2023-04-16 20:15:00
Secondary and tertiary smoke released by cannabis consumption can lead to involuntary exposure to THC, warn Toronto researchers, especially for children who come into contact with contaminated surfaces.
THC is the psychoactive substance of cannabis, the one that causes, among other things, the euphoric effect sought by some users. The researchers know for the moment almost nothing of the impact that an exposure might have for the children.
«At the moment, in the scientific literature, there is very, very little data on the effects of smoke or secondary or tertiary fumes from cannabis in children.summed up Dr. Nicholas Chadi, who is a pediatrician and clinician-researcher specializing in adolescent medicine and drug addiction at the CHU Sainte-Justine.
At most, he continues, a few small studies have found an association between home cannabis use and the number of emergency room visits for respiratory problems or infections in children.
The Toronto researchers ran computer simulations to study how THC behaves and transforms when released in an enclosed space. Their simulations, the results of which are published by the scientific journal Environmental Science: Atmospheres, reproduced the impact of a single combustion source, one hour a day, for a year.
They found that floor coverings and carpets become “rimportant reservoirsof THC. Toddlers crawling on the floor therefore come into contact with the substance, especially if they then put their hands or objects in their mouths (which all children inevitably do).
THC residues also settle on various surfaces, whether counters, furniture or objects.
«With regard to tertiary exposure, the big question mark is that we do not yet have studies that have demonstrated what is the quantity, or what is the intensity of the exposure, which is sufficient or necessary to have health impactssaid Dr. Chadi, who is part of a team recently funded by the Fonds de recherche en santé du Québec to study the effects of cannabis on users’ physical health, but also on their children.
THC, the Toronto researchers explained, has a “large and complex chemical structure, which has a strong tendency to adhere to surfaces and lead to tertiary exposure».
The next step would now be to measure how well children absorb the second-hand or third-hand cannabis smoke they are exposed to, for example through blood or urine tests, Dr Chadi said.
In the meantime, it will be very difficult to determine what constitutes significant exposure to THC and to establish a causal link between secondary and tertiary exposures and any short-, medium- or long-term health problems, he said. He specifies.
«There are several reasons to suspect that secondary or tertiary exposure to cannabis is going to be associated with health problems in children, he said. In the absence of firm data, I consider that caution is in order..»
Especially, adds Dr. Chadi, that cannabis products available on the market today can contain up to 25% THC, compared to around 5% twenty or thirty years ago. The smoke is therefore more concentrated in psychoactive substances which might, for example, have an effect on the brain.
Cannabis is also very popular with young adults who are likely to be young parents as well.
The most effective strategy for protecting house dwellers from unintentional exposure to THC is to simply remove the source of that exposure, the Toronto researchers said. If that’s not possible, using an air purifier that captures particulate matter is just as effective in reducing exposure, more so than cleaning surfaces, they pointed out.
The educational work that surrounded the dangers of second-hand and third-hand smoke from cigarettes must now be repeated with cannabis, believes Dr. Chadi.
Canadians purchased $4 billion worth of legal cannabis products between April 2021 and March 2022, according to Statistics Canada. Dried cannabis accounted for 71.1% of these sales, suggesting that cannabis intended for smoking is the most popular form of the product.
The Toronto researchers are finalizing a second study in which they asked cannabis users to do it in the laboratory, so that they might study the air quality in real time. These results have not yet been published.
Jean-Benoit Legault, The Canadian Press
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