Study: Marijuana Use Associated With Lower Diabetes Risk
Sonya Yruel/Drug Policy Alliance
TORONTO, ON The past use of cannabis is significantly associated with lower odds of diabetes in adults, according todatapublished in the journalDrug and Alcohol Review.
Investigators with the University of Toronto assessed the association between cannabis use and diabetes in a nationally representative sample, while accounting for a range of potential confounders including lifestyle behaviors, socio-demographics, and mental health disorders.
Compared to non-users, subjects with a history of cannabis use possessed an approximately 20 percent decreased likelihood of diabetes. Those subjects with past-year marijuana use possessed an approximately 50 percent decreased risk.
In sum, a decreased likelihood of diabetes for both lifetime and 12-month cannabis users versus non-users was found after accounting for a range of potential confounders, including mental health disorders, authors concluded.
Although authors cautioned that additional epidemiological studies are needed before protective effects of cannabis can be suggested, the study is ...
