The novel coronavirus causes a life-threatening disease called COVID-19. The viral infection can be mild for some, but for others it can be fatal. Symptoms range from fever, dry cough to viral pneumonia and organ failure.
There was a post earlier in March that cannabis could kill the virus. Bad news – it cannot. In fact, smoking cannabis can damage your lungs and make the ailment more complicated for you. Doctors warn that smoking pot can also mimic the symptoms of the novel coronavirus infection. This can make diagnosis difficult, delay treatment or do worse too.
Smoking Cannabis Causes Inflammation Of The Lungs
Doctors say that smoking weed causes inflammation in the lungs. This can lower your body’s defenses against the virus. It can weaken your lungs and COVID-19 is essentially a respiratory ailment. The damage that smoking pot causes to the lungs is akin to bronchitis or the harm that smoking nicotine causes.
Regular marijuana smoking can cause chronic lung diseases which make getting infected by SARS-CoV-2 more complicated for you. A person who already has a respiratory disease is likely to have harsher symptoms of this new viral health concern.
Even if you occasionally smoke pot, perhaps this is a time when you need to pause if not altogether stop. Lung inflammation only worsens your chances of easy recovery and even of survival.
Pot Smoking Has Negative Side Effects That Are Similar To COVID-19 Symptoms
Another reason, why smoking pot during this pandemic is a bad idea is that COVID-19’s symptoms and weed smoking’s negative side effects match. A prominent symptom of the virus is dry cough which you’re likely to have if you are a pot smoker.
This makes it difficult for a doctor to test you and diagnose if you have COVID-19 or your dry cough is only because you smoke pot.
Why This Is A Huge Problem
America has been hit pretty bad by the novel coronavirus. Millions of people have been infected and more than 25,000 deaths have taken place. The virus is also not showing any signs of slowing down. Top it up with this – there’s no vaccine and it will be a long time before one is first approved, then produced and finally distributed widely for use.
Unfortunately, there are several pot smokers in the country. The use of drugs is very common in the US, particularly, weed.
Wrapping Up
Doctors are warning that cannabis use and COVID-19 don’t mix well together. If a person smokes cannabis, it can damage his lungs. Pot smoking causes lung inflammation. It can worsen COVID-19 for the person if he catches it.
As the lungs are already damaged and COVID-19 is a respiratory disease, a smoker’s body will suffer more and wouldn’t be able to defend itself. Furthermore, one symptom of this virus is also a negative side effect of weed smoking – dry cough. This can make diagnosis tough. Therefore, smoking weed in these times can complicate the situation for you.
