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April 23rd, 2014
06:21 PM ET
Marijuana use linked to heart problemsYoung people who use marijuana may be at risk for heart attacks and other serious cardiovascular problems, a new study suggests. Researchers reviewed records from the French Addictovigilance Network, a national system of centers in France that gather information about drug abuse and dependence. From 2006 to 2010, they found 35 reports of patients who had experienced cardiovascular complications following cannabis use. The study was published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association. About 85% of the patients were men and their average age was 34. In nine cases the patient died. While the study doesn't identify a particular level of risk of marijuana use, it does call for more research on the subject, and warns doctors that there seems to be at least some danger. "Currently people think (cannabis is) harmless," says lead study author Emilie Jouanjus, at the Université Toulouse III – Paul Sabatier. "What I think is very important from my work is that we see cannabis use may lead to very serious complications on the cardiovascular system." Jouanjus was surprised to find all but one of the patients with cardiovascular problems were under the age of 50. She believes this study shows only the tip of the iceberg, as people usually under-report their cannabis use. "This study shows a some preliminary evidence of cardiovascular harm from marijuana but isn't conclusive,” Dr. Allen Taylor, chief of cardiology at Georgetown University School of Medicine, told CNN in an e-mail. “The study's limitations are important in that we can't know how high the risk is, just that there is a signal of risk between marijuana smoking and heart troubles.” Taylor says it’s a shame that more isn't known about the potential harms of cannabis. "It seems that public perception is ahead of the science," he says. "We should remain open to the scientific facts as they evolve." Only 20% of patients in the study had a known history of heart disease or risk factors for heart disease. The other patients may have had unknown cardiovascular risk factors or a history that was not documented in the medical file. “I'm not saying that any user of cannabis would suffer from any of these complications," Jouanjus says. But "we do not have enough information to say that cannabis use is safe." Dr. Shereif Rezkalla. who wrote an editorial accompanying the study in JAHA, said doctors should be required to ask about marijuana use when they see a cardiac patient. “The perception that marijuana is safe is deep-seated in the public and even amongst some health professionals,” says Rezkalla, a cardiologist at Marshfield Clinic in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Taylor cautions that while this study doesn’t provide a final answer on the link between cannabis and serious heart problems, “it at least gives one pause to suggest to patients it may not be a heart-healthy habit." Previous research has suggested marijuana use may double the risk of stroke in young adults.
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Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love.
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Thousands of years of use , untold amounts consumed each year and now suddenly we have studies popping up trying to claim cannabis is dangerous and can kill you with big headlines like "Linked to heart problems". Of course once you read the studies you find they can't really link it to anything conclusive.
Legalization is coming and no amount of bad science with big headlines will change that. You prohibitionist losers had your run and Its over. You won't be destroying lives and stealing people's property much longer over this plant.
Yep.
Nothing to see here, except the predicable death throes of prohibition.
People have been eating grains for 10,000 years, and now there is significant evidence that they are horrible for us. I used to think the same as you, until I realized that before this, humans didn't eat any grains for 2 million years!
Just because people "have been doing it for thousands of years" doesn't automatically mean it's healthy.
You are so correct! "35 of those tested had cornflakes for breakfast...Link Shown Between Cornflakes and Heart Problems!"
Please.
Drug dealers are the ones ruining lives. They're too stoned and lazy to get a real job and become an adult. Half the kids in many of our major cities in the US don't bother to graduate from High School anymore-more killer pot won't help, no brainer. And yes, it does spike blood pressure which you know well I suspect.
Legal rec will not spread beyond 5 states if that, most states that decide to do something will decriminalize small amounts and within 5 years the feds will shut rec down. Medical will be and is heavily restricted in most states and being the scheduling will never be dropped as federally it will never be considered legal the future of pot in the US looks bleak. Our next president, Hillary, is 100% against legalization and was among the US diplomats that promised and signed an agreement with the UN to combat global legalization. Colorado has finally admitted the revenues are well below the projected predictions, the ills of rec won't fully be known until mid 2015. Once everything is said and done we will go back to the way it's always been done. And there is no libertarian argument in this fight, legalization through regulation and taxation is not a freedom but a trap.
Only a stoner could make getting high seem noble. 4-20 Man! 4-20! Woooooo!
Legalization is coming for brain dead idiots like you. Every person I know who smokes pot has some mental issues, they are obsessed with smoking, they say its not addicting but it so is LOL, they can't sit still cause all they think about is POT, they don't do anything else but smoke POT. Get a life loser.
