Health concerns
Dr. Thomas Piggott is the medical officer of health for Labrador-grenfell Health and is based in Happy Valley-goose Bay.
He would not jump to the conclusion that higher per capita online spending in communities in the northern half of the province means people in these communities are consuming more cannabis than people in other parts of Newfoundland and Labrador.
He would suggest less access to retail cannabis probably factors into this increased reliance in online ordering.
From a health perspective, he says there are some benefits to purchasing cannabis from a legal source, particularly when it comes to assuring the product is safer.
There are extra health risks when using illegal cannabis.
“Those include potential cross-contamination of cannabis with other drugs, as well as chemicals or biological contamination,” Piggott said.
That said, there are substantial concerns about its use within the population.
For youth, Piggott said there are potential mental-health implications to using cannabis. Smoking it can lead to serious health problems, and its ability to impair judgment can result in accidents and injuries.
“The recommendation is still to avoid using cannabis, particularly for youth, pregnant women or people with other health impacts,” he said.
“But if people are choosing to use — and people are free to make these kinds of individual health choices — then there’s a number of ways the harms can be reduced.”
The Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health has produced a guide on ways to reduce health risk when using cannabis that outlines a number of specific recommendations:
• Starting use later in life lowers the risk of cannabis-related health problems.
• Consider using strains with lower tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content (responsible for the psychoactive quality in cannabis).
• Avoid synthetic cannabis products, which have been linked to seizures, irregular heartbeat, hallucinations and, in rare cases, death.
• Consider an alternative to smoking cannabis that’s not harmful to the lungs, such as using oils or edible versions of the drug. (Piggott noted people can be at risk of overconsuming edibles, which can lead to a longer-lasting period of inebriation.)
• When smoking it, avoid inhaling deeply or holding your breath. Doing so increases the amount of toxins absorbed.
• Limit its use (for example, once a week or only on weekends).
• Avoid cannabis use before driving or operating machinery.
• Some people should not use it at all (people with a personal or family history of psychosis or substance use problems, and pregnant women).