diabetes type 1 patient smoking marijuana

Im 20 years old I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when I was 14 always stressed out didnt feel like eating, marijuana helped that, people think marijuana is a drug because dumb commercials try to make you think so Above the Influence all that sh*t is fake tobacco,alcohol both legal substances that kill thousands more then any blunt would do ever do so on that note....(lighter flicking)....(smoke exhale).....chilllll bro

Marite,

It doesn't sound to me like permanent neurological damage. Cannabis is has well known neuroprotective properties which people with diabetes may benefit from, though some studies seem to have established a link between early cannabis use (when the prefrontal cortex is still at peak development) and low achievements both academically and later at work.

Personally, I am both a 32 year old cannabis smoker and a T1 diabetic (like your son), but I don't really feel 'damaged' in any particular way by it. It sounds to me like your son hasn't been managing his blood sugars and that may be causing him not to be able to think straight. It sounds to me like he feels helpless and depressed, and this is making everything else worse, making him in turn more unable to lift himself from his depression.

What I think might help your son is partly reassurance and in part some practical help, some "tutoring" if you want, to get him used to solve some of the problems he's going through (from sugar management to more complex issues like coursework). He may be difficult to help if I'm correct about him, but this might be the time he needs your help most.

Hi Briana,

I am a 20 year old male with Type 1 diabetes. I have had it for over 16 years. I use medical marijuana to help treat my symptoms and I have seen a reduction in my overall insulin needs by roughly 60-70%. I also have a continuous glucose monitor which shows very clearly my body's reaction to cannabinoids. I have been looking across the internet for some time now trying to find other people saying the same things I am saying. I have been seeing more and more of it lately; this is for real.
There are budding research projects suggesting that a primary chemical in medicinal marijuana, CBD, helps reduce beta cell death in people with type 1 diabetes. That's it. That's the crux of this horrible disease. Science is smart, and science will figure out how to get this chemical into a non-controversial, usable form and use it to cure diabetes. I believe in this so strongly...it gives me so much hope. I am already more than halfway there if the massive stockpile of insulin in my fridge is any indication.

For anyone reading this that is still skeptical or holding on to preconceived notions based on ridiculous stigmas that really shouldn't exist anymore: open your f*****g eyes.

I'm a 20 year old female and have had type 1 diabetes since the age of 2. My sugar was very uncontrolled such as in and out the hospital up to 7-10 times a YEAR for DKA but when I was 18 I started smoking weed and notice that my sugar was becoming more and more stable and I haven't even been in the hospital since I was 19, even when I've forgot to take a dose of insulin. SO YES IT WORKS AND I HIGHLY SUPPORT THE USE OF IT IN HELPING SICKNESSES SUCH AS DIABETES.

Many of the replies have been off topic and filled with guesses, estimates and irrelevant and unsound arguments for and against the smoking of marijuana with type 1 diabetes. I understand that we get desperate for answers and concrete solutions backed by facts. Let's not confuse ongoing research with sound conclusion and irrefutable facts. Let's also avoid making the mistake of confusing causation with correlation when interpreting research. The preaching of estimation and disguising it as fact hurts the argument and common goal ahead. Let's keep an open and skeptical mind. It's sad to see impulsiveness and innacurracy as something to be celebrated and practiced. That being said, this is my personal experience with marijuana and type 1 diabetes and in no way suggests that my own experience will be the same for everyone. I got diagnosed with type 1 at the age of 14. I didn't start smoking regularly (marijuana) until I was 21. I'm 32 and am still a regular smoker and I'd like to share some things I've learned. First off, I've noticed that, if anything, smoking will lower my blood sugar. If my sugar is declining pre-smoke, the rate of declination will typically increase. I have passed out once. I can admit that when my bold sugar is low AND I'm high at the same time, distinguishing the difference between the two can become difficult. It's to the point where I test before smoking. If I'm low, I'll deal with that first and wait quite a while. Secondly, after having smoked almost daily for a decade, I can personally attest to my own mood changes. I notice this to an especially startling degree when I don't smoke for days or even a week or two at a time. The mood line graph would illustrate my increasing level of depression. This has happened several times, enough that I know and can predict a mood change based upon my usage. Thirdly, I don't want to step on toes because I don't have glaucoma and haven't experienced the said relief that comes with smoking. But arguing that you need to smoke because of pain related to your diabetes is the flimsiest and least thought out argument I've heard yet. MANAGED diabetes (type 1) doesn't come with pain. If you have pain, poor circulation, other symptoms, diet is the first place to invest effort and time. That is, if you're able to come to grips with why you're really using marijuana. Is it because you like smoking it and would like a health related issue to help justify its use? Some of the posts here would suggest that. I smoke because I enjoy it. I know of the ramifications and continue to make a bad choice. I have no justification for my behavior yet continue doing it - likely because I haven't experienced personally debilitating consequences, yet. To say that there aren't addictive qualities nor ramifications to smoking is pretty ignorant. It's rare to hear of the effects that tar can have on your lungs. It's also rare to READ about the psychological addictions some people have to this plant. Perhaps it's more related to the brain chemistry that shows itself as an addictive behavior. There are still a lot of cards that need to come out onto the table, honest cards from regular smokers. Smoking weed for 30 plus years hasn't been awesome for everyone that's done it that long. There's still a lot of research to be done before our minds are made up for us. I personally would find other venues and vehicles to deliver your message of concern to your best friend. Being that they're 19, they have many choices and options to seek for information. If I heard someone tell me that they smoke because it "helps them", I would press them for details. You'll both know at the same time if those communicated reasons are sound or not. My guess is that the reasons are not sound. Weed won't help you deal with the true stress of taking responsibility and holding yourself accountable. It might relax you for a couple hours at best, but it does nothing for tackling problems and difficult challenges head on. Is marijuana good for type 1 diabetes? That's a dumb question. Nothing is either good or bad when it comes to complex situations like this. Weed may be good for metabolism, as studies have suggested, and it may be good for stopping nausea in its tracks. But that's not the full and accurate story. Even smokeless ingestion can have undesired and unexpected neural effects. My brain isn't the dumbest, but it's sure not as sharp as it once was. My reading comprehension level is all that's needed to illustrate to me the effects of smoking for a decade. I think we need to be super careful in choosing this treatment over other alternatives. I believe most drugs carry some unknown or unexpected side effect. A lot of those effects won't show up in less than a decade of use and research. Bottom line, don't tell her parents unless it's extremely pressing and threatening to her life. She's 19 and that is her choice, for now. If she demonstrates that she can't take care of herself and is a harm to her own well being, then that can be considered a bad choice, one that she will live with. Her parents will want to know at that point. But again, she's 19. Not a lot of good will come out of telling her parents. It will strike distrust and insecurity in the relationship (your relationship with her), and her parents can't force her to do anything. If sitting down and having a heart to heart doesn't do it either, suggest doing some research together on the topic so you're both on the same page at least. Once facts come out it's easier to deal with things objectively.