I plan to let you destroy your own life. Just dont come to me for help when you do.
I am all for your right to use the product. All I ask is 4 simple things and to date only one person has said yes. 1) do not drive or operate equipment under the influence. 2) do not smoke in public while innocent people are around. 3) if the product is safe after centuries of use then no reason to ever sue anyone if it turns out these studies are accurate, correct? and 4) do not ask me or anyone else to fund your life if the product that is so safe, then you will not need welfare or other forms of support from use of that product, correct?
Its funny how there have been countless studies done for decades and there were no issues found. Now that its legal in 1 of 50 states all these new studies say it is horrible. So why did none of these other studies find anything? So some people had heart attacks that happens everyday for different reasons and you can't blame one of them for it all. Every year thousands of people die from aspirin. Where are all these people saving us from basic medication?
Don't expect help from society when your mental or physical health fails.
Sad thing is most of the negative posters here reply while drinking a Bud Light... which is the exact same thing.. some prefer wine, some prefer beer.. some prefer weed. Why let the government decide what you can choose?
Dont they say the same things about cigarettes and alcohol, but yet both are sold openly on the market.
Joe wrote, "Its funny how there have been countless studies done for decades and there were no issues found." Hey Joe, here's a clue. There haven't been countless studies done for decades. In fact, there's been very little real research. What you think was "research" was mostly just a bunch of stoners recounting anecdotes to justify getting stoned.
DrJJ then that would be the first case of a classified depressant raising blood pressure.....
Funny Ed it seems like there is decades worth of research and it is peer reviewed.....
http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000884
The studies you cite are for medical marijuana, not for recreational smoking.
Eyeore You sir have no clue.....it is tested like it or not who cares if it is medical or recreational it does the same thing to the human body smart guy.
It is apparent that the negative posters know nothing but what they were told by people who have a vested interest in prohibition. Having lived for 31+ years in a place where it was the number one cash crop, I have seen only casualties from greed, not health. What people seem to ignore is that there are other issues involved, especially hemp production which would be an incredible boost for oun Ag. economy .
I question why we as Americans are so afraid of asking for real studies with the proper controls and just continue to be gullible – I always thought that we were a bit 'bigger' in our independence.We have way more problems with legal 'scripts' statistically than with all the illegal drugs combined yet we as a nation fail to address this. I have always believed that the only thing that strays one from a path from ignorance to stupidity is knowledge....
Not necessarily. Can you cite studies that show that recreational users have been studied in a large, long term study? If not, then thanks for playing.
In reply to abbaabbaabba:
I smoke, and I have a job. I'm here for 9 hours everyday without smoking and it is not the only thing on my mind as I sit here typing in my reports, spreadsheets, etc., whatever. To say "all they do is think about POT, they can't sit still cause they're thinking about POT, and all they do is smoke POT" is a HUGELY misleading statement, and only one a non-smoker would ever say. Before you bash us, maybe you should make get some facts about what a smokers life actually involves. Just being a smoker doesn't automatically make you brain-dead, that's like saying not smoking automatically makes you a genius.
So, here's a question for you.
Is smoking bad for you ? Is smoking causal for lung, liver, kidney cancer ? is smoking causal for emphysema and increased cardiovascular disease (heart attacks and stroke) ? Does maternal smoking harm the fetus and lead to a 2-fold increase in childhood obesity ?
What's the difference between smoking tobacco leaves and smoking cannabis buds ? They both produce partial combustion DNA alkylating products that are carcinogenic and pro-oxidant (increase cellular oxidative stress). They both deliver high levels of heavy metals (cadmium and lead among others) to your lungs.
So before you jump of the denial bandwagon, perhaps you might like to evaluate your own irrational biases before calling rigorous clinical studies junk-science.
So many problems with this article I don't know where to begin. Where are the controls is the big one. To claim that 35 people presented with cardiovascular problems and they smoked weed might suggest that the weed smokers are actually healthier than those that do not smoke but the only way to know that for certain is if you know how many people in France smoke weed.
The reality is that THOUSANDS of French people have cardiovascular problems and the root of it has to do with their diets more than anything else. If only 35 of those people are smoking weed, that would seem to indicate that weed smokers are LESS likely to develop cardiovascular problems.
Horrible and misleading article based on incomplete data! CNN has become reefer madness stupid ever since Sanjay changed course on Marijuana.
I agree. Might as well have said:
Study finds that 1/8 Americans die in their sleep [this is true]. Scientists need to investigate further, but at this time they do not have enough information to say that sleeping is safe.
Total nonsense...
