounding techniques
A form of mindfulness, grounding techniques are a way of helping you stay in the moment. One such method is the “Rule of Three”, where you focus on your surroundings and identify three things you can see, three sounds you can hear and interact with three things you can touch.
Practicing grounding techniques even when you don’t feel anxious, will help the calming exercise become second nature when you start to feel stressed or overwhelmed.
Keep a journal
Writing down what is making you feel anxious gets it out of your head and onto the page, which can make it seem less daunting. Furthermore, reading back on your thoughts and feelings can help you better understand the triggers of your anxiety, so you feel better equipped to deal with a certain situation.
Seek professional help
While CBD gummies and the above methods can help you manage your anxiety symptoms, they are not something you should rely on solely. If you’re living with chronic anxiety or an anxiety disorder like panic attacks, speak to your healthcare provider who will be able to recommend a course of treatment, which may include a combination of medication and talking therapies.
FAQs:
Is CBD legal?
The Farm Act of 2018 removed hemp from the legal definition of cannabis. This resulted in CBD becoming legal as long as it’s derived from hemp plants with less than 0.3% by weight of THC (the intoxicating compound of hemp).
However, while now federally legal, state laws regarding CBD can vary and therefore you should check individual legislation before buying or traveling between states.
Can CBD alone help with anxiety?
CBD supplements may help you manage your anxiety symptoms, by calming the body and mind and improving mood. However, if you’re living with anxiety on a regular basis that goes beyond everyday stressors, it's a good idea to seek professional treatment to determine and address the root causes of your anxiety.
You could also benefit from learning additional strategies to manage your anxiety including the likes of mindfulness, breathing techniques and meditation.
Will CBD make me high?
No CBD on its own will not make you high. It’s non-psychoactive, meaning that it is non-intoxication and does not produce a “high”. Even full-spectrum that contain THC, at just 0.3% by weight the potency is far too low to be intoxicating.
Rather low concentrations of THC when combined with CBD are thought to produce a mild feeling of euphoria as well as trigger the “entourage effect”. This is a phenomenon where cannabinoids work together to amplify the therapeutic effects as a whole.
In Summary
CBD gummies offer a convenient and discreet way of helping you to manage your anxiety symptoms wherever and whenever you need. By interacting with the body’s endocannabinoid system, CBD can help promote relaxation and calm the mind, easing anxiety and reducing stress.
With a variety of potencies and flavors available, there is sure to be a CBD gummy that suits your specific needs. We do recommend if you’re new to CBD that you start with a lower dose, to reduce your risk of experiencing side effects, such as gastrointestinal issues, lethargy and dry mouth.
Furthermore, you should speak to your doctor before you take a CBD supplement because it can interact with some medications. Plus, CBD is not suitable for those who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Finally, it’s important to remember that CBD is not a replacement for professional treatment for anxiety. Rather, it offers a way to take the edge off anxiety symptoms. To address the underlying causes of anxiety, speak to your doctor who will be able to recommend appropriate talking therapies.
