Does Cannabis Increase Heart Rate?

Skyscraper

Skyscraper

Well-Known Member
My question is: Does cannabis increase heart rate? Also, what are the consequences of this increased heart rate over time?

I know stimulants are bad for the heart. I have never been given any warnings about my heart, I have been given Adderall before and have decided not to take it after not being able to pace myself with physical exertion like normal; One time I feel like my heart went out of control after exerting myself too quickly, and I had taken one 10mg pill.

I'm not sure if this is only an anxious recurring thought because of my belief that the pills have a negative effect on the heart. It's like cigarettes. I quit smoking because it slowed me down too much and I would get winded very quickly. I ended up feeling guilty because I could notice the physical feelings of smoking too much. I may be overly conscious of the amphetamine, especially when using cannabis.

But what does cannabis do to the heart? Anyone know anything, any personal stories?

EDIT: I know forums rules discourage drug discussion, but I felt it was worth mentioning as it is my main concern
 
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Skyscraper,
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lwien

lwien

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For me, there is an increase but it only lasts for about 10 minutes or less and it only increases about 10 to 20 bpm which for a healthy individual, is no big deal. Of course, your milage may vary.
 
Chezgreendream

Chezgreendream

First the flavor, then the buZzz settles in....
I know for certain to me it does. I can vape a little feel a little buzz and the heartrate wont matter much, but if I get where I want to be at, then that nice buzz comes with a fast paced heart. Which is not a problem for me, its just really annoying. I have often wondered if putting the heart through that type of stress is bad over time or If the heart can always handle it since it probably is a minut change. My heart always speeds up after vaping but within an hour its close to normal.

I can no longer do my favorite activity, which was exercise while high. I used to do it alot before, but I guess I had beat my heart up one too many times, with smoking until I was really really high, then exercising really intensely, in really extreme weather of hot and cold. All of these individually take their toll on the heart. I used to do them all together. Nowadays, If I exercise while buzzed my heart rate spikes up as If I am exercising intensely. Which is not good I think.

I just recently found out that you are not supposed to take your heart past a certain threshold. If not it can be detremental to the persons health. I wish I would have known this before I started abusing my heart. I just thought if I exercised hard it would balance itself out.
for this reason I ordered a heart monitor. So I can keep pace of the beats.

Though there are conflicting theories on whether Cannabis does well for the heart and the circulatory system or the opposite. I see it this way, if you have a healthy resting heart rate and dont push your heart too much, then there shouldnt be any longterm negative changes to the heart. Through cannabis you are inducing this fast heart rate, similar to exercise. All within reason, Of course. This is only my theory, dont take it as medical advice.
 
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Chezgreendream,
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lwien

lwien

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Chezgreendream said:
for this reason I ordered a heart monitor. So I can keep pace of the beats.
Click to expand...

I've been wearing an HRM every time I run for over a decade. It's kinda like having a coach running beside ya yelling "Speed it up ya lazy bum. You're not running fast enough" or "Slow the fuck down....".

I have it set so it sets off an alarm if I'm below 70% of my max and over 85% of my max.
 
Enchantre

Enchantre

Oil Painter
One of my annoying symptoms is hot flashes with a pounding heartbeat... cannabis (specifically, a quick dab) will speed it momentarily, but then it down-regulates it back to a more normal beat, while also dialing back the heat & sweating.

Sometimes, the change cannabis makes is a good thing...
 
EverythingsHazy

EverythingsHazy

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It defintitely can. Whether it is/can be a problem, depends on you as an individual, and probably some other cannabis science stuff that we haven't accurately studied yet.

It's kind of weird having an elevated heart rate, while feeling much more relaxed and mellowed out.
 
EverythingsHazy,
lwien

lwien

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EverythingsHazy said:
It defintitely can. Whether it is/can be a problem, depends on you as an individual, and probably some other cannabis science stuff that we haven't accurately studied yet.

It's kind of weird having an elevated heart rate, while feeling much more relaxed and mellowed out.
Click to expand...

While MJ can elevate your HR 10 to 20 BPM, most of us who do any kind of aerobic exercise will typically raise our HR by 80 to 90 BPM so whatever increases the MJ produces is no big deal, especially if you don't work out when you're high, which I never do.
 
EverythingsHazy

EverythingsHazy

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lwien said:
While MJ can elevate your HR 10 to 20 BPM, most of us who do any kind of aerobic exercise will typically raise our HR by 80 to 90 BPM so whatever increases the MJ produces is no big deal, especially if you don't work out when you're high, which I never do.
Click to expand...

