Can CBD Oil Treat Diabetes?
Can CBD oil effectively treat diabetes?
CBD (cannabidiol) originates from the cannabis sativa plant.
CBD oil can be used for a number of different reasons. It doesn’t get you high and it may help with managing seizures, epilepsy, reducing pain and inflammation, depression and anxiety. There are ongoing studies to see if CBD can help control blood sugar, calm inflammation, and ease nerve pain from diabetes.
What the Studies Show
The current research of CBD oil effects on diabetes have been performed only in mice or rats.
This may create an inaccurate results because of laboratory conditions, fundamental differences in animals and humans, and other things can affect final study results.
Just because CBD works for animals it doesn’t mean it will work in humans.
In one separate study, researchers tested CBD on mice with less blood flow to the brain, a typical complication of diabetes for some people.
They found that CBD oil can:
- Lower high blood sugar
- Lower cholesterol and “bad fat” levels
- Increased insulin production
Other studies of CBD oil test in animals found following:
- It reduces swelling and pain from nerve damage.
- CBD kept chronic inflammation and neuropathic pain, which tends to affect the hands and feet of people with diabetes under control.
- Lowers the risk of diabetes.
- Promotes “good fat.”
- CBD oil can help the body turn white fat into slimming brown fat which can boost body's ability to use glucose.
THC and Diabetes
The effects of CBD and THC (the chemical in cannabis that causes a high) are vastly different.
In one research, CBD oil didn’t improve blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes, but a variation of THC did. In other study CBD oil did lower insulin resistance and boosted gut hormone levels.
Use Caution
CBD is available in many forms, such as oil drops, edibles, capsules and vapes. FDA doesn’t regulate most of CBD products.
The only FDA-approved form of CBD oil is Epidiolex, a prescription drug that treats two types of epilepsy.
CBD can also have side effects such as:
Fatigue
Drowsiness
Diarrhea
Dry mouth
It can also interact with other medications like blood thinners. So it’s important to talk with your doctor before trying CBD.