One in eight with fibromyalgia uses cannabis as medicine

One in eight people with the painful condition fibromyalgia self-medicate with pot and other cannabis products, according to a new Canadian study.

"That is not unusual behavior, in general, for people with chronic medical illnesses for which we don't have great treatments," said Dr. Igor Grant, who heads the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research at the University of California and was not involved in the study.

"People start looking around, they look for other types of remedies, because they need the help," he told Reuters Health.

The question is if self-medicating with cannabis is really helpful for people with fibromyalgia, researchers say.