I'm not worried about it, I just wanted to put it out there, especially since there are a lot of people with serious health conditions here, and constantly elevating their heart rate, or the opposite, rarely consuming and then experiencing a stronger effect when they do, might be counterproductive, or have an adverse reaction with their (blood pressure/heart rate) meds. Also, it might not raise our hr enough to harm a healthy adult, but sometimes combinations aren't good, and people can already be elevating their heart rate working out, or doing something else that's strenuous, like you said. I just don't like to make definitive health statements to others if I don't know 100%, and tbh, with cannabis, if you know of any heart existing conditions, I would recommend checking with your doctor before use.
 
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Chezgreendream

Chezgreendream

First the flavor, then the buZzz settles in....
Enchantre said:
One of my annoying symptoms is hot flashes with a pounding heartbeat... cannabis (specifically, a quick dab) will speed it momentarily, but then it down-regulates it back to a more normal beat, while also dialing back the heat & sweating.

Sometimes, the change cannabis makes is a good thing...
Click to expand...

Its funny you say that, I mean in the sense that if you are very aware of your body, you know whats "normal" for you. Because everyone has their own unique variables. If youre familiar, from the onset you are already like here we go again......

And also what might be normal for one might not be for another and vice versa. There are some people with Tachycardia( rapid heartbeat over 100, that can felt as palpitations, skipped beats and fluttering) and its normal for some but for others is quite the opposite.

Right axis deviation is also another thing where the heart faces a number of degrees off from what is considered "nornal" BUT it is common and indeed normal, no harm in any way, for people that are slim and tall. Our bodies are some work of art, my friend.

Something to consider, is if youre using a watertool. Remember when youre during any activity you are exerting work. Ive been monitoring myself pulling from my bubbler alittle too hard sometimes, because the bubble effects and sound are so soothing. That I forget that Im breathing in by this time Ive already put an certain amount of energy, thus adding to the heart rate in conjunction with the Cannabis.
 
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Chezgreendream,
lwien

lwien

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Chezgreendream said:
And also what might be normal for one might not be for another and vice versa. There are some people with Tachycardia( rapid heartbeat over 100, that can felt as palpitations, skipped beats and fluttering) and its normal for some but for others is quite the opposite.
Click to expand...

Very true. I have bradycardia which is the opposite of what is mentioned above. My resting HR is 48-50. I'm also a runner. For those that run and even for some that don't, that low HR is normal but for others, it could signal a situation that needs to be corrected with a pacemaker.
 
Chezgreendream

Chezgreendream

First the flavor, then the buZzz settles in....
lwien said:
Very true. I have bradycardia which is the opposite of what is mentioned above. My resting HR is 48-50. I'm also a runner. For those that run and even for some that don't, that low HR is normal but for others, it could signal a situation that needs to be corrected with a pacemaker.
Click to expand...

Yes, I have read about that. All this information is very interesting to me. Ive read that as a rule of thumb, that a heart rate that increases upon work and doesnt increase more upon exertion added or one that remains high long after its increased, that those can be indicators of other issues. Its suppossed to go up upon exertion and then gradually go down. At least from what Ive read.
 
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Chezgreendream,
lwien

lwien

Well-Known Member
Chezgreendream said:
Yes, I have read about that. All this information is very interesting to me. Ive read that as a rule of thumb, that a heart rate that increases and doesnt increase more upon exertion added or one that remains high long after it increased, that those can be indicators of other issues. Its suppossed to go up and then gradually go down. At least from what Ive read.
Click to expand...

Yup. My resting HR is around 48. When I warm up, I'll raise it to 117 for about 10 minutes. Then I'll get it up to around 130 and stay within the range of 128 to 135 for about 35 minutes. After that, I'll cool down by bringing it back down to between 117 and 105 for about 10 minutes and then do some stretching and pushups while the rate drops down to about 85.....and then I'm done, so yeah, I'll work it through the whole range of heart rates appropriate for my age. Maximum HR is 158 measured during a stress test.

But I'll tell ya this. The first 15 to 20 minutes is pure hell. It takes about that long to get oxygenated blood to my muscles (going from anaerobic to aerobic) and until that happens, I'm huffin' and puffin' like a freight train while my body is telling my brain, "What in the fuck are doing?" and thinking I'll never be able to finish this run. It's my lungs working really hard to up the oxygen levels to meet the demand. I'm working harder at 117bpm than I am at 135. But after that first 18 minutes or so, things settle down. It's not easy by any means, but I'm no longer breathing near as heavy. Happens every damn time but after talking to other runners, they say the same thing happens with them. I HATE those first 15 to 18 minutes though. My lungs during that warm up up to 135bpm or so get a fucking work-out, that's for sure.

It's one of the perks with running with an HRM. It really gets you in tune with what's going on in your body when it's under physical stress.
 
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