Marijuana: Hero for Diabetes Patients

Diabetes is the term for a group of related metabolic disorders characterized by prolonged high blood glucose levels. Diabetes affects almost 400 million people worldwide, resulting in up to five million deaths per year–and its prevalence is rising. Substantial evidence indicates that cannabis may prevent and treat the disease.

Diabetes is associated with high levels of fasting insulin and insulin resistance, as well as low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). 
In 2013, the results of a five-year study into the effects of cannabis on fasting insulin and insulin resistance were published in the American Journal of Medicine. Of the 4,657 respondents, 2,554 had used cannabis in their lifetime (579 were current users and 1,975 were past users) and 2,103 had never used the drug.

The researchers found that current users of cannabis had 16% lower fasting insulin levels than respondents who had never used cannabis, as well as having 17% lower levels of insulin resistance and higher levels of HDL-C. Respondents who had used cannabis in their lifetime but were not current users showed similar but less pronounced associations, indicating that the protective effect of cannabis fades with time.

The researchers also ran analyses on the data that excluded individuals diagnosed with diabetes. Even after excluding diabetics, current cannabis users were found to exhibit reduced fasting insulin and insulin resistance levels, indicating that cannabis can help prevent the occurrence of diabetes as well as controlling symptoms in diagnosed cases.


Cannabis is beneficial for both types of diabetes. In Type 1 diabetes, a lower fasting level might eliminate the need for an insulin injection at that time. While injections wouldn’t be completely eliminated, it could decrease the number needed per day. For those with Type 2 diabetes, being less resistant to the insulin could help control the advancing of the disease by improving the body’s ability to manage sugar levels naturally.

Some of the complications that can arise from Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are neuropathy, glaucoma, high blood pressure, and peripheral vascular disease. Medical marijuana has been studied to see its effects on each of these conditions.

Neuropathy, a nerve damage contracted from certain diseases or disorders, is found in 60 to 70 percent of all people with diabetes. More specifically, there are four types of diabetes-related neuropathy: peripheral (located in the hands, arms, legs and feet), autonomic (which affects the nerves that control blood glucose levels, blood pressure, and the heart), focal (specific nerve damage to the head, torso, and leg), and proximal (sometimes called diabetic amyotrophy and usually centralized on one side of the body in the hips, thighs, and buttocks).
Several studies have shown vaporized cannabis to reduce pain and slow the advancing nerve damage of all four types of neuropathy. In some types, there was more than a 30 percent improvement without any significant impact on daily functioning or cognitive abilities.

Glaucoma is another complication that can arise with diabetes. The general term for glaucoma-related complications is retinopathy. People who have diabetes are 40 percent more likely to contract glaucoma than people without the disease. Glaucoma occurs when pressure builds inside the eye, eventually cutting off blood flow and damaging the optic nerve. Vision is gradually lost due to the continued pressure and nerve damage.
Medical marijuana is already being recommended for glaucoma sufferers, as it can directly reduce the inflammation caused by the nerve damage and increased blood flow.

High blood pressure is often a complication of Type 2 diabetes and medical marijuana does lower blood pressure.

Peripheral vascular disease is caused by atherosclerosis –– the process in which fatty material builds up inside the arteries over time. This fatty material hardens as it mixes with calcium, scar tissue, and other materials, creating plaque on the arterial walls. This plaque can inhibit or completely block blood flow through the arteries. People with high blood sugar levels caused by diabetes can have narrow, weak blood vessels, in addition to accelerated fat levels in the blood, and higher blood pressure which dramatically affects the rate of developing atherosclerosis. All of this exponentially increases the chance of angina, heart attacks, and strokes. Studies have shown that medical marijuana can significantly decrease angina, it can also cause acute coronary events.

A research paper published by the American Alliance for Medical Cannabis (AAMC) suggested that cannabis can help:

• Stabilise blood sugars.
• Suppress some of the arterial inflammation commonly experienced by diabetics, which can lead to cardiovascular disease.
• Prevent nerve inflammation and ease the pain of neuropathy - the most common complication of diabetes - by stimulating receptors in the body and brain.
• Lower blood pressure over time, which can help reduce the risk of heart disease and other diabetes complications.
• Keep blood vessels open and improve circulation.
• Relieve muscle cramps and the pain of gastrointestinal (GI) disorders.
• Be used to make topical creams to relieve neuropathic pain and tingling in hands and feet.
• cannabis helps still diabetic "restless leg syndrome" (RLS), so the patient can sleep better: "it is recommended that patients use a vaporizer or smoked cannabis to aid in falling asleep."