A new study funded by the National Institutes of Health has unveiled findings regarding a link between frequent cannabis smoking and greater risks of heart attack and stroke.
Published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, the research draws from data collected from nearly 435,000 American adults and is of the largest investigations into the relationship between cannabis use and cardiovascular events.
According to the findings, people who reported daily cannabis use exhibited a 25% increased likelihood of experiencing a heart attack and a 42% heightened risk of stroke compared to non-users.
Even less frequent use was associated with elevated cardiovascular risks, with weekly users facing a 3% higher chance of heart attack and a 5% higher likelihood of stroke.
Abra Jeffers, Ph.D., one of the authors of the study and a data analyst at Massachusetts General Hospital, highlighted the similarities between cannabis and tobacco smoke, as it relates to the release of toxins during combustion.
“Smoking cannabis appears to also be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease,” Jeffers said.
While the precise mechanisms linking cannabis to heart disease remain unclear and were not the focus of the current study, researchers speculate on various factors, such as numerous “endocannabinoid receptors” in the body’s cardiovascular tissues, which may interact with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis.
The study utilized data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention between 2016 and 2020. Researchers evaluated the association between cannabis smoking frequency and self-reported cardiovascular outcomes, adjusting for factors such as tobacco use, demographics, body mass index (BMI), diabetes, physical activity levels, and socioeconomic status.
David C. Goff, M.D., Ph.D., director of the National Health, Lung, and Blood Institute’s Division of Cardiovascular Sciences, emphasized the significance of these findings.
“Asking patients about their cannabis use during routine medical exams will help us learn more about the long-term effects of marijuana on the body,” he said.
As weed legalization continues to rise nationwide, the study points to the potential risks associated with its regular use. Heart disease remaining the leading cause of death in the United States. In Alaska, cancer is the leading cause of death, followed by heart disease. Stroke is the fifth-leading cause of death for Alaskans, according to the CDC.
The leading causes of death in Alaska in 2021, according to the CDC, include other conditions that are often related to drug use, such as accidental deaths and suicide. Here are the CDC’s top-10 causes of death in Alaska:
- Cancer
- Heart Disease
- Accidents
- Chronic Lower Respiratory Diseases
- Stroke
- Suicide
- Alzheimer’s Disease
- Diabetes
- Chronic Liver Disease/Cirrhosis
- Influenza/Pneumonia