I do find it interesting that for at least the last decade or two the media has been perpetuating the whole medial marijuana idea and how safe it is, and now that Colorado & Washington have legalized it I've seen a few contrary stories, at least here on CNN. Almost like they need to always produce an opposite storyline to whatever the status quo is...
Anyway, I know that pot is definitely safer than alcohol but I've always been skeptical of the "miracle drug" claims and the often-repeated line that no deaths have ever occurred to to marijuana. As far as personal experience, I seem to be a pot lightweight, and could never keep up with the amount my friends could smoke. I remember back in college one of my nursing student friends wanted to see what my blood pressure was while stoned–it turned out to be pretty high, like 190 over something (and I'm a skinny, fit guy). I remember that it was the only time it actually hurt me to have my blood pressure read–there was a shooting pain up my arm back to my heart with each heartbeat. I also remember being so high before a concert that it was physically exhausting just to walk in to the venue from the parking lot, and had to stop for a bit to catch my breath. So yeah I can see that certain populations could have health issues with smoking pot. Just because some people have no problem with a drug doesn't mean that everyone reacts the same way to it. Today I will still occasionally smoke once in a while at a show, but I'm good after just one nice hit.
The US Center for Disease Control, an organization tasked with mortality data collection, has ZERO record of a Cannabis fatality. There is no other, higher source of empirical data than this.
And...you're a cheap date...
Yep I'm right there with ya. I used to have a pretty high (no pun intended) tolerance years ago but now at the age of 50 it only takes a puff or two
boarddog, the weed you smoked back in the day consisted largely of leaf material, stems, seeds, and small amounts of actual bud. Today the weed is largely bud, so it will be much more potent than what you smoked way back when, resulting in 1 or 2 puffs getting you as stoned as a whole joint or more back then. Also growing techniques have improved and growers are breeding strains for max THC content, and more recently, breeding low THC/high CBD strains for certain medical conditions. As far as the study that this article is based on, neither correlation or causation has been shown. If one is concerned about the health risks of smoking the ganj, then consume it in a way that does not cause the damage inherent to inhaling smoke.
Kerfuffle, how would one know if a death was due to cannabis smoking, when it's illegal and people who do it don't tell their doctors they do it? How do you know that deaths are not indirectly caused by it? Where's the proof? How do you know it doesn't cause cancer? What large, long-term studies have been done here that don't involve self-reporting, which is unreliable?
Eeyore...honestly...the CDC accounts for overdose fatalities...such as heroin.
When you require obfuscation to attempt to make your point, your point lacks merit.
Why don't you answer the question, Kerfy? How does a doctor or medical examiner determine that cannabis and not tobacco was the cause of lung disease or heart disease? The answer is that he can't. And trying to compare the deaths caused by heroin use to deaths from cancer or heart disease makes you look like the idiot you are.
By the way, did you figure out the difference between "add" and "ad?"
Yawn.
The propaganda machine continues to churn in not-so-quiet desperation.
Now marijuana is linked to heart problems?? Gee i wonder why that is? Stupid lobby groups.
How did they consume the cannabis? Evaporators are growing in popularity as they don't burn the material, they just heat it until the THC vaporizes. Cannabis can be eaten as well. Did this study continue all methods of consumption?
@KH that's what i was eluding to in my post on this. What types of consumptions did they test? and with such a small sample group, the controls should have been easy to decipher.
What the scientifically naive journalist that write these stories fail to point out is that results of 75% of published medical studies cannot be reproduced. The anti-drug Nazis are in a panic and are doing everything possible to get questionable studies like this in the public's eye.
It's probably not the marijuana, but the Doritos.
L.M.A.O. Good one!
Denial is so hard to crack with marijuana users, because the effects are insidious over time. The writers of this article are saying we don't know enough about the effects of marijuana to say it is "safe." The null hypothesis researchers would be using is "There are no negative effects of marijuana use." This study, as well as a similar on in Germany, as well as the longitudinal study of thousands in New Zealand say "wait a minute here." Causation is yet to be proven, but the associations are getting stronger and stronger that marijuana use is risky.
I can see why you believe these bunk studies, Karen, as you appear to also make sh.t up.
If this study was accurate, then the 100,000,000 Americans that have claimed to have consumed Cannabis would have yielded an epidemic of fatalities.
