Cannabis can kill

New research published in Forensic Science International has revealed that cannabis can be deadly. Until now it was thought that cannabis was only fatal if mixed with other drugs or alcohol; however, a new study that involved carrying out full post-mortems on people who died after smoking cannabis has suggested that it can be fatal even when taken by itself.

As recently as 2011, the UK Department of Health reported that there were no known cases of a cannabis overdose killing a person; however, in February 2014 a coroner determined that a 31-year-old woman died following a marijuana overdose.

Benno Hartung of University Hospital Düsseldorf in Germany led the new research. Post-mortems were carried out on 15 people whose deaths were linked with cannabis. Extensive drug and alcohol tests were carried out to determine if any of the deceased had problems with substance abuse other than cannabis. They were also checked for liver disease.

Two of the 15 died of cardiac arrhythmia hours after taking cannabis. Neither had any history of heart problems or diseases that could affect the heart.

After performing every test possible, the researchers concluded that two of the cannabis users died of a cannabis overdose.

David Raynes of the UK National Drug Prevention Alliance made an important point, saying that “these deaths are rare and will remain rare. The real risks are from long-term effects on the young brain.”

Cannabis has been linked with mental health problems such as depression and schizophrenia, and has been shown to reduce IQ.