Can Marijuana Help Diabetes?

While research on the risks and benefits of medical marijuana for people with diabetes is only preliminary, some studies suggest certain potential effects that may be worth further scientific exploration.
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Big questions remain about the health benefits of cannibis.
Although research on marijuana for medicinal purposes is limited and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved the drug as a standard of care, 29 states and Washington, DC, have legalized medical marijuana. That legislation has passed at a time when some research , which has mostly been observational and conducted in animals, links marijuana use to improved symptoms associated with HIV, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, and mental disorders.
But what do researchers say about using marijuana to help treat or prevent diabetes ? Suffice it to say, studies suggest you shouldnt light up just yet.
The marijuana plant contains chemicals called cannabinoids that have a range of effects, including increased appetite and diminished pain and inflammation . That all sounds great, but whats really going on?
Even though some preliminary research suggests medical marijuana may help improve glucose control and insulin resistance , doctors across the board arent quick to recommend marijuana for diabetes prevention. Thats because most of the studies havent met the gold standard for medical research: Medical marijuana hasnt been analyzed in lar Continue reading

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Diabetes: Symptoms, Treatments, Causes, Tests & Preventions

Diabetes results in high levels of glucose in the blood
Diabetes mellitus (DM) is the body's inability to regulate the level of glucose in the blood. Glucose is the main form of sugar in the body. The body breaks down food into glucose and uses it as a source of energy. In healthy people insulin helps to regulate the glucose (sugar) levels. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas (a long, thin organ located behind the stomach against the back).
In diabetics, the body does not produce enough insulin or does not use the produced insulin effectively. This results in a high level of glucose in the blood ("hyperglycaemia").
There are three main types of diabetes mellitus:
a) Type 1, earlier known as insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) or juvenile-onset diabetes mellitus. People with this type of diabetes make little or no insulin in their body, and need regular insulin injections for survival and management of diabetes. It usually starts in childhood, but can occur at any age. This ususally happen before age of 40.
b) Type 2 (DM2), earlier known as non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) or adult-onset diabetes. This is the most common form of diabetes, and is strongly associated with genetic tendency and obesity. The body produces normal or even high levels of insulin, but certain factors make its utilization ineffective ("insulin resistance"). Sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy dietary patterns, and the consequent obesity are common causes. It usually starts in adulthood, but is beginning to be seen in obese adolescents also.
c) Gestational diabetes me Continue reading

Clinical features and treatment of maturity onset diabetes of the young (MODY)

Clinical features and treatment of maturity onset diabetes of the young (MODY)
1Department of Endocrinology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore
2Department of Endocrinology, National University Hospital, Singapore
Correspondence: Daphne SL Gardner, Department of Endocrinology, Singapore General Hospital, Block 6, Level 6, Outram Road, Singapore 169608, Tel +65 6321 4523, Email [email protected]
Author information Copyright and License information Disclaimer
Copyright 2012 Gardner and Tai, publisher and licensee Dove Medical Press Ltd.
This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted noncommercial use, provided the original work is properly cited.
This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.
Maturity onset diabetes of the young (MODY) is a heterogeneous group of disorders that result in -cell dysfunction. It is rare, accounting for just 1%2% of all diabetes. It is often misdiagnosed as type 1 or type 2 diabetes, as it is often difficult to distinguish MODY from these two forms. However, diagnosis allows appropriate individualized care, depending on the genetic etiology, and allows prognostication in family members. In this review, we discuss features of the common causes of MODY, as well as the treatment and diagnosis of MODY.
Keywords: type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, HNF1A, HNF4A, HNF1B, GCK
Maturity onset diabetes of the young (MODY) was a term first used in the 1970s 1 , 2 to describe inheritable diabetes distinct from type 1 (insulin-dependent) and type 2 (noninsulin-dependent) diabetes. In these initial reports, MODY patient Continue reading

Weed and Diabetes : Marijuana

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Postmenopausal Night Sweats Tied to Diabetes Risk

Postmenopausal Night Sweats Tied to Diabetes Risk
Women who have postmenopausal vasomotor symptoms (VMS), especially night sweats, have a higher risk for type 2 diabetes, according to a study published December 6 in Menopause. Further, the excess risk increased with the severity and duration of women's symptoms, the researchers found.
"The most plausible and consistent explanation may be through associations with sleep disturbance," write Kristen E. Gray, PhD, from the Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System and the University of Washington School of Public Health in Seattle, and colleagues. "VMS overall are associated with objective and subjective sleep disturbance, and individuals with disruptions in both the quantity and quality of sleep have a higher risk of diabetes."
Sleep, then, may mediate associations between VMS and diabetes, they add.
"In particular, night sweats are more strongly associated with sleep disturbance than hot flashes, as they occur during the night, which may explain their more pronounced relationship with diabetes," the authors write. "Our results also suggest that night sweats or their effects may be largely responsible for the association between VMS overall and diabetes."
The researchers prospectively tracked and analyzed data for 150,007 postmenopausal women participating in the Women's Health Initiative study to explore possible associations between incident diabetes and VMS from 1993 to 2014. In addition to looking at the severity of hot flashes and night sweats, the researchers looked at the timing of symptoms and how long the Continue reading