Thinking Clearly

Pot Luck: Could Marijuana Be Used to Treat Diabetes?

 Lisa Nainggolan - Medscape Medical News

 In research dubbed "remarkable" by an accompanying editorialist, US doctors describe how current users of marijuana appear to have better blood glucose control than never or former users.

  

In an accompanying commentary, Joseph S. Alpert, MD, from University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, who is also editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Medicine, wonders whether "[Tetrahydrocannabinol] THC will be commonly prescribed in the future for patients with diabetes or metabolic syndrome alongside antidiabetic oral agents or insulin for improved management of this chronic illness.

 
"Only time will answer this question for us," he adds. "Nevertheless, what is very clear is that we desperately need a great deal more basic and clinical research into the short- and long-term effects of this agent in a variety of clinical settings, such as cancer, diabetes, and frailty of the elderly."

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With the recent legalization of medical marijuana use in the form of THC in 19 states and the District of Columbia and recreational use in 2 states, "physicians will increasingly encounter marijuana use among their patient populations," Dr. Alpert adds. There are an estimated 17.4 million current users of marijuana in the United States, with approximately 4.6 million of these smoking it daily or almost daily.

And although there will continue to be debate regarding legislation and current medical use of cannabis, the real problem is that there "a dearth of scientific, pharmacologic, and clinical studies with this agent," he observes, pointing out that the majority of research that does exist looks at central nervous system effects of marijuana and potential addictive qualities.

"I would like to call on the National Institutes of Health and the Drug Enforcement Administration to collaborate in developing policies to implement solid scientific investigations that would lead to information assisting physicians in the proper use and prescription of THC in its synthetic or herbal form," he concludes.