Doctor breaks down dangers marijuana use

COUNTRIES. NOW TO A NEW STUDY RAISING QUESTIONS ABOUT FREQUENT MARIJUANA USE. BUT WE WANT TO GO BEYOND THE NUMBERS. SO WE TURN AS ALWAYS, TO DOCTOR TODD ELLERIN FROM SOUTH SHORE HEALTH. SO DOCTOR ELLERIN, WE’RE GOING TO START WITH THE DATA. SO IF EVERYONE CAN KIND OF LOOK AT THE SCREEN, THE STUDY FOUND DAILY MARIJUANA USE RAISED THE CHANCE OF HEART ATTACK BY 25%. THE CHANCE OF STROKE BY 42%. SO ARE THOSE NUMBERS SURPRISING TO YOU? ERIKA THEY’RE REALLY NOT. BECAUSE FIRST OF ALL, THIS ISN’T THE FIRST STUDY TO SHOW THAT. BUT SO SMOKE IS SMOKE. SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT MARIJUANA AND CIGARET SMOKE, THEY SHARE A LOT OF COMMON INGREDIENTS, YOU KNOW? YES, NICOTINE IS DISCRETE AND THC FOR MARIJUANA, THOSE ARE SEPARATE. BUT YOU CAN LOOK AT UM, UM, UH, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY LIKE TAR, WHICH IS A BREAKDOWN. AND THESE THINGS CAN BE CARDIOTOXIC OR TOX SICK TO THE HEART. SO IT REALLY DOESN’T SURPRISE ME, BUT I THINK IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE’RE LEARNING MORE ABOUT. WELL, AND YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD BECAUSE BASICALLY 75% OF THOSE IN THE SURVEY SAY THEY SMOKED THE MARIJUANA AS OPPOSED TO CONSUMING IT IN OTHER WAYS. SO YOU’RE SPEAKING TO WHY THAT’S IMPORTANT. THE SMOKING PART OF IT IS IMPORTANT. IT IT IS. AND AGAIN, THEY DID ALLOW PEOPLE WHO VAPED AND HAD EDIBLES INTO THE STUDY. BUT MOST OF THE PEOPLE SMOKED. BUT ONE THING I DO WANT TO POINT OUT IS THEY THERE WERE A MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WHO HAD NEVER SMOKED CIGARETS BEFORE AND ONLY SMOKED MARIJUANA WARE, AND THOSE INDIVIDUALS ALSO HAD A SIGNIFICANT INCREASED RISK. SO YOU CAN IMAGINE SOME PEOPLE WILL USE NICOTINE AND MARIJUANA AND YOU CAN IMAGINE THAT THAT’S AN INCREASED RISK. BUT EVEN THOSE THAT SMOKED MARIJUANA ALONE DID HAVE AN INCREASED RISK OF HEART ATTACKS AND STROKES. OKAY, SO 24 STATES, INCLUDING MASSACHUSETTS, HAVE NOW LEGALIZED RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA. SO AS A DOCTOR, KIND OF WHAT’S YOUR TAKEAWAY? SO KNOWING I MEAN, WE KNOW I MEAN ALCOHOL IS LEGAL TOO. AND IT’S NOT GOOD FOR YOU. THAT’S TRUE. WHAT’S IMPORTANT HERE IS THERE WAS A DOSE RESPONSE, MEANING THOSE PEOPLE THAT USE DAILY MARIJUANA HAD A 25% INCREASE IN HEART ATTACKS AND A 42% INCREASE IN STROKES IF YOU ONLY USED IT WEEKLY, THERE WAS AN INCREASED RISK STILL, BUT IT WAS MUCH LESS. IT WAS 3% HEART ATTACKS, 5% STROKES. AND THOSE ARE RELATIVE RISKS. SO I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOT USE IT EVERY DAY. IF YOU CAN, JUST LIKE YOU SAID, LIKE WITH ALCOHOL OR WITH CIGARETS. AGAIN, IT’S IT’S RISKS VERSUS BENEFITS. WE KNOW THERE ARE DEFINITELY BENEFITS FROM CANNABIS. ALL RIGHT. IF YOU’RE A CANCER PATIENT IN A LOT OF PAIN WE KNOW THAT IT CAN SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASE PAIN. IF YOU’RE A PERSON WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS AND HAVE A SIGNIFICANT CONTRACTURES, SPASTICITY, MUSCLE OR NERVE PAIN, WE KNOW IT CAN HELP PEOPLE LIKE THAT TOO. BUT YOU HAVE TO WEIGH THE RISKS AND THE BENEFITS AND I THINK NOW WHAT WE SEE IS THIS IS AN ADDITIONAL CARDIOVASCULAR RISK. SO WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT OKAY