Smoking weed and consuming THC-laced edibles linked to early heart disease, study finds

What an alarmist headline! I'm doing it after my next stroke to recover. Unless you have a stick in the mud doctor who still believes in 'Reefer Madness'.

My 13 reasons for marijuana use post-stroke.  

Don't follow me, I'm not medically trained, and I don't have a Dr. in front of my name. 

This: 

Pot Smoking Baby Boomers Are On The Rise, Why Are Scientists So Happy For Them? Hint: Benefits For The Aging Brain

And this for your doctor to explain:

The Experiments Revealing How Marijuana Could Treat Dementia

The latest here:

Smoking weed and consuming THC-laced edibles linked to early heart disease, study finds

             Healthy people who regularly smoked marijuana or consumed THC-laced edibles showed signs of early cardiovascular disease similar to tobacco smokers, a new small study found.

“To my knowledge, it’s the first study looking at THC’s impact on vascular function in humans,” said senior study author Matthew Springer, professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.

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“We’re looking at a window in the future, showing the early changes that may explain why smoking marijuana has been linked to later heart disease,” Springer said. “It appears the act of smoking and the THC itself both contribute to those changes in different ways.”

Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is the component of marijuana that provides a high. Prior research on mice found damage to blood vessels that supply oxygen to vital organs after exposure to marijuana smoke, Springer said. Whether marijuana smoke would impact the human vascular system, however, was unknown.

“We found that vascular function was reduced by 42% in marijuana smokers and by 56% in THC-edible users compared to nonusers,” lead study author Dr. Leila Mohammadi, an assistant researcher in cardiology at the University of California, San Francisco, said in an email.

The research only shows an association, Springer said. “We can only state that the cannabis users have poor vascular function, not that cannabis use causes poor vascular function,” he said via email.

The findings on THC-laced edibles was surprising, said Dr. Andrew Freeman, director of cardiovascular prevention and wellness at National Jewish Health in Denver.

“Could it be that other forms of marijuana — teas, tinctures, edibles — are perhaps not as benign as we once thought?” said Freeman, who was not involved in the study. “We need larger studies to make a better conclusion about this finding.”

Risk of damaged blood vessels

A single layer of endothelial cells lines all of the body’s blood vessels. When functioning properly, these specialized cells release chemicals such as nitric oxide that control the relaxing and contracting of the canal, thus regulating blood flow. Healthy endothelium cells also play a role in local cell growth and help prevent blood clotting.