And yet, the CDC still has ZERO record of a Cannabis fatality.
to Kerfluffle. The only one making stuff up here is you. I can see by your commitment or more like addiction to reply to every comment that is not pro-pot you have an agenda and that is easily seen. Unfortunately, or in reality fortunately this issue is meaningless to most and the only people that comment on these articles are pro-pot bullies and those who have actual experience with the negatives of marijuana. Legal rec will never spread or survive and medical will be heavily restricted but never legal under federal law as the schedule will never change. While I don't agree with it's scheduling I in no way condone it's legitimacy attempt in our society.
@David
Thank you for stepping up and admitting to your unfounded bias against Cannabis.
What I am, sir, is an Activist. I will never profit financially from the legalization of Cannabis. Nor shall I continue to watch corporate interests profit from its prohibition. The sheer amount of intellectual dishonesty being issued by the WoD profiteers justifies my efforts.
When you can have this dialogue without lying, then we can talk.
Until then, get ready for legalization. We are approaching the tipping point. Rescheduling is already underway. The 2014 Federal Farm Bill is in conflict with the Controlled Substance Act.
You lose, bub.
David,
I never smoked weed, I am in my late 30's. I had to vote on it so I decided I would read up on it. That changed my mind entirely on the whole situation. I couldn't believe how something so useful was outlawed. Yes I voted for medical MJ. To be honest, after reading, I would vote for recreational also. Read a little, seriously, you will surprise yourself. I'm a conservative republican, but I also educate myself on things I have to vote on. After you educated yourself, you can't possibly vote against it.
I think the only people in denial are the ones trying to fight the legalization of pot using subterfuge and misleading or false data. For example, I've smoked for over 40 years, employed the entire time, no heart attacks, no high blood pressure, AND NO DUI's.
@Karen Fischer People who are not against marijuana should not be ASSumed to not be as intelligent as someone who IS against it. what people are saying is, stop rushing to conclusions. this article is a perfect example of rushing to conclusions without sufficient data. What I also believe is that anti-marijuana use advocates and even scientist are missing is the true nature of the arguement. Again, no one is saying that putting any type of foreign chemical in your body is 100% safe, but for some reason it's totally ok to pop any anti inflammatory meds, or placibos for perscription drugs. All of these are MAN MADE foreign chemicals in the body with all types of artificial elements in them. But this all natural substance is being heavily scrutinized. Always leads to the question, WHY???
All research requires a control group. Did they compare the incidence of cardiac problems among pot smokers to a group of non pot-smoking people who also spend much of their time sitting on the floor with headphones on, eating M&Ms and Cheetos?
Last week they point to a guy who ate marijuana candy and also killed his wife, as if there was some link. Bill Clinton smoked pot and got elected President of the U.S. Neither example has any scientific evidence to support it. Scientific principle: Correlation does not equate to causation. (That means that just because two things happen close in time does not mean that they are related).
And it doesn't mean they are not related. You just wasted time posting a comment that basically brought the conversation back to where it started. Progress? lol No.
But the big point David is that this article proves nothing, lets all be aware of that.
Gee David....the only person that seems to be a bully is you. Maybe you should go back to sleep before you hurt yourself or stroke out....
“I'm not saying that any user of cannabis would suffer from any of these complications," but that doesn't stop you from going ahead and giving CNN a story with no scientific evidence whatsoever. Why don't you go ask the federal government to take it off the schedule 1 drug list so some testing can be performed instead of making half baked guesses as to what the negative effects are. Oh that's right, they don't want to take it off that list because people might do ACTUAL research and it might prove that there are more benefits than negative effects for people who need it
Amen to that !
It "may or may not" be linked..
HEADLINES: POT GIVES YOU HEART ATTACKS!
So typical..
The one thing I find funny about marijuana users, such as the majority of the posts on here, is that even if marijuana use was shown to cause irreversible brain damage there would STILL be some sort of angry justification for it. Every time I read comments about marijuana, the angry tension and til-the-end undying defense is overwhelming. But, you're not addicted or anything....lol.
Sounds like you are very uneducated on the subject and might want to refrain from spreading ignorance
I agree with you. And that fact is actual proof that marijuana is an addictive drug. Pot users are addicts.
David.. David.. It is the fact that they are fed up. Read about it, learn a little, don't let bias run your life. Ignorance is bliss. Hemp is great for a number of things, this is the one that doesn't make you high, it is basically a plant. You can make gas, paper, clothing, plastics, you name it. It is useful, it would help the environment and tax dollars. Yet the government outlaws it for no reason, just skepticism, and they educated their population to be skeptic. You obviously have been educated that way because your responses mirror their training perfectly. You wonder how people of North Korea can follow so blindly yet you follow so blindly also.
