Smoking cannabis just once a week makes a person more likely to suffer respiratory problems, a study has warned-Users were more likely to suffer symptoms of bronchitis, including coughing in the morning, bringing up phlegm, and wheezing.But when they cut down on cannabis or quit smoking, most found the symptoms reduced to levels similar to those found in people who do not smoke the drug, researchers found.
However, people who had been heavy users had a persistent cough and wheeze even after they cut down or quit, suggesting heavy cannabis use can have long-term affects on the lungs.
The study’s lead author, Dr Bob Hancox, an associate professor at the University of Otago, said: ‘Even people who only used cannabis once per week were likely to have a cough, bring up phlegm from the chest, and get wheezy.
‘The good news is that if they stop smoking cannabis, these symptoms usually improve, although there was evidence that cough and wheeze may persist in those who have been long-term heavy users.’
The findings come from a wider study known as the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study, which continues to follow the progress of 1,037 people born in Dunedin, New Zealand, between April 1972 and March 1973.
Dr Hancox and his colleagues asked people about their history of smoking tobacco and cannabis at ages 18, 21, 26, 32 and 38.At each assessment, they were asked how many times they had used the drug in the previous year.They found that in New Zealand, cannabis use is almost as widespread as tobacco, with about half of young adults admitting to using it in the previous year
Many cannabis users already had symptoms of bronchitis, including coughing, creating excess sputum [mucus], and wheezing by the age of 21 years, they discovered.These symptoms persisted or got worse at ages 26, 32, and 38 years if users continued to enjoy cannabis once a week or more.
The association between cannabis use and bronchitis symptoms remained – even when factors like tobacco smoking and asthma were taken into account.Dr Kyle Perrin, medical director at the Asthma Foundation, warned any form of smoking would affect the lungs..He said: ‘People who smoke marijuana, even if it is only once a week, need to realise it will adversely affect their health.’
Dr Hancox added: ‘The findings suggest that long-term heavy cannabis smoking may have lasting effects on the airways.’.The findings appear in the European Respiratory Journal and the study was supported by the Asthma Foundation.
The news comes after doctors carrying out a small study in North Wales warned that cannabis smokers in their 30s have lungs so badly damaged that they look like those of an 80-year-old.
They said young adults who have smoked cannabis for less than a decade were turning up at A&E with a severe, rapid and advanced form of the lung disease emphysema.Some were in their 30s and in some cases their lungs are so badly damaged that they were put on long-term oxygen therapy.
Doctors warn long term use of cannabis can injure airways, cause the lungs to become inflamed and stop the lungs’ defence against infection, as well as leading to symptoms of bronchitis.A slew of previous studies have also linked cannabis to increased rates of mental health problems including depression, anxiety, psychosis and schizophrenia.
Culled from Dailymail
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