Is there a direct link between cannabis legalization and rising childhood asthma?

Asthma is a chronic inflammation of the airways that can cause wheezing, coughing, and difficulty breathing. In extreme situations, death or irreversible lung damage can also occur. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around 6 million children in the United States are affected by this disease. Compared to white children, black and Hispanic children have a higher risk of developing asthma. In addition, men under the age of 13 suffer more often from asthma than girls of the same age.

Researchers from the City University of New York and Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health found that the prevalence of asthma among older children has increased in locations where recreational cannabis use is legal. The first-of-its-kind study of the link between cannabis laws and childhood asthma was published in Preventive Medicine. One of the study’s co-authors, Renee Goodwin, told Medical News Today that no previous studies had addressed this issue.

Analysis and data from the asthma and cannabis study

In their study, the scientists analyzed data from the National Survey on Children’s Health (NSCH), a representative sample of minors in the United States. The team calculated the incidence of pediatric asthma based on data from 2018-2019, 2016-2017 and 2011-2012 using the NSCH. The study included 227,451 American children with an average age of just over 8 years. Among the participants, approximately 51% were male, while approximately 17% identified as Hispanic, 60% non-Hispanic White, and 12% non-Hispanic Black.

Based on their analysis, the researchers found that the incidence of pediatric asthma was almost 9% in 2011-2012. This rate decreased to 8% in 2016-2017 and 7.8% in 2018-2019. The researchers observed that the decline in asthma rates was more pronounced in states where cannabis was not legalized or had recently been legalized for medical use. According to the research report, however, there was no statistically significant difference in the magnitude of the reductions depending on whether a state had legalized recreational or medical cannabis use.

Among adolescents aged 12 to 17, asthma incidence increased in states with cannabis regulations, particularly in states that have legalized recreational marijuana use. In general, the incidence of pediatric asthma among children who identified as non-Hispanic minorities and lived in states where cannabis was legal for both medicinal and recreational purposes was significantly higher than in states where cannabis was not legal.

The most significant increase in pediatric asthma cases in states where recreational marijuana use is legal is observed primarily among Hispanic children. However, the researchers point out in their paper that their findings do not establish a direct link between marijuana laws and an increase in childhood asthma.

What the data suggest

dr Brian Christman, a professor at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee and a volunteer spokesperson for the American Lung Association, highlighted the reduction in the incidence of pediatric asthma shown in the study. He attributes this decline in part to efforts to control tobacco smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke. According to Brian, the data suggests that our public health response to tobacco use has been effective. In most states, the prevalence of asthma in children has decreased, which is excellent news.

The rise in pediatric asthma among adolescents aged 12 to 17 in states with cannabis legislation suggests that it is being used at home by adolescent children who have a higher incidence of asthma in the newspaper and this is irritating to their airways ” said Christman, who was not involved in the study. He stressed that the research had a significant number of participants. “Although the numbers may not be huge when you’re dealing with hundreds of thousands of individuals and a few percentage shifts observe, most are likely to be significant,” he added.

The observed increase in the prevalence of asthma among adolescents aged 12 to 17 in states with cannabis regulations suggests that cannabis use is occurring in households with teenagers, who are more prone to asthma, leading to respiratory irritation. Although Christman was not involved in the study, he emphasized the importance of the study’s sizeable pool of participants. According to him, while the numbers aren’t huge, observing just a few percentage changes affecting hundreds of thousands of people is likely significant.

The need for public health guidelines.

According to Goodwin, she conducted this research because she observed how quickly different states were legalizing recreational marijuana use. She believes there is a need for more and better public health information related to cannabis.

Goodwin noted that pediatricians have questions they should ask about children’s homes. However, she claimed that the list does not include a question about whether someone smokes cannabis indoors. She added that there was no advice for parents or clinicians. According to Christman, parents who smoke cannabis should smoke outside for the sake of their families, especially if they have children with developing lungs. Otherwise, this type of exposure could have long-term effects.

Cannabis use by parents

A 2021 study conducted and co-authored by Goodwin found that adults living in households with children are more likely to use cannabis in states where recreational or medical marijuana is legal than in states where it is not. This prevalence of cannabis use was highest among persons ages 18 to 25 in states where recreational use of cannabis is legal and among persons who identified as non-Hispanic black in states where recreational use is legal.

Goodwin emphasized the importance of educating parents about the potential risks of second-hand smoke from cannabis, especially as more and more parents use cannabis. However, she also pointed out that more research is needed on this topic. Goodwin expressed concern that state legislatures may be making decisions without sufficient scientific evidence to guide them.

Although more research is needed on this topic, a 2016 study found that even one minute of exposure to second-hand cannabis can significantly impair blood vessel lining function in rats for at least 90 minutes. Previous research also showed the presence of chemicals linked to respiratory diseases in marijuana smoke. According to Goodwin, there is increasing evidence that it is not harmless and can have even more harmful effects than tobacco.

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