Asthma And Smoking Reducing Risk
You can reduce the risk of worsening your asthma by avoiding cigarette smoke. Some suggestions include:
- Quit smoking.
- Make your home completely smoke free ask guests not to smoke in your house.
- Avoid smoky places, such as outdoor areas of pubs, bars and cafes.
If you wish to use nicotine replacement therapy or quitting medications to stop smoking, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about which products are suitable for you. Use of e-cigarettes to quit smoking is not recommended as they have not been approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration and they contain many chemicals that are potentially toxic.
Different Types Of Triggers
There are two types of asthma triggers:
Inflammatory triggers set off an allergic reaction and can cause inflammation of the lung airways or tightening of the airway muscles. Inflammatory triggers include dust mites, animals, cockroaches, moulds, and pollens. Identification of allergic triggers is best confirmed by an allergists assessment.
Symptom triggers generally do not cause swelling, but they can provoke twitchy airways, especially if theyre already inflamed. Symptom triggers include smoke, exercise, cold air, chemical fumes , and intense emotions.
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How Can You Reduce Your Familys Exposure To Secondhand And Thirdhand Smoke
As a parent, you can limit your childrens exposure to tobacco smoke. To do this, you can quit smoking yourself, if you are a smoker. You can also ask guests to not smoke in or near your house or car. Wherever possible, protect your kids from secondhand and thirdhand smoke.
Quitting is not easy, but it is possible. Stop-smoking programs, counseling and products like nicotine gum or patches can help. Your doctor should be able to help you. Until you quit, do not smoke around your child, in your home or in your car.
Choose childcare carefully so your children will not suffer from the harmful effects of secondhand and thirdhand smoke. Remember, children exposed to secondhand and thirdhand smoke may get sick more often. Protecting them from exposure is good preventive medicine. Your childs health depends on it.
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It Can Damage The Blood Vessels In Your Lungs
Inhaling marijuana smoke, even secondhand, may damage the capillaries, the thinnest and smallest type of blood vessels, which supply oxygen to tissues throughout the body, including the lungs.
Rats who inhaled secondhand marijuana smoke for just one minute experienced significant constriction in their capillaries, according to a 2016 study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
It took the rats blood vessels longer to recover after each exposure. Over time, this could lead to permanent damageand thats just from secondhand smoke.
In humans with asthma, smoking weed could cause similar constriction and damage, triggering an attack and/or making an attack more severe.
Copd Can Develop In Many Ways
Now, it should be noted that you can develop COPD without smoking. You can develop it due to chronic exposure to chemicals at your work. It can also be caused by a rare gene called alpha 1 antitrypsin. So, you dont necessarily have to smoke to get it. However, it is also known that about 80% of people who develop COPD smoked at some point in their lifetimes.4,5
And it’s also true that not everyone who smokes develops COPD. Most studies show that about 20-30% of smokers will eventually be diagnosed with it, although I have seen studies showing it’s as high as 50%. Studies show that children with persistent asthma have a 32% greater risk of developing COPD, and adults with asthma have a 12% greater risk of developing it.4,5
So, with an increased risk already, smoking with asthma can only elevate the risk.
Researchers are not sure why asthmatics have an elevated risk for developing COPD, although some studies seem to suggest that asthma genes may have something to do with it. Smoking may turn some of these asthma genes into COPD genes.2,3
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Cannabis Is An Antispasmodic
It is thought that cannabis can exert abronchodilatory effect mostly through its ability to reduce inflammation. However,it is also thought that cannabis ability to reduce muscular spasms plays a significant role in the management ofbronchoconstriction during an asthma attack. The bronchi and bronchioles arecomposed of smooth muscle, and during an attack, they contract and narrow aswell as becoming inflamed.
In a study published in 2014, researchers took bronchial lung tissue from 88 human patients and subjected it to electrical field stimulation to cause the muscle tissue to contract. They then administered THC, the endogenous cannabinoid 2-AG, and various synthetic agonists of CB-receptors type I & II. They found that certain agonists of the CB1-receptor, including THC, reduced muscle contractions in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, it was observed that the endogenous cannabinoid 2-AG had no effect.
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How Can You Avoid Secondhand Smoke
- Do not allow others to smoke in your home or car.
- If your state allows smoking in public places, eat in restaurants that do not allow smoking. (No smoking sections do not protect you from secondhand smoke.]
- Enroll your child in daycare centers and schools that do not allow tobacco smoking on school grounds. Teach children to stay away from secondhand smoke.
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It Can Make Your Asthma Harder To Control
People with asthma who used pot were more likely to need treatment at a hospital and more likely to need intensive care in the hospital, according to a study published in Respirology.
The researchers looked at admissions records from more than 400 patients with asthma and theorized that people who use marijuana are also less likely to stick to their asthma treatment plan, allowing their condition to get out of control.
