Ya maan.
Posted on 05/26/2006 10:36:53 AM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- Marijuana smoking does not increase a person's risk of developing lung cancer, according to the findings of a new study at the University of California Los Angeles that surprised even the researchers.
They had expected to find that a history of heavy marijuana use, like cigarette smoking, would increase the risk of cancer.
Instead, the study, which compared the lifestyles of 611 Los Angeles County lung cancer patients and 601 patients with head and neck cancers with those of 1,040 people without cancer, found no elevated cancer risk for even the heaviest pot smokers. It did find a 20-fold increased risk of lung cancer in people who smoked two or more packs of cigarettes a day.
The study results were presented in San Diego Tuesday at a meeting of the American Thoracic Society.
The study was confined to people under age 60 since baby boomers were the most likely age group to have long-term exposure to marijuana, said Dr. Donald Tashkin, senior researcher and professor at the UCLA School of Medicine.
The results should not be taken as a blank check to smoke pot, which has been associated with problems including cognitive impairment and chronic bronchitis, said Dr. John Hansen-Flaschen, chief of pulmonary and critical care at the University of Pennsylvania Health System in Philadelphia. He was not involved in the study.
Previous studies showed marijuana tar contained about 50 percent more of the chemicals linked to lung cancer, compared with tobacco tar, Tashkin said. In addition, smoking a marijuana joint deposits four times more tar in the lungs than smoking an equivalent amount of tobacco.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
PING!
The search function must not be working.
Ya maan.
Of course they don't. And these dudes that did the study are really smart maaaaan. Pass the bong. ROTFL!
I see the real stoners are just now reading and discussing this article.
I'm just kidding!! :)
But we did have quite a thread about it.
The drug war has taken a toll on our police forces, but it has also tainted our medical researchers.
I remember that in the late 80s, the local phone provider BellSouth, started an information program on several topics. The topics were listed in the phone book, with a phone number attached to each topic.
When I called to find out about marijuana, I was surprised at the candid information provided, including that there is no risk of OD'ing using marijuana, and that smoking pot does not cause any permanent brain damage. The recording quoted several studies done by reputable universities.
Then the usual do-gooders started to complain, claiming that BellSouth was promoting drug use among teens, and the whole recording was deleted. It was later replaced with a different recording contradicting many of the original claims about marijuana.
This incident proved to me that the whole drug research industry has been politicized, and any study that does not follow the party line will be deep-sixed.
Yeah, but what about emphysema and other lung related diseases?
Well I don't think even the most dedicated head can do 20 doobies a day.
Too true... the first 15 take away the motivation...
Even Marley didn't suggest more than 6 a day ---
http://www.lyricsdownload.com/bob-marley-smoke-2-joints-lyrics.html
I smoke two joints in the morning, I smoke two joints at night
I smoke two joints in the afternoon, it makes me feel alright
I smoke two joints in time of peace, and two in time of war
I smoke two joints before I smoke two joints, and then I smoke two more
That only gets you to 18 unless you get confused as to whether you're at peace or war. Yeah that could happen. What was I thinking? Better go get a beer.
What about car accidents and lightning strikes? What about swimming pools, fires, and stairs? What about terrorism and famine? What about floods and volcanos? Any number of things can kill a person, and we ALL die. The question should be, what benefit is it to society to turn pot smokers into criminals?
I'm not surprised....they're smoking a pure leaf product. There are plenty of cultures around the world that smoke pure leaf tobacco and also do not have the incidences of lung cancer usually attributed to smoking. Cancer can be attributed to a number of things, diet, lifestyle choices etc...it's never one thing alone.
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