Amy Highland is a sleep expert at SleepHelp.org. She loves taking naps during thunderstorms and cuddling up with a blanket, book, and cats.

Healthy sleep is essential. Without sleep, everything is more difficult. It's tough to concentrate, your body feels fatigued, it's easy to make mistakes, and your overall health suffers. You can even be at a higher risk of chronic conditions if you're regularly short on sleep.

While sleep is necessary for a healthy lifestyle, it's common for adults to not get enough. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about a third of adults in the U.S. don't get enough sleep on a regular basis. Often, American adults are sleeping for seven hours or less each night.

If you're struggling to maintain healthy sleep, cannabidiol, or CBD oil, could offer support and help you get the rest you need.

CBD Oil Sleep Research

Here's what science has to say about CBD oil and sleep:

• CBD oil could help with anxiety and insomnia concurrently: 2019 research from Kaiser Permanente found that subjects suffering from anxiety or poor sleep were able to improve symptoms using CBD. Almost 80 percent had a decrease in anxiety and 67 percent improved sleep within the first month.

• CBD oil can offer pain relief: A review of research by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine found that cannabinoids such as CBD can be used to treat chronic pain.

• Sleep disorders could be improved with CBD: The same review indicates cannabis could improve sleep outcomes for patients with sleep disorders such as sleep apnea.

• CBD oil has a good safety profile: The World Health Organization reports CBD oil is overall safe, with little risk of side effects or addiction and well tolerated by most users.

How CBD Helps With Sleep

CBD offers support for healthy sleep by working with your body's endocannabinoid system. Your endocannabinoid system works with your body's sleep and wake cycle, so CBD oil can help your circadian rhythm stay in alignment. This is helpful for people who have insomnia or otherwise struggle to sleep well on a regular schedule.

Additionally, CBD's overall calming effect can relax your central nervous system. Alleviating stress, pain, and anxiety can make it easier for you to feel comfortable and get to sleep at night.

How You Can Use CBD For Healthy Sleep

Use these tips to make the most of CBD for healthy sleep:

• Maintain healthy sleep habits. Although CBD can be supportive of healthy sleep, it's no replacement for good habits. Make sure you're sticking to good sleep hygiene, including following a regular bedtime routine and sleep schedule.

• Give yourself enough time to sleep. Again, CBD is helpful but won't put more hours of sleep into your night if you're not in bed for them. Make sure you're scheduling enough time to get good quality sleep.

• Verify CBD quality. Product testing can be spotty among CBD suppliers, so look for one that offers third party analysis, complete with a certificate of analysis. This analysis will tell you about the levels of CBD and THC in the oil as well as any contaminants.

• Take care with timing. If you're consuming CBD edibles, it can take a while for you to get relief. If you need to go to sleep quickly, vaping may offer a more fast acting response.

• Get treatment for sleep disorders. If you have a serious sleep disorder such as insomnia or sleep apnea, CBD could be helpful, but it isn't a replacement for medical care. Talk to your doctor about what you can do to alleviate symptoms, including taking CBD.

Overall, CBD can clear the path to a good night's sleep and offer the rest you need each night. Make CBD part of your healthy sleep habits.