What Do People Need To Know About Starting Cannabis As A Medical Treatment For Asthma Or Allergies
Joanna Zeiger: I always tell people the first thing to do is figure out what it is you want to treat. For those with chronic illnesses, it would be optimal to have a discussion with a physician knowledgeable in cannabis.
Seek medical advice when starting any type of treatment. What are the symptoms you want to address? Is it nausea? Insomnia? Pain? The type of condition you are treating will help dictate which type of cannabis you need and how you consume it.
Once you start using cannabis, keep a log of any change in your symptoms to determine whether cannabis is providing effective relief or possibly adverse effects.
If a specific cannabis product doesnt work, it may not be a failure of cannabis it may not be the right product for you and your condition. Again, consulting with a physician knowledgeable about cannabis is important.
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What You Need To Know About Smoking Weed With Asthma
More states are legalizing the use of medical marijuana. Some states are going beyond just medical use and legalizing weed for recreational use. But is using marijuana safe for people with chronic diseases, such as asthma and can it help the condition? The answer may depend on the form of marijuana used, dose and the frequency.
Before deciding if smoking weed with asthma is the right choice for you, its helpful to learn a little more about marijuana. Marijuana is often referred to by different names, such as pot, weed, and grass. Regardless of what you call it, marijuana is derived from the cannabis plant. Cannabis contains various cannabinoids. Cannabinoids are compounds that bind to specific receptors in the central nervous system.
Tetrahydrocannabinol is probably the most well-known cannabinoid and is primarily responsible for the high or psychoactive effects. But other lesser known cannabinoids that are non-psychoactive may also have a therapeutic effect. Many factors influence the effects of marijuana including the types of cannabis used, the dosage and a persons experience using the drug.
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Different Types Of Tobacco
Theres no safe way to smoke tobacco. Tobacco comes in different forms all of which are harmful and addictive:
- Cigarette brands marketed as low tar, light or menthol are not safer than other cigarettes . Smokers get similar amounts of tar and other chemicals from these cigarettes.
- Roll-up cigarettes are just as dangerous as manufactured cigarettes. Filters do not make smoking any safer and are a source of plastic pollution
- Smoking cigars or pipes are also bad for your health.
- Cannabis smoking is harmful for your health.
- Shisha smoking often contains tobacco, but its the burnt charcoal that increases the harm. The smoke goes through water but still contains the same dangerous chemicals and is just as harmful as normal cigarette smoke.
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Final Thoughts On The Discussion Of Marijuana Treatment For Asthma
Some have argued in the past that marijuana is an effective treatment for asthma because it has anti-inflammatory properties and could help open the bronchial tubes. While there is evidence out there to support both of these notions, much more research is required in order to make the claim that marijuana can treat asthma or improve an asthmatic condition.
Much more research is required in order to make the claim that marijuana can treat asthma or improve an asthmatic condition.
And of course, we certainly dont recommend smoking in any form if you have asthma. And while vaporizing cannabis may result in less coughing, there is still virtually no data on its long-term respiratory health effects.
All things considered, edibles and oils are arguably the best way to consume cannabis if you have asthma. They make take a little longer to work, but theyre almost certainly not as harmful to the lungs as smoke inhalation.
Risk Of Other Lung Conditions
E-cigarettes pose several concerns when it comes to your health, especially your pulmonary health. And while these can affect any users and are of great concern, they especially do so if you have asthma given your already compromised airways and existing risk of certain complications, such as pneumonia.
For example, the aforementioned team of Johns Hopkinsâ researchers found that non-smokers who vape have an increased risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease as much as 2.6 times higherand tend to develop the disease between ages 30 and 34.
This suggests that the ongoing use of e-cigarettes can cause a cascade of respiratory illnesses over time and may even speed the development of COPD, a disease that typically affects people 45 and over. Of note, asthma itself is considered a risk factor for COPD.
While it is true that e-cigarette solutions contain ingredients that are generally regarded as safe in their inert form, the heating of these ingredients can cause changes in their consistency and increase their toxicity in the lungs.
Take coconut oil and the sweetener glycerol, two ingredients commonly used in vaping products, for example. Both are well-tolerated on the skin or in the digestive tract, but can cause inflammation when inhaled and accumulate in the airways as the thickened oils cling to tissues. Over time, this can lead to a rare respiratory condition called lipid pneumonia .
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Smoking And Asthma Are A Bad Match
Smoking yourself or breathing in other peoples smoke:
- damages your lungs
- makes your asthma harder to manage
- stops your asthma medicines working properly
- increases your risk of asthma attacks or flare-ups
As well as saving what you spend on cigarettes, quitting smoking may even mean you need to take less asthma medications. Thats saving you money twice over.
Create Your Own Stem Kief
Kief is another excellent product you can get from stems.
Weed stems are covered with resin glands that contain terpenes and cannabinoids.
Kief, which you may know as the dust particles you find at the bottom of your grinder, can be saved from the stems.
You can separate them from the stems, collect them in a bag and place them in the freezer for a few hours.
