What Happens When You Smoke THC Every Day? Here's How Marijuana Impacts Your Lungs

Lisa Mulcahy
Updated ·4 min read
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When we think about smoking and lung damage, we typically think about cigarettes and nicotine. But what kind of damage does weed do to your lungs—especially if you smoke daily? It's not good, according to medical experts. Wether you smoke regularly or simply want more information, here's everything you need to know about the impact of marijuana on your lungs.

Effects of marijuana on your lungs

"Marijuana contains chemical substances that can absolutely cause damage to your lungs," says David Tom Cooke, MD, FACS, spokesperson for the American Lung Association. "It's just common sense: Marijuana contains chemicals like toxic, unregulated gas, and when you inhale it, that can damage human lung tissue. You can develop bronchial conditions as a result, especially if your immune system is compromised by another illness or condition. Lung infections can become a problem as well."

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, just like tobacco smoke, marijuana smoke is an irritant to the throat and lungs—it often makes you cough very hard as you're smoking it. Marijuana smoking is associated with large airway inflammation, increased airway resistance and lung hyperinflation.

Related: Most Common Signs and Symptoms of Lung Cancer

So what happens when you smoke weed every day?

You're more likely to suffer from chronic bronchitis. The Institute cites research that found that people who frequently smoke marijuana had more outpatient medical visits for respiratory problems than those who don't smoke pot. Another factor: The Institute reports studies have also suggested that, because THC suppresses the immune system, smoking weed might increase susceptibility to lung infections (such as pneumonia) in people with immune deficiencies. Smoking pot may also reduce the respiratory system’s immune response, increasing the likelihood of the person acquiring respiratory infections, as well as pneumonia and emphysema.

What harmful chemicals does marijuana contain, specifically? Weed smoke contains carcinogenic combustion products, including about 50 percent more benzopyrene and 75 percent more benzanthracene (and more phenols, vinyl chlorides, nitrosamines, reactive oxygen species) than cigarette smoke, according to the Institute. Because you inhale weed smoke deeply, you may be absorbing up to four the amount of tar you would if you were smoking a cigarette. And finally, while some small, uncontrolled studies have suggested there may be a link between pot smoke and lung cancer, the jury is still out on that possibility. More well-designed large population studies haven't come to the same conclusion yet.

Related: 13 Signs Your Lungs May Not Be Healthy

Long-term effects of smoking weed every day

"We don't have long-term epidemiology yet on the health effects of daily marijuana use, for a number of reasons," says Jeffrey Drope, PhD, vice president of economic and health policy research for the American Cancer Society. "One reason is that it's not legal in every state, so we don't have the opportunity to collect subjects and samples that are large enough to study. But we know that marijuana is a combustible substance—when you inhale a combustible into your lungs every day, that's just bad for your health. Is daily use affecting numbers of lung cancer? We can't know yet. But I can tell you this: I don't care what you're smoking—marijuana, nutmeg, bananas—when you smoke any substance, your lungs are super-absorbent organs, and they hold onto everything that is in that substance. Inhaling any foreign body will damage your lungs, because they're so good at the act of taking in whatever you give them."

Related: What Does Vaping Do to Your Lungs

You can think of the impact of weed smoke on your lungs from a comfort standpoint as well—it hurts when you inhale it sometimes, which makes sense, because it's an irritant. "Marijuana causes, essentially, an allergic reaction in the lungs," says Maher Tabba, MD, chief of interventional pulmonology and thoracic oncology at Tufts Medical Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. "It adversely affects the nerves—this is why you feel discomfort, and can develop infections."

Daily weed smoking can also impact your ability to function well at school, work, or in social situations, according to research from St. Michael's Hospital. What's more, when you smoke weed every day, you may have trouble reducing your use on your own. It's OK to reach out for help quitting smoking if you need it. Talk to your primary care physician (PCP) to get started; he or she can give you tips to help you reduce, then stop your usage. Your PCP can also refer you to support groups, counseling or outside treatment options if that's appropriate for you. The bottom line: Daily THC smoking is far from a harmless pastime.

Now read these easy ways to keep your lungs healthy.

Sources

  • David Tom Cooke, MD, FACS, spokesperson for the American Lung Association

  • Jeffrey Drope, PhD, vice president of economic and health policy research for the American Cancer Society

  • Maher Tabba, MD, chief of interventional pulmonology and thoracic oncology at Tufts Medical Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts