A new study from the Journal of the American College of Cardiology looking at the effect of cannabis of cardiovascular health was just released and I am absolutely floored at the results they published.
First, lets go over the methodology. They looked at over 4.5 million people (not a small study!) and divided them into 2 groups, one of cannabis users and the control group and then matched them up using their health markers such as blood pressure, diabetes and tobacco use. After matching pre-existing conditions, they found that cannabis users were 6 TIMES more likely to have a heart attack and 50% more likely to die of all causes. They also found that cannabis users were more likely to be depressed and overweight than non-users but it’s hard to say what came first, the depression and excess weight or the cannabis use.
I have been told all my life that cannabis is totally harmless and can be helpful in some situations so this study really surprised me. I wouldn’t do ANYTHING that would make me even twice as likely to have a heart attack so to see that cannabis use makes you 6 times more likely to have one is something I think everyone needs to know about.
Combine this with previous studies that show cannabis use in teens makes them more likely to have mental health issues and increases your likelihood of causing a car accident, I think we need to slow down on the rush to legalize it everywhere. Perhaps this isn’t the innocent herb I’ve been led to believe that it is.