Give the bag an occasional shake to break off the frozen resin crystals which will collect at the bottom of the bag. And thats your kief, ready to be used in a joint.
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Can You Develop Asthma From Smoking Weed
It appears that smoking weed will not cause asthma to develop. But in people that already have asthma, smoking weed may cause a flare-up of symptoms.
In some people, inhaling marijuana smoke into the lungs can increase asthma symptoms, such as wheezing, coughing, and tightness in the chest, due to airway irritation. There is also a risk that inhaling the smoke will lead to bronchospasm.
Baseline Measurements And Comparison Of Change Across Treatment Periods
PEF readings
There was no difference in baseline PEF measurements between non-smokers and smokers. In the non-smoking group the mean morning PEF increased from baseline by 27 l/min following fluticasone and by 14 l/min following placebo . In the smoking group the mean morning PEF decreased by 5 l/min following fluticasone and by 0 l/min following placebo . There was a significantly greater change in morning PEF in non-smokers than in smokers following inhaled fluticasone . Evening PEF was not significantly affected by inhaled fluticasone in either group, although there was a trend towards a greater change in the non-smoking group than in the smoking group .
Figure 2
Mean peak expiratory flow in non-smoking and smoking asthmatic patients following treatment with inhaled placebo or fluticasone propionate 1000 g per day. *p=0.016, greater than non-smokers after placebo **p=0.001, greater than smokers after fluticasone.
Spirometry
Sputum eosinophils
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Keep Your Home Smoke Free
Tobacco smoke can stay in the room for up to two and a half hours. It sticks to clothes and soft furnishings. Every time you smoke another cigarette you top up the pollutants already in the room.
Smoking in only one room, or opening doors and windows wont help enough to make a difference.
If you need to ask people to smoke outside, make sure theyre well away from the door, so smoke doesn’t get blown back indoors.
Even if people do go outside to smoke, they’ll bring smoke particles back in on their clothes. So ideally, youd have no smoking anywhere in or around your home.
A Healthy Cup Of Heaven
Did you know that weed stems can be used to brew tea?
Throughout history, weed tea has been used as a means of treating all kinds of different ailments. For example, its great for battling bouts of depression and anxiety, stomach cramps, and relieving pain.
Making weed tea is an excellent way of using your leftover stalks because its super easy to do.
However, before giving this a shot, its necessary to decarboxylate the stems. But dont let this complicated term stand in your way.
is a process through which you turn the non-intoxicating THCA into the high-inducing THC. You can do this by merely baking the stems in your oven for about 45 minutes at 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
After that, all thats left to do is grind up the stems and put them in your favorite tea infuser and let it rest in hot water for 10-15 minutes. Voila! Simple as that.
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Cannabis Is Both An Expectorant And Anti
The ability of cannabis to act as an expectorant is somewhatcontroversial. It has been used as such for thousands of years, and appears in the ancient pharmacopoeia of China and India, but modern research has beensparse and has thus far yielded only ambiguous results.
Countless people throughout the world report anexpectorant effect after smoking or vaporizing cannabis. If it were noted only in smokers of cannabis, it couldeasily be dismissed as a result of the irritation caused by smoke particles. Thefact that an effect is experienced even when inhaling vapour suggests that anactive substance in cannabis is causing it.
However, most existing research actually points to thepropensity of cannabis to cause production of mucus. For example, a studypublished in 2014 observed increased mucus secretions in habitual cannabissmokers, along with damage to the tissues of the airways. Thus, further research into theexpectorant and decongestant effects of cannabis could be advantageous.
These were the top four benefits of cannabis for asthmatics as far as medical research is concerned. Next up are five dos and donts when it comes to using cannabis as asthma patient. We spoke to one asthma patient, Mark, about his experience using cannabis with his medical condition.
How Weed Can Help Asthma
Research suggests that in many cases, yes, weed can help asthma. Marijuana has powerful anti-inflammatory properties, and inflammation directly contributes to bronchospasm. In the 1920s, physicians were well-aware of weeds therapeutic effects and used to prescribe it as a cough treatment for asthma sufferers. Research has shown that people who smoke weed develop a higher lung capacity than those who do not. However, chronic heavy use of smoked marijuana may have the opposite effect.
The best way to treat asthma with weed
In most cases, vaporizing or vaping weed is the best delivery method to relieve an asthma attack. Smoking and vaping weed both go to work immediately, helping to relax and open the constricted airways. Because you are inhaling vapor instead of smoke, vaping is easier on the lungs. Some people do find effective asthma relief from smoking weed and feel that the benefits outweigh any irritation. However, if vaporizing is an option, its likely the better of the two. Edible marijuana does hold potential as a long-term asthma treatment. But if you are in the midst of an attack, edibles wont help much since they take much longer to kick in.
Whether you smoke or vape cannabis to alleviate your asthma, you may experience a dry throat and/or coughing. Keep water on hand to help manage these potential side effects. Opting for calming strains of weed may also help to soothe the panicked feeling that naturally accompanies being unable to breathe.
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