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Diabetes - Juvenile Community
This patient support community is for questions related to juvenile diabetes including celiac disease, depression, diabetic complications, hyperglycemia / diabetic keto-acidosis, hypoglycemia, islet cell transplantation, nutritional issues, parenting a diabetic child, pregnancy, pump therapy, school issues, and teens with diabetes.
Doctor's Answer
by JDRF-Team-LRS, Oct 13, 2005 12:00AM
Hello Stretconstant,
Thanks for posting to our Forum. As you may know, we're all volunteers with extensive experience as diabetics or caregivers -- or both. None of us is a medical professional, so be sure to check out all advice you get here with your own doc. If you're adult enuf to be thinking about using marijuana, you're adult enough to talk with your docs about it, too.
Marijuana does nothing therapeutic for a diabetic. To the extent that mairjuana relaxes a person and makes him/her more suggestible, it can be argued that marijuana introduces new risks and dangers to a diabetic. For example, many folks report getting the "munchies" when they smoke marijuana or eat it in baked goods. Taking on extra calories & carbos in particular is specifically NOT recommended for us. We already have difficulty processing carbos and are advised to keep our weight withint normal ranges to eliminate one more cause for cardio-vascular problems.
Having said all that, however, I know that young people, in particular may be drawn to marijuana because -- by itself -- it has no calories or carbos. I used it a bit in college (25+ years ago) for taht reason. For me, it was also a "gateway" drug to experiment with other things, since I'd chosen to be around drug users instead of my regular pals. I was able to pull myself out of the drug world and am enjoying a great career & family life because of it. OTOH, some of my less-fortunate pals at the time ended in prison and worse.
While you asked a simple question, I know I've provided anything but a simple answer. Be careful. Try meditation, exercise, and volunteering to help other folks as ways to help yourself deal with life's stresses and to continue your path to becoming a more capable & competent adult, free from self-pity.
Thanks for posting to our Forum. As you may know, we're all volunteers with extensive experience as diabetics or caregivers -- or both. None of us is a medical professional, so be sure to check out all advice you get here with your own doc. If you're adult enuf to be thinking about using marijuana, you're adult enough to talk with your docs about it, too.
Marijuana does nothing therapeutic for a diabetic. To the extent that mairjuana relaxes a person and makes him/her more suggestible, it can be argued that marijuana introduces new risks and dangers to a diabetic. For example, many folks report getting the "munchies" when they smoke marijuana or eat it in baked goods. Taking on extra calories & carbos in particular is specifically NOT recommended for us. We already have difficulty processing carbos and are advised to keep our weight withint normal ranges to eliminate one more cause for cardio-vascular problems.
Having said all that, however, I know that young people, in particular may be drawn to marijuana because -- by itself -- it has no calories or carbos. I used it a bit in college (25+ years ago) for taht reason. For me, it was also a "gateway" drug to experiment with other things, since I'd chosen to be around drug users instead of my regular pals. I was able to pull myself out of the drug world and am enjoying a great career & family life because of it. OTOH, some of my less-fortunate pals at the time ended in prison and worse.
While you asked a simple question, I know I've provided anything but a simple answer. Be careful. Try meditation, exercise, and volunteering to help other folks as ways to help yourself deal with life's stresses and to continue your path to becoming a more capable & competent adult, free from self-pity.
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