BBC Claims Pot Can Cause Lung Damage

According to a BBC report pot has been linked to emphysema. Of course in my opinion this report is terribly biased and without sound scientific methodology to back it up.

Lets look at the poster girl of this new study. First they point out that the link between pot and emphysema has been difficult to track because most pot smokers also smoke tobacco a known causer of emphysema, then they don't tell you if this woman smokes tobacco or not. They then go on to explain that this woman smoked up to 10 joints EVERY FREAKING DAY for 20 years. Anyone else think that is excessive use? Personally I think with that much smoking of ANY substance would likely cause some serious damage and this woman is lucky to only have emphysema. I mean who can afford to smoke that much ganga anyways, let alone who would want to, most people would melt on that much weed in one day, let alone doing it every single day. Find me a moderate pot smoker who does not smoke cigarettes and has not been exposed to excessive second hand smoke who has emphysema and then perhaps we will talk.

Granted the Doctor who conducted the "study" claims to have "a collection of young people who have lungs that look like they're 65-year-olds," but no one else is mentioned, nor have I been able to find any other articles on this report that go into any more detail. The young people's cases are not mentioned at all really, nothing is mentioned about if they smoke tobacco or not, or anything about their medical histories.

To make matters worse the article quotes such propaganda studies as the 2002 study indicating that three or four joints are as harmful to the lungs as 20 cigarettes, well I hate to point it out to these bone heads, but that study has long been shown to only indicate that levels of certain toxins inhaled are higher, not all, and no link was shown between usage and actual damage, but rather just the amount of toxins. A 2006 study, which sought to confirm the link between cannabis use and lung cancer found there was no link, and another study I discussed here actually showed that THC was an effective lung cancer fighter.

This study should gets filed under anti pot propaganda and ignored, unless the doctor brings up some harder evidence then this article suggests.