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CBD for Diabetes: Benefits, Research, and Risks.
CBD’s ability to reduce pain, inflammation, and possibly blood sugar levels means that it
shows promise as a potential diabetes treatment.
Permalink: cbd-for-diabetes
Having lost my mother back in 2007, diabetes research became very important to me. This brings me to my current research and a book that I am now writing in my mother’s honor with New York Times Best Selling Author and Celebrity Naturopathic Doctor, who is also the Chief Medical Officer of Phoenix Life Sciences International, Dr. Roni Deluz. For patients with diabetes, new developments in treatment options are both exciting and potentially life-changing. Diabetes can cause patients to suffer from extreme fatigue, sores, and blurry vision, and there is even the risk of coma and death.
CBD has risen in popularity thanks to its therapeutic abilities, and it may even be able to offer some hope for those with diabetes. The multi-faceted therapeutic potential of CBD means that the cannabinoid may be able to fight many of the symptoms and causes of diabetes.
What Is Diabetes?
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that comes from high blood sugar levels. Those with diabetes can’t process sugar properly due to their low levels of insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps to keep your blood sugar levels low by signaling to cells to absorb the sugar or glucose or use it as energy. In the case where you have sufficient energy levels, insulin instead signals to your liver to absorb the glucose and store it as glycogen, where it can be used for energy at a later time.
For patients who don’t produce enough insulin, the results can be deadly. Hyperglycemia is the medical term for high levels of glucose, and high blood sugar levels can hurt your organs. High blood sugar can also damage your blood vessels, which can then increase your risk of heart disease, nerve damage, kidney disease, vision issues, and strokes.
Diabetes is a group of diseases, as there are three different types of diabetes.
Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes occurs because of an immune response that has gone wrong. Those with type 1 diabetes cannot produce enough insulin because their immune system targets and destroys the insulin-making cells in the pancreas. Although medical professionals and researchers are not sure what causes this autoimmune disease, patients with type 1 diabetes have the condition for life.
Type 2 Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is different from type 1 because blood sugar levels rise in response to a resistance to insulin, rather than a lack of insulin. This type also doesn’t involve an autoimmune response. Patients with type 2 diabetes experience an insulin-resistance as their blood sugar levels naturally rise. So while they might be producing insulin, a patient with type 2 diabetes doesn’t respond properly to their insulin. Because their blood sugar levels are still high, the pancreas keeps making insulin and eventually may stop being able to produce proper insulin levels at all.
Gestational Diabetes
Gestational diabetes is a form of diabetes that occasionally occurs in pregnant women. Individuals with gestational diabetes have high blood sugar because of hormones produced by the placenta that block the effects of insulin.
Is CBD for Diabetes Effective?
The good news for diabetes patients is that CBD may help to improve some diabetes symptoms. Current treatment options for diabetes treatments include insulin injections, diet and exercise changes, and other insulin/blood-sugar level medications. While these are largely effective, diabetes can still be hard to manage.
Anti-Inflammatory Action of CBD
One way that CBD may improve the symptoms of diabetes is through its anti-inflammatory action.
Research shows that there is evidence that inflammation plays an important role in both the initiation and progression of diabetes and that targeting inflammation may be an effective method of preventing and controlling the disease (1).
CBD has shown a strong ability to reduce inflammation with studies showing it reduces inflammation in patients and models with IBS (2), arthritis (3), and diabetes. A 2016 study found that CBD was able to reduce pancreatic inflammation in mice with type 1 diabetes (4). While this study only involved an animal model, it highlights the anti-inflammatory potential of CBD and its ability to induce this effect in diabetic models.
CBD May Reduce Blood Sugar
Although significant studies are needed before CBD can be confirmed as a way to help manage blood sugar levels, there is some evidence that CBD may be able to reduce blood sugar levels. CBD could act as a therapeutic in the treatment of diabetes. A 2016 study investigated the effects of CBD on animal models with type 2 diabetes (5). The study found that CBD treatment reduced insulin resistance and increased levels of a peptide, which stimulates insulin production.
This study shows that, at least in an animal model, CBD may be able to improve insulin action by stimulating its production and by decreasing insulin resistance. These abilities would be beneficial for both type 1 and 2 diabetes.
Pain-Relieving Properties of CBD
One of the symptoms of diabetes is pain, which tends to occur from nerve damage and can worsen over time.
CBD may be useful for pain management for diabetes patients thanks to its pain-relieving properties.
CBD has shown a particular ability to reduce neuropathic pain or pain from nerve damage. A 2012 rodent study found that CBD was able to suppress both inflammatory and neuropathic pain in rodents significantly and that this pain occurred through CBD’s activation of glycine receptors (6).
Other studies also highlight the pain-relieving potential of CBD. A 2018 meta-review found that 29% of patients using cannabinoid treatment (including CBD) experienced a 30% reduction in pain with no significant impacts on physical or emotional functioning (7). It is important to keep in mind that this study involves self-reported data and cannabinoids other than CBD, so while it is not conclusive, it showcases the potential of CBD as a pain reliever.
The Bottom Line
Diabetes mellitus is a debilitating group of diseases that can affect patients for a variety of reasons. With patients potentially facing pain, organ damage, and death, novel developments in the treatment of diabetes are exciting for many. CBD has shown potential in a range of areas relevant to the management of diabetes. From its ability to reduce pain and inflammation to the possible ability to manage insulin production and blood sugar levels, CBD could benefit those who have diabetes. While more research is needed into CBD and diabetes before it can be established as a diabetes treatment, it is showing promising signs.
By: Willis Victory
Business Leader & CEO of Phoenix Life Sciences International
