More information is available now than ever before, so that cannabis enthusiasts can make informed decisions as to how they ingest.
Due to the illegality of cannabis, up until recently, there haven’t been many unbiased studies as to the long term affects of weed. All of that is now changing. Recent studies have found that smoking cannabis, like that of smoking tobacco, can lead to lung damage and conditions such as bronchitis. But weed acts a bit differently than tobacco does.
Prolonged weed smoking, according the to the studies, can lead to a severe form of emphysema known as bong lung, as well as causing over-inflated lungs and increased airway resistance. Why does this happen? Scientists don’t know yet, as they are in the early stages of research.
What about lung cancer? The findings are a bit controversial, as there aren’t any conclusive direct links yet as to whether smoking cannabis directly leads to lung cancer.
That said, the same studies indicate that cannabis smoke contains carcinogens, which have been linked to causing cancer.
The bottom line is that there are less risky ways of ingesting cannabis, especially for frequent users. And if you’re a frequent user, you may want to be as conservative as possible with the ways you partake until there’s more conclusive evidence as to the risks.
It’s simply not worth tampering with your long-term health, especially if you have other risk factors or predispositions. And if you’re using cannabis for medical reasons, you don’t want to put yourself in the position in which you’re trading one health problem for another.
Sources: Science Daily, Healthline, Medical News Today
