Asthma More Common Among Youth Reporting Cannabis Use

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 7, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Asthma is more common among youth who use cannabis, according to a study published online Jan. 19 in Pediatric Pulmonology.

Kevin D. Silverman, M.P.H., from the City University of New York in New York City, and colleagues investigated the relationship between frequency of cannabis use and prevalence of asthma among U.S. youth. The analysis included participants in the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (grades nine to 12).

The researchers found that asthma was more common among youth who reported any cannabis use versus youth who reported no use (29.07 versus 23.62 percent; adjusted odds ratio, 1.25). Asthma prevalence was greater among youth who reported more frequent cannabis use. Among youth who reported having used cannabis ≥40 times in the month, asthma was highest (31.38 percent; adjusted odds ratio, 1.35).

"Asthma is more common among youth who use cannabis, relative to those who do not," the authors write. "More public health and clinical research is needed quickly to produce scientific data that can inform clinical guidelines and public health policy, as well as parents and youth, on the potential relationship between cannabis use and respiratory health among youth."

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