The toxins in marijuana smoke can be harmful to health, the study found

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People who smoked only marijuana had higher levels of blood and urine than more smoke-related toxins such as naphthalene, acrylamide and acrylonitrile than non-smokers, according to the study published Monday in the journal EClinicalMedicine.

“Marijuana use is on the rise in the United States, with an increasing number of states legalizing it for medical and non-medical purposes – including five additional states in the 2020 elections,” said lead author Dr. Dana Gabuzda, lead investigator in Cancer Immunology and Virology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, in a statement.

“The increase has raised concerns about the potential health effects of marijuana smoke, which are known to contain some of the same toxic combustion products found in tobacco smoke,” Gabuzda said.

Tobacco smokers

The new research presented data from three studies on 245 HIV-positive and HIV-negative participants. The researchers said they chose to study people with HIV infection because of the high prevalence of tobacco and marijuana smoking, which is usually found in this population.

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Medical records were compared with blood and urine samples of various chemicals produced by the breakdown of nicotine or by the burning of tobacco or marijuana.

Tobacco smokers and marijuana smokers had higher levels of naphthalene, acrylamide and acrylonitrile than marijuana smokers alone. Tobacco smokers also had elevated levels of a chemical called acrolein in their blood and urine. Acrolein is a known factor in cardiovascular disease in tobacco smokers.

However, marijuana smokers did not have higher levels of acrolein in their bodies.

“This is the first study that compares exposure to acrolein and other harmful chemicals related to smoking over time to exclusive marijuana smokers and tobacco smokers and to see if those exposures are related to cardiovascular disease,” Gabuzda said.

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Acrolein is a chemical with a burning, sweet, pungent odor created by burning fuels such as gasoline or oil and organic matter such as tobacco. The chemical is not added to cigarettes; acrolein is produced by burning the sugars present in tobacco when smoked.

Short-term exposure to acrolein may cause irritation and congestion of the upper respiratory tract. At extreme levels, it can be toxic to humans after inhalation, oral or dermal exposure, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency.

Weed smokers

While weed smokers had higher amounts of naphthalene, acrylamide and acrylonitrile in their blood and urine than non-smokers, even higher levels were found in people who smoked tobacco or a combination of marijuana and tobacco.

Acrylamide is a chemical used in the manufacture of paper, plastics and dyes, but it is also produced when vegetables such as potatoes are heated to high temperatures. It is also a component of tobacco smoke.

Studies have found that young adults who vaporize cannabis are more likely to experience coughing, bronchitis and wheezing.
“People are exposed to much more acrylamide in tobacco smoke than in food. People who smoke have three to five times higher levels of acrylamide exposure markers in their blood than non-smokers,” the National Cancer Institute said.
According to the American Cancer Society, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies acrylamide as a “probable human carcinogen,” while the US National Toxicology Program states that it is “reasonably expected to be a human carcinogen,” based on animal studies. .
Acrylonitrile is usually used in the manufacturer of plastics and fibers. “Smoking can be a significant source of air pollution inside acrylonitrile,” according to the World Health Organization.
Symptoms of acrylonitrile poisoning include “weakness in the limbs, tired and irregular breathing, dizziness and nausea, cyanosis, nausea, collapse and seizures,” USA. The agency said. And a “statistically significant increase in the incidence of lung cancer has been reported in several studies of chronically exposed workers.”

The EPA classifies acrylonitrile as a “probable human carcinogen.”

Naphthalene, which is used in naphthalene, can cause “headaches, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, malaise, confusion, anemia, jaundice, seizures and coma,” according to the EPA.
The highest concentrations of mothballs in the indoor air occur in the homes of cigarette smokers, said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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