Wood County Prevention Coalition
Uniting For A Drug-Free Community Since 2004
Is Secondhand Marijuana Smoke Dangerous? Biologist Says Yes
by Chris Melore CBS News March 19, 2018 at 5:29 pm
As the government continues to crack down on tobacco products, more and more states are easing up on marijuana laws. One biologist is now saying those policies are misguided after finding that secondhand smoke from marijuana users may be just as deadly as cigarette smoke.
According to Matthew Springer, a professor at the University of California, San Francisco, marijuana smoke is three times worse for the arterial walls than cigarette smoke. In a study conducted with mice, secondhand smoke from tobacco was found to hinder the expanding of arteries for 30 minutes before the body recovers. Mice exposed to marijuana smoke had their arteries impaired for 90 minutes before returning to normal.
“People think cannabis is fine because it’s ‘natural.’ I hear this a lot. I don’t know what it means,” Springer told NPR. Health officials warn that smokers could permanently damage their arteries through constant smoking, which can lead to blood clots, heart attacks, or a stroke.
“We in the public health community have been telling them for decades to avoid inhaling secondhand smoke from tobacco,” Springer added. “We have not been telling them to avoid inhaling secondhand smoke from marijuana… it’s because we just haven’t known. The experiments haven’t been done.”
According to the CDC, smoke from cigarettes contains over 7,000 chemicals; at least 70 of which have been found to cause cancer. Although the CDC’s report also focused on tobacco-based smoke, the agency wrote that “there is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke.”
Featured Speaker for April 20th Coalition Meeting Announced
Dr. Robert's presentation entitled, “Adolescents, E-cigarettes, and the New Landscape of Tobacco Products” will discuss the rising use of alternative tobacco products (especially e-cigarettes, cigarillos, and hookah) among adolescents both nationally and in Ohio. Recent findings concerning marketing, flavors, and the “gateway hypothesis” will be presented.
Dr. Roberts' research focuses on adolescent and young adult health, health disparities, and tobacco use. As a social scientist, her work considers multiple levels of influence on behavior, including factors at the individual, interpersonal, and community levels. Dr. Roberts is a part of OSU's Center of Excellence in Regulatory Tobacco Science (CERTS), where research findings are used to inform federal tobacco policy.
For more information, please see the flyer below.
To RSVP, please use the form below or email mkarna@wcesc.org.
FDA takes first steps to limit flavorings in tobacco
by Maggie Fox Mar.20.2018 NBC news
Menthol and fruit flavors make cigarettes more enticing and more addictive. Now the Food and Drug Administration is taking the first step toward possibly limiting their use in tobacco products.
The FDA took its first steps last week to possibly lower the amount of nicotine in cigarettes. On Tuesday, it started asking for more input on how menthol and other flavorings make cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products more addictive and dangerous and, if so, what it should do about that.
“FDA may consider restrictions on the sale and distribution of flavored tobacco products,” the agency said in a notice for a proposed new rule.
The agency's commissioner, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, said the main goal is to protect children.
“For years we have recognized that flavors in these products appeal to kids and promote youth initiation. The data backs this up, and as a result, Congress prohibited the use of most characterizing flavors in cigarettes,” Gottlieb said in a statement.
“The thought of any child starting down a path of a lifelong addiction to tobacco, which could ultimately lead to their death, is unacceptable. We need to take every effort to prevent kids from getting hooked on nicotine.”
FDA’s action Tuesday is the first step in a lengthy and often complicated process of changing federal rules.
The Next Wood County Prevention Coalition Meeting: April 20th
Wood County Prevention Coalition Community Meeting
Friday, Apr 20, 2018, 08:30 PM
Wood County Educational Services, Research Drive, Bowling Green, OH, United States
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
About Us
Our Vision: Helping youth be drug-free, productive and responsible citizens.
Our Mission: We are a coalition of compassionate community members working together to coordinate high quality programs for the prevention of youth substance abuse in Wood County.
Email: mkarna@wcesc.org
Website: wcprevention.org
Location: 1867 Research Drive, Bowling Green, OH, United States
Phone: (419)-354-9010
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WCPCoalition
Twitter: @woodpccoalition