Marijuana may boost heart attack risk
By Nathan Seppa
Researchers have recorded several instances in which otherwise healthy people have suffered heart attacks shortly after smoking marijuana, the most commonly used illegal drug in the United States. Experiments have also linked marijuana use to elevated blood pressure and decreased oxygen supply to the heart muscle. A large study now suggests that marijuana indeed puts a person at increased risk of immediate heart attack.
Researchers interviewed 3,882 people a few days after they had survived a heart attack. The researchers found that 124 had smoked marijuana in the past year, 9 within 1 hour of the attack.