Researchers at Arizona State University and the University of Pittsburgh have released online ahead of print the results of a new study which shows a positive link between cannabis use and a lower body mass index (BMI), smaller waist to hip ratio (WHR), and healthier cholesterol levels.
The goal of the research was to determine the associations between cannabis use and the cardiometabolic risk factors which are the core of the formation of cardiovascular disease and its progression.
The study looked at men from the youngest group from the Pittsburgh Youth Study who were observed prospectively from age seven to thirty-two. Cannabis use was measured annually between ages twelve and twenty and then again at ages twenty-six, twenty-nine, and thirty-two.
BMI, WHR, and high-density and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL/LDL) levels were measured along with other factors during a lab visit at age thirty-two.
Researchers discovered that greater cannabis exposure was linked to a relatively lower BMI (β=-0.31, p<.001 ), smaller WHR (β=-0.23, p=.002), and better HDL (β=0.14, p=.036) and LDL (β=-0.15, p=.026).
“With exception of BMI, cannabis users’ mean levels on cardiometabolic risk factors were generally below clinical cutoffs for high risks,” states the report. “Most associations between cannabis use and cardiometabolic risk factors remained after adjusting for tobacco use, childhood SES, and childhood health.”
The authors write that after they adjusted for adult BMI, the associations were no longer apparent and that mediation tests indicated that cannabis users’ relatively lower BMI could be the explanation for their decreased levels of risk with other cardiometabolic risk factors.
