Is Hemp Seed Oil The Supplement To Beat?

Hemp seed oil might be the next hot dietary supplement to hit shelves. New studies reveal an astonishing number of health benefits, ranging from fighting heart disease and inflammation to helping with weight loss. 

Hemp seed oil has no psychoactive properties. That is to say, you don’t have to worry about getting high after consumption.

Typically produced from applying concentrated pressure to hemp seeds (sometimes called hemp "hearts"), the oil is completely natural and is an antioxidant with neuro-protective properties, according to a study from the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada.

The neuro-protective properties can help mitigate the effects of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, or Huntington's. Antioxidants help minimize cell damage caused by digesting food, smoking cigarettes or being exposed to radiation.

The same study found the anti-inflammatory effects of hemp seed oil to be a whopping 30 times more potent than aspirin. That means this oil is going to help with soreness from exercise, menstrual cramps and injury recovery.

Like Aspirin, Hemp seed oil can be used to treat heart disease, according to a University of Manitoba study. This research found that hemp seed oil lowers cholesterol and decreases the risk of heart disease.

The study points to further research indicating that Hemp seed oil can help aid weight loss and alleviate eczema.

“Many studies have demonstrated that dietary interventions can play a central role in the primary and secondary prevention of several diseases,” writes Dr. Delfin Rodriguez Leyva, a cardiologist and researcher at the University of Manitoba. Hemp seed oil is a prime candidate for dietary intervention as a natural alternative to medical intervention in some cases.

Although Hemp seed oil has miraculous health properties, it is understudied and has only recently started to make a splash in health and diet circles.

“Despite its use in our diet for hundreds of years, hempseed has surprisingly little research published on its physiological effects,” says Dr. Rodriguez Leyva.

“This may have been in the past because the psychotropic properties wrongly attributed to hemp would complicate any conclusions obtained through the study.”

As the stigma surrounding cannabis lessens, research is becoming more readily available. Expect hemp seed oil to show up in supplement form, as an ingredient in health-oriented food products and as a favorite of dieticians in the near future.