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Healthy people who smoked marijuana regularly and consumed food in the THC layer, as well as cigarette smokers, showed signs of early cardiovascular disease.
“To my knowledge, it is the first study to see the effects of THC on human vascular function,” said Matthew Springer, senior research author, Matthew Springer, a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.
“We look at the window into the future and show early changes that could explain why smoking marijuana is associated with later heart disease,” Springer said. “The act of smoking and the THC itself seem to contribute in many ways to these changes.”
Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is a component of marijuana that provides high levels. Previous studies on mice have caused damage to blood vessels that provide oxygen to important organs after exposure to marijuana smoke, Springer said. However, it was unclear whether marijuana smoke would affect the human vascular system.
“We found that vascular function was reduced by 42% in marijuana smokers and 56% in THC eating users compared to non-users.” At the University of California, San Francisco said in an email.
The study shows only relevance, Springer said. “It’s just that we say that cannabis users have insufficient vascular function and that cannabis use is not a degraded vascular function,” he said in an email.
Dr. Andrew Freeman, director of cardiovascular prevention and wellness for Denver’s National Jewish Health, said the findings from Thc-Laced Edibles were astounding.
“Isn’t other forms of marijuana — tea, tincture, edible — as benign as you once thought?” said Freeman, who was not involved in the study. “Big research is needed to reach a better conclusion about this finding.”
A single layer of endothelial cells line up all blood vessels in the body. When functioning properly, these specialized cells release chemicals such as nitric oxide, which control the relaxation and contraction of the canal, and regulate blood flow. Healthy endothelial cells also play a role in local cell growth, helping to prevent blood clotting.
When endothelial cells become inflamed, plaque accumulation can increase the artery over time, leading to heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure. Damage to small blood vessels can also lead to kidney and lung disease, coma, delirium, and dementia.
However, the study did not measure plaque, so the findings do not mean that blood vessels are currently blocked, Springer said.
“The containers show unhealthy vessel walls that predict later cardiovascular disease, with no diameter growing in real time when more blood needs to pass through,” he said.
Previous studies have found a strong link between marijuana use and subsequent cardiovascular disease. A February 2024 survey found that smoking, vap or marijuana eating was a huge increase in the risk of heart attacks and strokes, even if you had no pre-existing heart conditions and no smoking or steam cigarettes.
The risk of stroke increased by 42%, and if cannabis was used daily, the risk of heart attack increased by 25%, and the risk increased as marijuana days spent, studies found.
Using marijuana daily can increase marijuana by a third compared to people who are unable to increase their risk of coronary artery disease, according to a study found in a February 2023 study.
The American Heart Association advises people to refrain from smoking or vaping any substance, including cannabis products, due to potential harm to the heart, lungs and blood vessels. The guidance published in 2020 pointed to a study that found that abnormal heart rhythms such as tachycardia and atrial fibrillation can occur within an hour of the THC-containing weeds being smoked.
Fifty-five participants in this study were divided into three groups: those who smoked marijuana three times a week for at least one year, those who consumed THC ingredients three times a week for at least one year, and those who consumed THC ingredients three times a week for at least one year, and those who did not use them. People ages 18 to 50 in this study were not tobacco smokers or vapers, but all had little exposure to second-hand cigarette smoke.
The researchers performed ultrasound on the main artery in each person’s right upper arm and applied a very tight blood pressure cuff for 5 minutes. After removing the cuffs, the artery was rerun to see how well it was dilated or expanded to handle the increased blood flow. This creates a process that requires the release of nitric oxide.
Studies have shown that damage to endothelial cells that regulate dilation was dose-related. Study participants who used more marijuana were at a higher risk of damage to blood vessels that carry oxygen to body organs.
“Whether smoking or intake, high levels of cannabis use are associated with reduced vascular function, highlighting the increased cardiovascular risks with higher efficacy and frequency of use,” Mohammadi said.
Additional neck and thigh tests confirmed the stiffness of each person’s blood pressure wall. Compared to people who have never used marijuana, cannabis users appeared to have no additional stiffness in the walls of the blood vessels, the study found.
The role of smoking and the THC
Another analysis resulted in commercially purchased cultures of laboratory endothelial cells, with serum added from cannabis smokers and edible users. The blood of people who used THC-woven foods did not appear to harm the cells. However, endothelial cells incubated with marijuana smokers’ serum released 27% less nitric oxide than those treated with non-smoker’s blood.
The evidence is similar to that seen in tobacco, Springer, pointing to a previous study by his team showing endothelial cells incubated with serum of tobacco smokers, releasing 39% less nitric oxide than non-smokers.
“The observation that marijuana smokers and THC users each have poor vascular functions may conclude that THC is the cause of all this and smoke is irrelevant,” Springer said.
According to Springer, that would be a wise conclusion. Because there is reason to believe that marijuana smoke itself is just as liable for damage to the blood vessels.
“Rats exposed to marijuana smoke without cannabinoids also suffered from vascular and heart damage. Furthermore, tobacco smoke is known to cause heart disease and has no THC,” Springer said.
“So you don’t benefit yourself by switching to smoking from smoking to marijuana. Just smoking marijuana gives you a double hit of smoke and THC,” he said.
What about marijuana edibles, tea, tinctures, etc.?
“People have something like Goldilocks zone in everything. “We need further research to see if Goldilocks zone is found.”