I feel the same, i don't always have an appetite.Also keeps a smile on my face.

Marijuana really has little effect on blood sugars. Of course the "munchies" can cause a big problem! Best to always rest your blood sugar when in doubt! I've been type 1 for 50 years!

If you did your blood testing like you are supposed to you would have avoided the hypo! I test mine 4+ times a day, before every meal and when something feels NOT RIGHT! Don't blame cannabis for your own ignorance of your condition.

You are very wrong and outdated. Go to the NIH website for better understanding of ecannabinoid receptors and Diabetes.

hey, it doesnt show and I'm pretty sure thats NOT what their checking you for :D

You have no idea what you are talking about. Why say anything?

Reading above posts as mother type one diabetic also smokes marijuana and struggles to keep her levels at a steady rate we have tried so many different things diet research adjusting insulin eating more regularly Ect Ect the list goes on and I can't seem to figure out why she keeps having these lows I'm back from holiday and she hasn't had a low for over 3weeks eating healthy excercise and not smoking any pot ! We had one joint today and she 12 at night and were in the same place we were in before - if you have a type one diabetic friend family member mother daughter son or who ever it may be and are using pot to help this disease it does not give you any benefit . What happens when you go up you must come down - not to mention munchies and the food intake / sugar Ect alone but the thc is not going to improve you at all we have found the best way to keep levels at ease is eat heal thy excercise sleep minimise stress intake regular meals and testing if know it may seem a lot but it's not as hard as dealing with lows and hospital visits so I hope this helps this next person who types in the same question I did does marihuana have any effect on type one diabetics - my answer is yes ! Any foreign substance that is going to mix or metal with your heart pulp station Ect is not ping to be good for you !! I have nothing negative to say about 4:20 time believe me I enjoy it just as much as the next person but watching mum deterate for an hour high is not worth it any other information people have I would love to hear ✌️

What kind of weed does she smoke ??

You must be completely Brainwashed!!! Or just never even experimented with weed. Most normal people that smoke it can still function normaly with their high.

Hello all, I'm turning forty this year and was diagnosed type 1 at 13 years old.  I played a lot of sports through high school and went to college on a sports scholarship to a division one school and even got to play in Europe after graduation. Managing type 1 was easy back then but life after sports began to add some weight and higher A1C levels. I eventually went to the insulin pump with a very welcome change to my glucose levels. But again, as I got older and less active i found my A1C creeping up again.  I had never been a marijuana smoker but gave it a try for recreational purposes and found it helped me get to sleep and thus sleep better.  Nothing else in my life changed and after 6 months of smoking before bed nearly every evening I had my blood drawn for my A1C and the results were astounding to both me and my doctor.  The levels had dropped from 7.4 to 6.1 in that time period and my doctor just looked at me and asked what I had changed.  My response raised his eyebrows but as a medical professional he conceded the results were impressive iand asked that i continue with the same regiment so we can continue to monitor any and all changes. 

    My continued interest as to why it affects the body so positively led me here and prompted me to share my story.  Every aspect of my diabetes control has been positively affected by cannibus use, in any form.