POT, TOBACCO SHARE HEALTH RISKS: STUDY

Smoking three marijuana joints is equivalent to smoking a pack of
cigarettes, and that means that pot smokers are at high risk of lung
disease, a new study indicates.

Researchers at Glasgow Royal Infirmary report in today's edition of
the medical journal Thorax that regular smokers of cannabis are at
risk of emphysema, a disease usually associated with heavy cigarette
smoking.

Dr. Martin Johnson, a lung specialist, said that the common perception
is that cannabis is harmless. While cigarettes and joints contain
similar levels of harmful substances, he said, pot smokers tend to
favour long drags, which greatly increase the harmful effects of smoking.