Marijuana smoking may have a greater potential than tobacco smoking to cause lung cancer and smoking just one marijuana joint is as harmful to the body as smoking 20 cigarettes, according to a recent study by researchers in New Zealand.
The study, released in the February issue of the European Respiratory Journal, found that marijuana smoke is qualitatively similar to tobacco smoke but contains up to twice the concentration of cancer-causing polyaromatic hydrocarbons.
Marijuana joints tend to be smoked without filters and to a smaller butt size, the study said, leading to higher concentrations of smoke inhaled. Researchers also noted that marijuana smokers inhale more deeply and hold their breath longer, “facilitating the deposition of the carcinogenic products in the lower respiratory tract.”
Barrett Duke, vice president of public policy and research for the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, said the study “adds one more excellent reason for people to decide against smoking marijuana.” (BP)
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