Then you have weed, which is a drug, that has been outlawed and labeled as highly dangerous. There has never been an overdose on it. New studies show that it helps with many different ailments, epilepsy, PTSD, nausea, pain.. it is more natural than drugs and has less side effects (though when real studies happen, we may find out more) People you call "stoners" have known this for a long time. How it can be medicine, and helpful.
Yet everywhere they go, people like you read a small publication that has crappy study attached to it and confirm it is science. You point fingers and regurgitate what was taught to you by the govt and call them stoners and losers. Then you wonder why the defend it so feverishly. Wake up seriously.
David doesn't have the horsepower to escape his bias and try to do a through examination. He would rather bully those that oppose his views and then claim that they are bullies. David is all hat and no cattle and no amount of data will change his mind. IT's kind of like the troll whose only purpose is to illicit a response from others and see if he can wind them up.
Hey Sad Sad Truth...as far as I can see, the only reason people are excited about Hemp is that legalizing Hemp cultivation will make it impossible to enforce laws about marijuana cultivation because the plants are essentially the same except for the hallucinogen content.
@Brittney what's totally interesting to me is that millions of women take Birth control everyday, in different forms, of which all of them have a "proven" to cause blood clots, heavy weight gain, water retention, even an inability to have children etc. non the less it's legal and they frequent their gynochologist office to have the perscription refilled or to change their consumption of it to fit "their health needs." therefore, those advocating for marijuana are saying stop blanket stating and start really going after facts. I'll bet you or someone you know will have a drink of something when they leave work today. All of which have been proven to cause heart disease, car accidents, etc. you know where i'm going with this.
I don't know why this news is surprising . If you inhale smoke routinely and live a sedentary lifestyle like many pot smokers you will have risks for heart disease . It really isn't rocket surgery . That being said marijuana should be legal IMO . Tobacco , alcohol & maybe fried chicken are more problematic and any attempts to police those have failed .
'like many pot users'
generalize much?
Funny because if you were to ask me, the pot users I know are all athletes and successful in life. See how it works?
No generalization on this issue . Many a year ago I was around marijuana a fair amount . You seem defensive . Why ?
*you seem defensive
Weak sauce, Glenn.
Why should anyone take your comment seriously when it commences with a gross generalization?
Why do you hate America, Glenn?
LOL . So kerfluffle why would you think I hate America ? Because I made the wild and wacky " generalization " that many pot smokers are sedentary ? Why once again are you so defensive ? I think a much weaker sauce is to simply ignore common sense but fine . There is no harm in ingesting smoke . I assume thats what you want . I already stated it should be legal . Eat a bucket of chicken after you smoke weed . That is good for you to . Then go take a jog like most pot smokers do .
Don't smoke it then, eat it!!!
I read you can ingest weed in vapor or steam form now as well . That probably would be to harmful either .
This article caught my attention because my best friend, a woman who was 50 yrs. old at the time, died of a heart attack (her first and only) and smoked pot almost every day. There may be something to this, although she also smoked cigarettes. We always thought it was the cigarettes, maybe it was a combination of the two.
It was the cigarettes. Read the Tashkin Report. The Cannabis likely prolonged her life.
Watch the high-ons leap to the defense of pot. Oh, here they come.
I don't know what it was, it could have been the weed, who knows. Sadly the government has bottled up true research on it so crappy studies like this one make front page news. The real sad thing is ads like this bring out people that don't want to read or learn at all about it and just want to slander, be biased, and just stupid (The Sad Truth)
laughing uncontrollably at this bogus so called study.....nice try
I'm sure you're laughing uncontrollably- at least it isn't making you paranoid.
Ask any cardiologist and even with the tiny amount of known research done everyone will say that marijuana is bad for the heart and vascular health overall. I ended up in ER with a cardiac event and was told to quit smoking and caffeine, I did. I continued to smoke pot and three years later wound up in ER again with similar event, I was told to quit smoking pot once I admitted I did. Have not been back to ER since. I have a echo-cardiogram done annually after first event and my heart and lung health has greatly increased over those 6 years and the most significant improvement was the following years after quitting marijuana. Fact. While the unknowns of pot might harbor some positive medical benefits the negatives definitely outweigh them.
Sorry pal, I did ask my cardiologist, and he agreed that there is no verifiable risk from Cannabis alone in my case. And I do have a hereditary condition.
to Kerfluffle. You are a liar or have a very bad cardiologist. My experience is actual science yours is opinion.
LOL David.. just because you had that result doesn't mean his should be the same as yours. You might have had one version where he had another version of cardiac problem. Talk about butt hurt. Doctors were involved in both instances.
