Immune System

The recent attention on the use of marijuana by AIDS patients to stimulate appetite, has brought a new urgency to the importance of understanding how marijuana affects the immune system. Last year, the National Institute of Health held a conference to review existing research on the health effects of marijuana. Findings from this conference and recommendations for further research indicate a need for concern.

Source Documentation:

Marijuana effects and side effects, 2001, Report by CNS Productions Inc.

"Marijuana smoke also depresses the body's immune defenses against infection and probably increases the frequency of acute infectious respiratory illness." Dr. Donald Tashkin, UCLA Medical Center." (Marijuana Effects & Side Effects, CNS Productions, 2001)

"The long term effects of using marijuana include impaired lung functioning, sexual problems, breast tissue development in men, and possible immune system damage." (Types of drugs and health risks, SAEPC)