Smoking marijuana exposes you to low levels of the same toxic chemicals found in tobacco smoke

According to a new study, smoking marijuana exposes the body to some of the same toxic chemicals released by tobacco, but at lower levels.

Scientists from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention examined the levels of several dangerous chemicals in the blood and urine of 245 volunteers.

Some of the volunteers did not smoke, others smoked weeds or tobacco and the dome smoked a combination of both.

They found that those who only smoked marijuana still had various toxic smoke-related chemicals in their system, but at lower levels than those who smoked tobacco or only.

Among them are toxic chemicals with naphthalene, acrylonitrile and acrylamide that can cause liver damage, which are related to cancer and other health problems.

However, another chemical, acrolein, which is known to contribute to cardiovascular disease in tobacco smokers, only increases with tobacco use and not marijuana.

The team said reducing acrolein exposure from tobacco and other sources could be a strategy to reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

Marijuana use is on the rise in the United States, with a growing number of states legalizing it for medical and non-medical purposes, including five more states in the 2020 election.

“The increase has renewed concerns about the possible health effects of marijuana smoke, which is known to contain some of the same toxic combustion products found in tobacco smoke,” said lead author Dana Gabuzda, MD, by Dana-Farber.

“This is the first study to compare exposure to acrolein and other smoke-related harmful chemicals over time in exclusive marijuana smokers and tobacco smokers and to see if those exposures are related to cardiovascular disease.”

The study included 245 HIV-positive and HIV-negative participants in three studies of HIV infection in the US. HIV-infected people were used due to the high rates of smoking tobacco and marijuana in this group.

The researchers collected data from participants ’medical records and survey results and analyzed their blood and urine samples to find substances produced by the degradation of nicotine or the burning of tobacco or marijuana.

The combination of these data sets allowed them to track the presence of specific toxic chemicals for smoking tobacco or marijuana.

They were also able to see if there are any that are associated with an increased risk of heart disease.

Acrylamide, one of the chemicals found in both tobacco and marijuana smoke, is used to make paper, plastics and dyes and is produced when vegetables are heated to a high temperature.

The chemical is considered “probably carcinogenic to humans” by the U.S. National Toxicology Program and the American Cancer Society.

Meanwhile, acrylonitrile, which is found as a by-product of smoking weeds and tobacco, is used to make plastics and fibers.

The World Health Organization stated that cigarette smoke can be an important source of acrylonitrile in indoor air pollution and is considered a likely carcinogen.

Researchers also suggest that high levels of acrolein, found in tobacco smokers, may be a sign of an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and that reducing exposure to the chemical could reduce the risk.

“This is important for people infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, given the high rates of tobacco smoking and the increased risk of heart disease in this group.”

“Our findings suggest that high levels of acrolein can be used to identify patients at increased cardiovascular risk,” Gabuzda said, “and that reducing acrolein exposure from tobacco and other sources could be a strategy to reduce the risk “.

The findings have been published in the journal EClinicalMedicine.