Marijuana Use Not Linked With COPD

Marijuana Use & COPD

In a new UCLA study, it was found that, “Participants with or without COPD, neither former nor current marijuana smoking of any lifetime amount was associated with evidence of COPD progression or its development.”

COPD, or Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease is a respiratory disease that has primarily been associated with tobacco smoking. With cannabis use on the rise in past years, researchers began looking into if it could be linked with COPD. Researchers at UCLA conducted a study on middle aged and older adults with a variable history of cigarette smoking and marijuana smoking to assess the relationship between marijuana smoking and COPD.

The Study

The study used data from the “Subpopulation and Intermediate Outcomes in COPD Study (or SPIROMICS for short). They categorized participants into three separate groups:

1. Current Marijuana Smokers (CMS)
2. Former Marijuana Smokers (FMS)
3. Never Marijuana Smokers (NMS)

They used various measurements such as spirometry, respiratory symptoms, health status, radiographic metrics, and exacerbation rates to compare the groups.

Most participants were studied for a period of at least four years to get a comprehensive evaluation of the outcomes. Researchers found that the annual rate of change in FEV1 (forced expiratory volume in one second), incident COPD, respiratory symptoms, health status, and total/ severe exacerbations did not significantly differ between groups.

The Findings

Based on the findings of the study, regardless of current or former use of marijuana. There was no significant impact on the progression or development of COPD in middle aged or older adults. Nonetheless, the study does acknowledge the lack of research on the long-term effects of marijuana. It also highlights the fact that the limitations of the study prove that more comprehensive, long-term studies on cannabis usage are needed to better understand the relationship between marijuana and COPD.

Based on the findings of this study, there was limited evidence to suggest that marijuana smoking, regardless of current or former use, had a significant impact on the progression or development of COPD in middle aged and older adults with a variable history of tobacco smoking.

In conclusion, this study contributes to the ever growing body of knowledge on the impact of marijuana smoking on COPD. While the findings suggest that marijuana smoking does not appear to significantly affect COPD. More research is needed to better understand the relationship between the two.