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NEW YORK – As more and more states say marijuana is legal, government officials, researchers and others fear what it could mean for one of the country's biggest health success stories public: fight against smoking.
While there are notable differences in the health research results on tobacco and marijuana, the juxtaposition has shocked some after generations of Americans realized that smoking put their health at risk .
"We try to stop people from smoking all kinds of things. Why do you want to legalize marijuana? In a recent hearing in front of the city, Republican Peter Koo, a city councilor from New York City, discussed the potential for legalizing the use of the pot for recreation by the state.
Advocates of marijuana say there is no comparison between joints and tobacco cigarettes. A comprehensive federal evaluation of marijuana research found that the lung health risks of smoking tobacco appeared to be "relatively low" and "significantly lower than smoking tobacco", the leading cause of preventable death in the United States.
Unlike cigarettes, marijuana has some health benefits, such as the alleviation of chronic pain. And marijuana can be used without smoking. Most states now have legal medical pot programs; 10 states and the District of Columbia have approved recreational use.
"These are different products, and they need to be treated differently," said Mason Tvert, spokesperson for the Marijuana Policy Project, which advocates legalization.
At the same time, studies have shown a cross between the use of marijuana and tobacco. And while smoking cannabis may be less dangerous than tobacco for lung health, the pot is not totally virgin.
Some health officials and anti-smoking activists are also concerned about the inclusion of legal marijuana in the rapidly expanding world of vaping, given uncertainties about the long-term effects of the tobacco alternative.
Here is an overview of the issues, science and perspectives:
SMOKING POT VS. THE TOBACCO
Although smoking is the leading risk factor for lung cancer, there is some scientific evidence to suggest that there is no link between marijuana use and lung cancer. This is evident from a 2017 federal report that brought together nearly two decades of marijuana research, which was limited by the federal government's classification of marijuana as a controlled substance such as heroin.
Although smoking is a leading cause of heart disease, the report concludes that marijuana use is associated with a heart attack or stroke.
However, according to the report of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine, there is strong evidence linking long-term smoking with cannabis to a more severe cough and more frequent access to chronic bronchitis.
The report also examined other effects, finding a combination of possible, positive and unknown risks. For example, the report indicated that marijuana could relieve nausea and chronic pain caused by chemotherapy, but that it was also proven that the drug was linked to the development of schizophrenia and road accidents.
In recent weeks, studies have echoed concerns about the pot of drugs and psychosis and have documented an increase in the number of marijuana-related emergency room visits after legalization in Colorado.
Tobacco and marijuana use can also go hand in hand. Blunts – marijuana in a cigar envelope with tobacco leaves – have grown in popularity. And studies have shown that more cigarette smokers used marijuana and conversely, compared to non-smokers.
"One substance reinforces the use of the other, and vice versa, which can escalate into addiction," says Dr. Sterling McPherson, professor of medicine at the University of Washington, studying tobacco use and marijuana among adolescents.
The report from the National Academies indicates that the use of marijuana probably increases the risk of addiction to other substances, including tobacco.
For some public health officials, it makes sense to legalize marijuana and place safeguards around it.
"With respect to tobacco, we know that it is inherently dangerous and that there is no safe amount of tobacco to use," says Rebecca Giglio, Drug Policy Analyst, Department of Health. of New York City. While with marijuana, "we see this as an opportunity to tackle the disadvantages of criminalization while regulating cannabis."
However, the opinions of health departments vary, even within the same state: the Association of Health Officials of New York County opposes the legalization of recreational grass.
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SO WHAT IS VAPING?
Vaping – heating a solution in a vapor and inhaling it – has been touted as a safer alternative to smoking.
The experts said that vaping is probably less harmful to the lungs than smoking, although little research has been done on health effects over time and they worry about its potency after vaping.
The American Lung Association fears that vaping will eventually have adverse effects on lung health and worries about an increase in the use of electronic cigarettes in minors. And adding legal marijuana to the photo "only adds to the complexity," says Erika Sward, Assistant Vice President.
Others, however, believe that decision makers should consider vaping as a relatively safe way of using pot.
"I would say that the risks associated with this form of consumption will be less," says Rebecca Haffajee, professor of health policy at the University of Michigan, who co-authored a 2017 article calling for marijuana programs for recreational use only allowing forms that are impossible to smoke.
At the same time, some local governments have adjusted smoking bans to cover both vaping and pot. The Los Angeles County Supervisory Board changed its prohibition last month.
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TWO VIEWS
As a former cigarette smoker, New Yorker Gary Smith is appalled by the fact that his home country might well be smoking pot.
He knows that research has not established a link between smoking marijuana and lung cancer, which killed three cigarette smokers in his family and hit him 20 years after he left. he was treated. But he fears that the respiratory risks associated with marijuana smoking are not fully known.
"It's crazy that the government, in order to collect taxes, will allow people to suck this thing for you," says Smith, 78, an accountant at Island Park.
Richard Creagan, a doctor and representative in Hawaii, believes in cigarettes no less. The former smoker and democrat of Naalehu proposed this year without success to ban them, but to ban them by raising the legal age to 100 years.
Meanwhile, he would like Hawaii to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes, an idea that has fizzled the state legislature this year.
Creagan, 73, believes that marijuana is more beneficial to people's health than health, and he expects non-smoking alternatives to reduce risk. In addition, he believes that legal marijuana could someday replace the tax on cigarettes.
"This coupling," he says, "was somehow in my head.
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