He is not a liar. Any educated Dr. who has actually looked at the research will tell you that "to the best of my knowledge smoking marijuana has not been proven harmful". I've had two Dr.s give me that line almost verbatim. Good doctors use research to formulate their medical opinions, not poorly done studies and propaganda.
No point of debating when the majority in the debate are basically children who get high. Like trying to preach atheism to fundamentalists. Pro-pot folks are basically fundamentalists. They deny any chance that their religion is bad, they would deny it even if there was total proof, and they accept no outcomes or truths except the ones they have already decided on. It's amazing of hypocritical and ignorant a certain group can become. I have to get back to work kids, enjoy your day at school.
Uh, BS. There have been THOUSANDS of studies done to examine any negative consequences of marijuana... and ALL peer reviewed sources have come up short. The FACT is marijuana is chemically harmless. The fact that you, David, would believe otherwise, just proves that you're a propaganda, pro-prohibitionist, lemming.
Haaaaa...my EKG is an opinion...
What a stooge.
David,
Why do you think that children get high? It is because it is everywhere, unregulated, and very profitable in the black market? Very accessible to kids, easier to get than alcohol. Think we should change that? Think regulating can help with that? C'mon, lets be open minded here and rational and not cling to heart strings and bias.
T says: "Uh, BS. There have been THOUSANDS of studies done to examine any negative consequences of marijuana... and ALL peer reviewed sources have come up short. The FACT is marijuana is chemically harmless. "
Cite them.
I had a heart condition from the age of 5 to 18. I started smoking at the age of 17 and was getting stress tests every year due to my heart condition. After starting smoking my aneurisms started to dissipate faster. I believe that Cannabis help make my heart better not worse. Smoking isn't good for your body that is well known. But there are other ways to consume Cannabis.
Smoking pot in no way helps with heart or brain issues, especially in undeveloped bodies such as a teenager. Your comment is not only questionable but irresponsible and possible an outright lie. A medical diagnosis and observation from a teen? I don't think so.
Rob.. it is PROVEN to help with brain issues. Especially extreme epilepsy. Though I agree that is it bad for the developing brain for teens, and results in lost IQ points
More nonsense, generated by people who need to justify their budgets and salaries.
Dr. Sanjay Ganja may have declared himself the crown prince of pot a bit early...
Or maybe you are grasping on articles that are totally biased? What things don't have some side effects anyway? Any pill commercial has that guy who speaks as fast and low as he can to talk about side effects. Get educated.
That's just plain fear mongering! – Like alcohol doesn't cause heart problems? Or cigarettes? And what about the problems sugar causes? if these things are legal, then pot shoud be too.
I hear that Colorado has zero incidence of cancer since pot was legalized. Impotence, hair loss, infertility, hearth disease, bad breath, racism and obesity all cured by the proven effects of pot.
Thanks Stoner logic!
The sad truth is you are grasping onto an article that has next to 0 real science in it. It is mostly slander and probabilities and you hold it high like the bible. Stop grasping and educate yourself so you aren't so easily convinced. I'm not a pot advocate but I educate myself on things that I have to vote on. I wish everyone did.
How come they dont say how many were in the "study"? 35 reports out of how many patients? Cannibas is a stimulant, just like caffeene. I bet if you did the same study with coffee drinkers, the number would be even higher
Almost 2000 participants. 1.9%. It is in the study
I find the comments on this page are more entertaining if I imagine the school bus-driving character, Otto, from the Simpsons reading them aloud.
These "Dr.'s" should be ashamed of themselves. They are giving the entire medical community a bad name with their outrageous claims, that simply are not backed up by science. First there was the study of 20 kids that showed smaller portions of their brains, which some quack attributes to marijuana, even though the study is extremely poor, and didn't bother to take into account past alcohol use, or social economic upbringing, which could explain the differences. Now this study which is even more ridiculous. Clearly all they did was look at metadata. Then took all unexplained cardiac deaths, and of all the unexplained cardiac deaths (which I suspect over 4 yrs in the thousands), and found 35 people who happen to have smoked marijuana before their deaths, and made the HUGE leap from that that marijuana is responsible. What a JOKE! That is not science! It's not even a "study". The "Dr." should be ashamed, and the whole medical field should be ashamed that he is making wild unsubstantiated claims that are so far scientific that it is laughable.
So young adults should stick with beer and liquor instead of pot?
