The
pot wars go on as California voters must once again decide if recreational
marijuana should be legalized. One of
the uncertainties being debated is whether or not smoking weed is dangerous. Notably, those opposed to approval contend
its use causes lung cancer, just as do cigarettes. In rebuttal, proponents are sparing no effort,
with selected experts weighing in on this particular health concern. Their consensus: “The cancer link appears
increasingly weak, though more research is needed.”
The argument actually beats about the burning bush. Although combustion of both pot and tobacco
emit some of the same carcinogenic substances, the comparisons end there. Of particular note is that the quantity of
smoke inhaled by the typical cigarette smoker, often a pack or more daily, is
infinitely greater than by the marijuana user.
This was one of the factors considered in a 2014 study published in the International Journal of Cancer, which
found “little evidence for an increased risk of lung cancer, even among heavy
or long-term cannabis smokers.”
There’s
another, perhaps even more significant reason, why tobacco is the more potent
lung cancer cause. Because of the soil
in which it’s grown, the tobacco leaf contains certain radioactive isotopes, in
particular the beta particle emitter lead-210.
When the smoke containing this element—with its half-life of 22.3
years—settles on the lung alveoli, it bombards the nearby tissue with ionizing
(cancer causing) radiation for the better part of a half-century. It’s this, as much as chemical factors, which
result in malignancy.
As
the lung cancer debate goes on, little concern is given to what is the far more
pertinent health matter: What becomes of a mentality that’s regularly exposed
to a brain-scrambling substance? Just as
schoolchildren once labeled ADD were, to their detriment, doped up day after
day on Ritalin, might we see—or possibly be seeing—a similar effect with the
cannabis users? If so, voter-approved
legalization will merely encourage more Americans to pump increasing quantities
of the substance into their heads. I see
no benefit to a nation as its people grow less able to function
rationally.
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If you enjoy this
weekly Straight Talk by Al Jacobs, you’re invited to check out my monthly
Financial Newsletter, as well as my new book, The Road to Prosperity
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