Consuming cannabis edibles could be more harmful than you think, UCSF study says

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Although often touted as a healthier alternative to smoking cannabis, new research suggests THC edibles could be equally harmful to cardiovascular health. Those are the findings of a new study from the University of California San Francisco that found a strong association between smoking cannabis, eating THC edibles and endothelial dysfunction — a coronary artery disease that increases the risk for cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure.

The UCSF study, which was published Wednesday in JAMA Cardiology, indicates that “chronic cannabis use — whether it’s smoked or consumed in edible form — is associated with significant cardiovascular risks.” People who regularly used marijuana — in either form — had reduced blood vessel function that was comparable to that of tobacco smokers, the study found.

“Vascular function in those who used cannabis by either means was reduced roughly by half compared to those who did not use it,” the study said.

This decreased vascular function, the report went on to say, “is associated with a greater risk of heart attack, hypertension, and other cardiovascular conditions.”

The study’s researchers recruited 55 people between October 2021 and August 2024 who were “outwardly healthy and either regularly smoked marijuana or consumed edibles.” None of the participants used any form of nicotine, but all consumed cannabis at least three times a week for a year.

Smokers who took part averaged 10 years of chronic use. Those who consumed edibles, averaged five years. The marijuana smokers who took part also had changes to their blood serum that were harmful to endothelial cells, which form the inner lining of blood and lymphatic vessels.

The study did not observe such changes in those who just ate edibles.

“These results suggest smoking marijuana negatively affects vascular function for different reasons than ingesting THC does,” according to the study’s first author, Leila Mohammadi, MD, PhD, and senior author Matthew L. Springer, PhD.