5 ms·

Hasn’t it been common knowledge and established science that marijuana suppresses the immune system? This doesn’t come as a surprise to me.

horsawlarway 4y ago
> Hasn’t it been common knowledge and established science that marijuana suppresses the immune system? No - not really. It seems to be rather variable, depending on the disease in question. Cannabis use was associated with much lower rates of COVID-19, for example: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35007072/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35007072/ It also seems to play an interesting part in inflammatory response (cannabis use is associated with anti-inflammatory agents) - which may or may not matter, depending on the disease. Ex - there are limited studies on cannabis and the impacts on the immune system in HIV patients, with most showing no effect, but the studies are very limited, and often flawed (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK425755/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK425755/) Basically - We don't know shit because of how the US scheduled the drug, and the near complete lack of decent research on it over the last 50 years. I would still say inhaling smoke of any kind is almost certainly not good for you, but we have a real lack of data here... which is a shame.
- MichaelCollins 4y ago
  Inhaled smoke being harmful is beyond obvious, I would want very strong evidence to believe otherwise for any kind of smoke, particularly sooty smoke from burning organics. Soot in lungs is obviously bad, that should the default assumption of any kind of smoke until proven otherwise. I doubt there is any study specifically about the impact of Abies yuanbaoshanensis smoke on the lungs, but obviously it isn't good for you. Until there are studies proving otherwise, don't breath smoke is the sane default. The more interesting matter is what effect cannabis might have when it isn't smoked.
  - horsawlarway 4y ago
    I agree with you - I wasn't particularly clear with my last sentence. I meant the lack of data around cannabis/cannabinoids in general and specifically its interaction with the immune system and diseases, not inhaling smoke - inhaling smoke of any kind is not going to be good for your lungs/heart. I do think the mixed findings around the immune system need a lot of work right now. We're basically 50 years behind where we should be - Given that the original comment I responded to is not entirely wrong either, we do have some evidence that cannabinoids suppress the immune system in helpful ways for some autoimmune diseases (such as Crohn's/IBD) which I believe is why there was interest in evaluating the impact in HIV patients, where the results were inconclusive.

horsawlarway 4y ago

> Hasn’t it been common knowledge and established science that marijuana suppresses the immune system? No - not really. It seems to be rather variable, depending on the disease in question. Cannabis use was associated with much lower rates of COVID-19, for example: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35007072/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35007072/ It also seems to play an interesting part in inflammatory response (cannabis use is associated with anti-inflammatory agents) - which may or may not matter, depending on the disease. Ex - there are limited studies on cannabis and the impacts on the immune system in HIV patients, with most showing no effect, but the studies are very limited, and often flawed (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK425755/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK425755/) Basically - We don't know shit because of how the US scheduled the drug, and the near complete lack of decent research on it over the last 50 years. I would still say inhaling smoke of any kind is almost certainly not good for you, but we have a real lack of data here... which is a shame.

MichaelCollins 4y ago
Inhaled smoke being harmful is beyond obvious, I would want very strong evidence to believe otherwise for any kind of smoke, particularly sooty smoke from burning organics. Soot in lungs is obviously bad, that should the default assumption of any kind of smoke until proven otherwise. I doubt there is any study specifically about the impact of Abies yuanbaoshanensis smoke on the lungs, but obviously it isn't good for you. Until there are studies proving otherwise, don't breath smoke is the sane default. The more interesting matter is what effect cannabis might have when it isn't smoked.
- horsawlarway 4y ago
  I agree with you - I wasn't particularly clear with my last sentence. I meant the lack of data around cannabis/cannabinoids in general and specifically its interaction with the immune system and diseases, not inhaling smoke - inhaling smoke of any kind is not going to be good for your lungs/heart. I do think the mixed findings around the immune system need a lot of work right now. We're basically 50 years behind where we should be - Given that the original comment I responded to is not entirely wrong either, we do have some evidence that cannabinoids suppress the immune system in helpful ways for some autoimmune diseases (such as Crohn's/IBD) which I believe is why there was interest in evaluating the impact in HIV patients, where the results were inconclusive.