Long-term cannabis use in any form has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease.
In a new study, researchers at UC San Francisco discovered that eating edible cannabis, such as gummies, has the same cardiovascular risk as smoking marijuana.
According to the study, which was published on May 28 in JAMA Cardiology, the risk is due to reduced blood vessel function.
The study included 55 people aged 18 to 50 who were “outwardly healthy.”
According to a UCSF press release, the participants were divided into three groups: those who smoked marijuana on a regular basis, those who consumed THC-containing edibles, and those who did not use cannabis at all.
The cannabis users had been using the substance at least three times per week for at least a year.
According to the release, smokers had the habit for an average of ten years, whereas those who consumed edibles had done so for five years.
In September 2024, the participants were tested to see how well their blood vessels worked and if the cells lining them were affected.
All cannabis users were found to have “decreased vascular function,” which is similar to those who smoke tobacco.
Their blood vessel function was roughly half that of non-cannabinoid users.
According to the researchers, this side effect is associated with an increased risk of heart attack, high blood pressure, and other cardiovascular conditions.
Participants who smoked marijuana were also found to have changes in their blood serum that harmed cells lining their blood vessels and lymphatic vessels, which were not observed in those who consumed edible cannabis.
The researchers concluded that, while smoking marijuana and consuming edibles both have an impact on vascular function, they most likely do so for different reasons.
“Chronic cannabis smoking and THC ingestion were associated with endothelial dysfunction [impaired functioning of the endothelial cells lining the inside of blood vessels] similar to that observed in tobacco smokers, although apparently occurring via distinct mechanisms,” the study’s authors wrote.
“This study enhances the understanding of the potential risks to vascular health linked to cannabis use and provides more evidence that cannabis use is not benign.”
Dr. Bradley Serwer, a Maryland-based cardiologist and chief medical officer at VitalSolution, an Ingenovis Health company that provides cardiovascular and anesthesia services to hospitals across the country, said the study’s findings did not surprise him.
“We have known that chronic use of THC-containing compounds can have negative health consequences—this study just reaffirms those prior studies,” Serwer, who was not involved in the UCSF study, told Fox News Digital.
The study had some limitations.
“Variability in cannabis strains complicates standardization,” the researchers stated. “Self-reported cannabis use may introduce recall bias; thus, participants were queried at multiple points: in the online survey, at the eligibility interview and before each visit.”
They also found it difficult to determine whether lifestyle factors such as stress, caffeine, and secondhand smoke exposure had any effect on blood vessel function.
Serwer noted that this was a “very small” study of only 55 people from the San Francisco Bay area.
“The decision to use or avoid it should be made with all benefits and risks in mind.”
“The study did not allow for variability in the different strains of cannabis, and they used a self-reporting survey, which can be under- or over-reported,” the reporter told Fox News Digital.
“They focused on physiologic endpoints rather than hard endpoints like heart attacks, strokes, or death. We must conclude that the physiologic endpoints would result in cardiovascular events.”
The cardiologist agreed with the conclusion that cannabis use is “not benign.”
“Chronic use does have potential cardiovascular risks,” he informed me. “There are therapeutic uses of cannabis, and the decision to use or avoid it should be made with all benefits and risks in mind.”
In general, Serwer advised all of his patients to avoid taking unnecessary cardiac risks.
“As clinicians, we must weigh the benefits and the risks of a medicine/drug or intervention,” he told me. “If the risks outweigh the benefits, it should be avoided.”
The study was primarily funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the California Department of Cannabis Control, the California Tobacco-Related Disease Program, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the FDA Center for Tobacco Products.