The Evidence - Science Doesn't Lie
Researchers: 4 Marijuana Joints = 20 Tobacco Cigarettes
Doctors based in Bristol, England, investigated four in-depth cases of marijuana users, ages 27-46, who had advanced emphysema. They found that "...smoking three to four marijuana cigarettes per day produces a comparable histological effect on the airways to smoking 20 tobacco cigarettes daily." In other words, the lungs treat three to four joints as a pack of cigarettes. Sounds like a bad deal. This adds to the wealth of existing evidence about how marijuana significantly hurts your lungs. Dr. Sarah Nuttall and colleagues at the University of Birmingham found that smoking cannabis for three or four times a week in each of six years caused a marked deterioration in lung function and robbed the body of antioxidants that can lead to heart disease and cancer. "Smoking cannabis on a regular basis actually depletes your lung of protective antioxidant substances...and this may have chronic long-term implications for young individuals," Dr. Nuttall told Reuters news agency.
