Marijuana Smoking Not Linked to Chronic Breathing Problems

[Lo]

Interesting article:

Jan. 10, 2012 -- Woodstock generation, breathe easy. One of the largest and longest studies ever to look at the effect of marijuana smoking on lung health finds that pot smoking doesnt appear to cause chronic breathing trouble.

The study has followed more than 5,000 young adults in four cities for more than two decades. More than half of the people in the study reported smoking tobacco, marijuana, or both.

Over time, researchers repeatedly checked two measures of lung function: One was a test that measured the amount of air forcefully exhaled in a single second. The second test measured the total amount of air exhaled after taking the deepest possible breath.

Those tests help doctors diagnose chronic, irreversible breathing problems like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Cigarette smoking is a leading cause of COPD. And marijuana smoke contains many of the same chemicals as tobacco smoke.

As more states legalize marijuana -- 16 states and the District of Columbia now allow its medical use -- experts have worried that the kinds of lung damage caused by cigarettes could also be brought on by pot smoking.

Indeed, cigarette smokers in the study saw their lung function drop significantly over 20 years.

But that didnt happen to people who only smoked marijuana.

In fact, the study found that the lung function of most marijuana smokers actually improved slightly over time.

Rest of article here: http://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20120103/marijuana-smoking-not-linked_to-chronic-breathing-problems

 

[t-dub]

Great article LO, thanks for sharing. I know that cannabis can also be used to help asthma since it is a vasodilator. Just think how much better vaping cannabis must be compared to smoking anything . . .

t-dub

 

[aero18]

Researchers only looked at users who smoked cannabis on average 2-3 times a month? I really doubt that the tobacco smokers they were evaluating that suffered significant lung issues were also smoking on average 2-3 times a month.

There has to be lung damage in chronic smokers, those who smoke daily or several times a week, regardless of the type of organic plant matter. There is a host of noxious gasses and toxins being inhaled into the lung tissues. These tissues are made up of very thin sheet of cells to allow rapid diffusion of gaseous molecules into the body. Those cells are a major conduit into the body, and the toxins have to go through the interior of the cells to get into the body's bloodstream. The toxins in these cells should accumulate over time if the stresses are applied rigorously and repeatedly in high frequency. It would only be reasonable to conclude that it would be detrimental to lung function over the long term as these cells would be full of toxins.

The title of this thread, in my opinion, is very misleading.

 

[headdoctor]

The news seems basically encouraging. The findings about moderate use seem mostly benign, and the results of heavy, long terms use are "vague" due to lack of data. This is from a different AP article:

"The analyses showed pot didn't appear to harm lung function, but cigarettes did. Cigarette smokers' test scores worsened steadily during the study. Smoking marijuana as often as one joint daily for seven years, or one joint weekly for 20 years was not linked with worse scores. Very few study participants smoked more often than that.
Like cigarette smokers, marijuana users can develop throat irritation and coughs, but the study didn't focus on those. It also didn't examine lung cancer, but other studies haven't found any definitive link between marijuana use and cancer."

It's interesting that they don't know why smoking cannabis doesn't appear to be worse for people, though they offer a number of theories.

 

[Sour Deez]

Back when i use to combust, i would get emited to the hospital once a year for pneumonia. It happen the same time every year, right around the fall-winter season change. Always started with a nose cold which worked its way down to a chest cold, then got much worse from there. Every time the doctors told me i needed to stop smoking, apparently the smoke causes stress to the lungs and since my body was already sick, it would just make things worse. I didnt want to believe them, since there was no way i was taking the sweet mary jane out of my life.

I decided to switch to vaping, its been almost 2 years now and im all good. All i did was smoke weed, no cigs, no alcohol, nothing. So marijuana smoke definitely caused me troubles.

 

[sessnet]

So this basically confirms what I always thought (or would say to myself), that by not smoking cigarettes, I am playing it "safe".

There was another article about this, I saw this morning, here:

CNN article

Edit: This title seems a little less misleading.

 

[djonkoman]

but what about things like coughing?
I notice that if I go on a combustionbinge(usually with friends) for a few days I often get a smokerscough(not that often tough, just a few times a day), and wake up with a bit of a sore throat. with just vaping I feel completely fine.
I have to admit tough that those combustionbinges usually also include some tobacco since almost all my friends smoke joints mixed with tobacco
but for example new year's eve was such a combustionbinge, I don't fully remember but I don't think I had much hits of their joints, mostly my onehitter and at midnight exactly I hit my glass bowl wich I filled as full as I could
and I think I also had it after that, altough I also had a cold somewhere around that time and when I have a cold my throat is very sensitive
these negative effects go away after 1 or a few days of vaping tough

but still I can't imagine there is nothing like coughing or throatirritation from combusting everyday(but I'm sure it's a lot less worse as tobacco)
when I started vaping it was never about my health, but by now I start realizing how much of a difference vaping makes for my throat/lungs

 

[MarcellusWiley]

Researchers only looked at users who smoked cannabis on average 2-3 times a month? I really doubt that the tobacco smokers they were evaluating that suffered significant lung issues were also smoking on average 2-3 times a month.

There has to be lung damage in chronic smokers, those who smoke daily or several times a week, regardless of the type of organic plant matter. There is a host of noxious gasses and toxins being inhaled into the lung tissues. These tissues are made up of very thin sheet of cells to allow rapid diffusion of gaseous molecules into the body. Those cells are a major conduit into the body, and the toxins have to go through the interior of the cells to get into the body's bloodstream. The toxins in these cells should accumulate over time if the stresses are applied rigorously and repeatedly in high frequency. It would only be reasonable to conclude that it would be detrimental to lung function over the long term as these cells would be full of toxins.

The title of this thread, in my opinion, is very misleading.

You also have to note that cannabis use is much less constant daily habitual use with MOST users than cigarettes. MOST cigarette smokers are actually addicted and smoke half to a pack a day. most cannabis users probably are not in the "super heavy usage" habitual bracket, just because of the way it affects your mind, much more profoundly than nicotine.

It's not really misleading if they are basing it off actual habits of using the substance.
It is much more misleading to put a gas mask hooked up to a fan with 1000 lit joints inside it on a monkey and then tell us: "marijuana damages your brain and lungs"

 

[Lo]

Yes, the thread title is the article title and is a bit misleading - I was just sharing the article.

 

[Nycdeisel]

I agree. Quite Misleading ...

There was a bit in a recent High Times(medical issue) on this, and it mentioned vaporizing as well which I liked but the basic consensus that smoke of any kind is not harmful over time is totally false.


Its funny how they encourage the smoking, yet you will almost never hear the recommendation or even mention of a vaporizer or edibles as a much safer, more effective alternative to smoking in any of these mainstream articles. Especially on the televised news its too encouraging of smoking something, so eventually someone will fidn fault with this and may publicly call this out, causing even more controversy where we just thought they were trying to be supportive!!! Ok, conspiring much. ha