Respiratory disease rises among Uruguayans who smoke marijuana

(from Montevideo, Uruguay) – since sale coating The drug is legal in Uruguay, where the number of people admitting to using it, or at least once, has increased. In 2016, only 17 percent of the population belonged to this group, according to Cifra Consulting, a figure that rose to 31 percent last year. There is also growing interest in the academic community to understand the technology’s impact. Cannabis use in health.

A common question posed by Uruguayan doctors and researchers at international conferences is the impact of smoking marijuana on the respiratory system since its legalization.Driven by these questions, pulmonologists, chemists, epidemiologists and physicians from around the world University of the Republic Uruguay’s Udelar began investigating the issue.

Results will be announced on Thursday The Observer – It was concluded that 30% of marijuana smokers (those who said they only smoked the drug and not the other) developing respiratory symptoms Examples include bronchitis, cough, mucous membrane inflammation and other acute infections.

The rate was “slightly lower” than those who also smoked, although “significantly higher” than those who did not use other drugs.

“Smoking marijuana is not harmless“At least there is no effect on the respiratory system,” concluded Verónica Torres, professor of internal medicine and pulmonologist who led the investigation, after learning of the results.

The academic study looked at nearly 400 similar people and divided them into four groups: one who didn’t smoke at all; one who didn’t smoke; one who didn’t smoke; and one who didn’t. Another group only consumed tobacco; a third said they only smoked marijuana; and a fourth group smoked both drugs.

The study “requires very little time so far,” but the researchers were able to test two of their hypotheses: that smoking marijuana affects the airways, and The more frequently it is consumed, the greater the likelihood of developing respiratory illnesses.

Marijuana smoke can cause inflammation of the bronchial mucosa, which can lead to coughing, body aches, irritation, and chest tightness. “While marijuana consumption is generally not as regular as tobacco (addicts smoke several cigarettes per day), there is an affectation and it shouldn’t be seen as a benevolent thingsaid the professor.

What has not yet been proven is whether people who smoke marijuana have chronic respiratory disease. In other words, marijuana use cannot yet be linked to the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or lung cancer. Researchers will continue to conduct years of research to confirm or rule out this possibility.

marijuana is Drugs with lower perceived risk s population. More than half of Uruguayan adolescents see no risk or little risk of “sometimes smoking marijuana”. Twenty years ago, this percentage was lower.

Six years after Uruguay allowed the legal purchase of marijuana (although the law began in 2013, it was regulated in 2017), nearly 62,000 people are authorized to buy cannabis in dispensaries and nearly 15,000 are allowed to grow cannabis in the country, members of cannabis clubs More than 10,000 people.

At the time the law was approved, 66 percent of the population opposed marijuana regulation, recalls Cifra Consulting. But views have changed over the years. Today’s position is divided into: Most support the law (48%), 45% do not. The rest declined to comment.

Marijuana use is more common among men than among women, and is more common among those under the age of 45. Half of those under 30 said they had tried the substance.

In the past, marijuana was more associated with “luxury” consumption, but access to it has democratized over the years, as those who say they have tried it the most are those of the middle socioeconomic level.

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