Is this how CNN presents "balance"? Look people, the heart is a very complex organ. Pretty much everything you consume has an effect. Is marijuana going to have a cardiovascular impact? Uh, yes. Is it more dangerous than the most widely used recreational substance alcohol? Absolutely not. Not even close. Use everything in moderation, and you will likely be fine. Wake and bake every day, smoke bong hits all day long? Don't expect a long productive life. Burn a joint with friends on the weekend, and wake up with no hangover!
Global warming science counts. Marijuana science doesn't count.
There was no science here. There is nothing linking cannabis use to heart disease other than the 35 of almost 2000 participants over a 4 year span who had cardiovascular problems also used cannabis. That is the only connection so please tell me where the science is?
The reactions of the addicted are predictable. They will continue to claim to claim it's healthy while it kills them.Cigarettes were once "proven" Heather too. Smoking dope just makes a person stupid. That's why it's all ed dope and it's users stoners.
Give me a break. There were almost 2000 people in the study with cardiovascular issues and it ends up that 35 of them had used cannabis. No data linking the cannabis to the problems yet here is the headline Cannabis use linked to heart problems. Guess what, I bet 100% of the participants in the study drank water, therefor water causes heart disease.
Panic attacks can happen with even the most experienced users. It has a lot to do with how much is smoked, the potency, and the type of cannabis. THC and all the other cannabinoids have no prove effect directly on the heart, or even the nervous system that controls the heart. Any effect on the heart would be purely psychological.
35 out of how many people? The article never says. 35 could just be a number indicative of the normal amount of people we could expect to have a heart attack out of whatever the total number was. The study loses all credibility when you see who is performing it, an anti drug network of government run agencies. Don't believe the crap thats being put out there about marijuana, up until now their weren't any big concerns about weed other than the fear that the use of it would lead to other harder drugs.
Close to 2000. If you clink on the link to the study they say.
And in another shocking headline...Alcohol has been linked to liver problems. Cigarette smoking linked to lung problems. Eating has been linked to weight problems. Sunlight has been linked to skin problems...
If we judged how our society will fair in the near future going by these comments overall we should be very afraid. The legitimization of bad things seems to be the norm nowadays in the 30 and under crowd. Most people try pot once, ost never do it a second time. Those that enjoyed semi-daily tokes like I once did for about a decade eventually grow up. I think this legalization thing gets mixed up in this idea of freedom. I t was very sad and strange to see a group like pro-pot folks stand up for a cause that is selfish and mostly unimportant, so many issues and fights and here this group finally rises high(pun intended) and their fight is the right to get high. Really? The rec folks even stampeded over the medial folks who had a good fight going and probably would of made progress federally if it had not been for the rec push. Whatever happens with rec and medical, I hope you same folks that push this issue move on to better and more important issues. Don't just admit defeat or victory and call it a life. Get motivated on the important issue!
So, the whole Harry Anslinger/William Randolph Hearst hijacking of our government, an industry based upon prohibition that costs Trillions in taxpayer monies, the incarceration of non-violent offenders...
...according to you, are not important issues?
And what, pray tell, is an important issue? You still looking for Flight 370, you stooge?
@Kerfluffle....you haven't figured it out yet....old Dave is just a hypocritical troll who figures the best defense is a good offense. He's clueless and calling him a stooge insults stooges 🙂
I know man, but our uninformed read these articles and comment boards and formulate opinions accordingly.
Stooges like David and TheSadTruth count on that to influence public support.
Prohibition must end, and every moment is crucial.
Why's it "crucial"? To whom?
And what makes you think anyone is citing this study in an attempt to keep pot from being legalized?
You are extremely disingenuous Eeyore, but at least you are consistent.
Why don't you answer the question, Kerfy?
So? Tobacco is directly linked to heart problems. Alcohol is directly linked to heart problems. Many pharmaceuticals list heart problems as a side effect. Stress is directly linked to heart problems. This is just a scare article.
There is an add out now that uses a great line:
-may cause paralysis (the inability to move)
An "add"? Do you mean an "ad"?
maybe its the munchies and unhealthy food that cause heart disease.
