Lung Cancer and Marijuana
By Terresa McCall
Reporter-SKNVibes.com
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Marijuana plant
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BASSSETERRE, St. Kitts – MARIJUANA users are at risk of developing some sort of chronic lung disease more than those who smoke tobacco.
This information was carried in a recent article found at www.bbccaribbean.com in which a report makes reference to two studies; one of which “found bullous disease - a form of emphysema - occurs 20 years earlier in cannabis smokers”.
The other, according to BBC Caribbean, “found a higher risk of lung cancer for those who smoked one joint a day compared with those who smoked 20 cigarettes a day over the same period.”
Seventy-nine New Zealand patients were observed for the “lung cancer study” and, according to the aforementioned BBC Caribbean report, “the risk of disease rose eight percent for each year of smoking one joint a day, and seven percent for each year of smoking a packet of cigarettes a day.
Researchers at the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand admitted it was a small study, but said nonetheless, “it shows clearly that long-term cannabis smoking increases lung cancer risk.” ~~Adz:Right~~
The study further explains that the said risk might be in some way connected with the inhalation habits of marijuana users when they smoke the said substance.
“They speculated the heightened risk may be connected to the fact that the cannabis smoker inhales more deeply and for longer, increasing the amount of carbon monoxide.”
Smoking marijuana, although illegal in countries the world over, has become a ritual for many including the members of the Rastafarian Movement who ingest it as part of their religious beliefs.
Some members of the Rastafarian Movement and many other persons have, in the recent past, indicated they see no adverse health effect that smoking marijuana can cause.
