Can Smoking Cannabis Harm Your Lungs? Pulmonologists Weigh In

In the United States, cigarette smoking is the main cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), an incurable lung condition that can make it hard to breathe.

While cannabis is much more popular in recent years, researchers are still learning if smoking cannabis damages the lungs the same way tobacco does.

“While marijuana smoke also contains harmful chemicals, including some that are carcinogenic, the overall risk of developing COPD from smoking marijuana is not as high as from smoking tobacco,” Jonathan Parsons, MD, a pulmonologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, told Verywell in an email.

“However, any form of smoke inhalation can damage the lungs,” Parsons added.

Cannabis and Tobacco Can Both Lead to Lung Damage

Unlike tobacco cigarettes, cannabis smokers often inhale more deeply and hold the smoke in for longer, exposing their lungs to more of the harmful chemicals.

Many people also smoke both tobacco and cannabis, which can put them at a greater risk of lung damage. A 2023 study suggested that people who smoke both have more damage to the small airways in their lungs than those who only smoke tobacco.

“This suggests that there is lung damage from smoking both compounds together that exceeds that of smoking tobacco alone, but that we are not sure how that affects the lung function over time just yet,” Russell G. Buhr, MD, PhD, co-author of the study and a pulmonary and critical care physician at UCLA Health, told Verywell in an email.

However, people who smoked both tobacco and cannabis did not have an increased risk of developing COPD compared to those who just smoked tobacco, according to the study.

“We did find that there was a similar prevalence of symptoms like cough and shortness of breath among those who smoked tobacco alone or smoked both compounds,” Buhr said.

Can the Lungs Recover From Smoking Cannabis?

The most common advice to slow the progression of COPD is to stop smoking.

It’s unclear if the same guidance applies to cannabis, but many experts do advise COPD patients to avoid any form of vaping or smoking.

“I would certainly recommend that if they are vaping, or smoking, or inhaling marijuana by any means, that if they do have an early diagnosis of COPD, they should stop,” E. Neil Schachter, MD, a pulmonologist and professor of medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, told Verywell. 

It’s best to find ways that do not involve smoking or vaping if you choose to use cannabis, according to Parsons.

Limitations to Studying Cannabis

Due to federal and state regulations, it is often difficult to conduct studies on cannabis. While experts suspect that smoking cannabis could contribute to COPD, more research is needed.

“We know from experience with other products that inhaling any residue or any product that derives from the burning, or the vaporization of organic material, can be and is usually deleterious to health over the long run,” Schachter said.

The connection between cigarette smoking and COPD also wasn’t proven overnight, he added.

“In terms of smoking in any form, I have great suspicions and fears that as [cannabis] becomes more popular and as more people use it in greater quantity, we will be seeing findings similar to those of cigarette smoking, namely the development of COPD,” Schachter said.