Unless you eat nothing but lettuce and drink nothing but water, many thing will cause heart problems. I drive almost an hour to work and have been doing it for 10 years. I expect that breathing in the carbon monoxide from automobile exhaust will cause me to have problems.
anyone who's smoked weed knows that it will cause the heart to race, so duh.
smoked over 40 years....my heart doesn't race and at 57 my BP is a consistent 126/84, all my labs are fine. I have a bad knee that so far I've avoided having to take any meds for (osteoarthritis after 5 surgeries and 1 reconstruction). I'm also 50 lbs overweight. All this shows is one size doesn't fit all. I would say that pot has provided a benefit in that I don't have to take meds for pain and since I rarely drink I have the added benefit of no DUI's.
ok i get what she's saying, but smoking anything is bad for your heart and lungs. She her colleagues in favor or not in favor of marijuana use are missing the true nature of the arguement. The arguement is about whether it should be illegal and not be given an opportunity in the market place like cigarettes, alcohol, and any other proven health concern that is perfectly legal. I'd imagine eating fried chicken on a daily/weekly basis can lead to heart issues but I haven't seen anyone arrested or given time for consuming it. #stoptryingtoscareus
Bull Pucky. If that were true I'd be a dead already. Maybe if they smoked 24 hours a day every day it would do damage. Moderation in everything folks. That's the key. Try to use some common sense. I know that is asking a great deal. Haha...
"Marijuana use linked to heart problems"
YA think. It doesn't take a rocked scientist to realize that inhaling that **** into your lungs might cause some sort of problem . What a bunch of MORONS!
rocket scientist
Obviously a pack of lies.
CNN LIES
🙂
It might, but what is it lying about here? That a study was done? That it had some interesting outcomes?
There's less than nothing here....they haven't established a statistical, much less causal, relationship.
From the study:
"...our work is somehow [sic] limited by the poor information available. Indeed, some cases were not exhaustively informed, and events were too few assess whether the cardiovascular events were actually due to the cannabis use rather than some other risk factors using statistical modeling.
Toxicologic analyses were provided or available in only 37% of cases (13/35). More information about toxicology should have revealed odd associations of products among cases. In most of the available toxicologic analyses...
...History of cardiac or vascular disease and risk factors were not systematically available but were found in 46% (16/35) of patients. In particular, body mass index was assessed in only 31%."
Exactly. So why are so many people on here hysterical about this article? There hasn't BEEN a "conclusion." and nobody said there was. There isn't "proof," and nobody said there was. What HAS been said is that more research is warranted. If marijuana is so beneficial and so "harmless," as some here claim, then why wouldn't people welcome more research instead of screaming about how "bogus" they say this information is?
Walking back your bloviation, Eeyore?
"Walking back"?
Why can't you answer the questions, Kerfy?
Most everyone that I discuss pot with want more research.
I want more research. CBIS wants more research. We all want more research.
The government has a patent for pot. We want to be able to patent it also. We want to be able to research without legal problems.
There isn't anyone that I know that doesn't want research.
Oh boy, now you have done it CNN, you have forced me to break out the calculator to stomp this junk science nonsense.
(sources are ommitted because apparently CNN blocks posts with links to outside sources)
In 2008, 51k French citizens died from cardiovascular disorders (aka CVD's). The population of France in 2008 according to Google was roughly 64 million people which means .0008% of the population died from CVD's.
This study reports that they found 35 reported cased of CVD's in France where the patient used marijuana and only 9 of them died over a 4 year span, which averages out to 2.25 deaths a year related to CVDs where the subject used pot.
Now there are estimated to be 1.2 million pot smokers in France. Of those 1.2 million pot smokers, only .000002 percent died from a CVD.
Translation for those not good with decimals, .0008 is 400 times higher than .000002.
What this suggests is that smoking marijuana LOWERS your risk for CVD's!!!
You sir have no clue.....it is tested like it or not who cares if it is medical or recreational it does the same thing to the human body smart guy.
You seem to have trouble figuring out the reply function.
Of worse smoking cannabis isn't good for your heart. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. However eating hamburger, ice cream, steaks and smoking cigarettes among a host of other things also cause heart disease.
General information and or warnings would probably suffice.
This report is so slanted. 35 out of how many? 20% already had known history of heart disease. So if its 35 out of a 1000 and 20% already had a risk, then 35 isn't bad. Were the nine who died part of the 20%? After all the years of marijuana studies, this is the first one to link to heart disease? This is good ole government propaganda.
The number you want is in the study. Didn't you read it?
My point Eeyore is the article should have referenced it, but if they did, people would have recognized it for what it is....propaganda and I'm not a pot smoker.
How is it "propaganda?"
This story is beyond pointless. There are no controls posted nor does the study account for consumption of other psychoactive drugs. Should I assume these pot smokers haven't used alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, or even any other substance? What are these subjects' diets? I'm sorry but this is in no way conclusive or even suggestive evidence that there is a link between the two. All this says is people have heart problems but we can't pinpoint to one specific cause. Human studies have far too many confounding variables.