Marijuana use (cannabis)

[saulger]

Not touting for illicit use, but research shows that marijuana smokers were less likely to have AFib.

3,950,392 patients were admitted with a diagnosis of HF (Heart Failure) in the United States in 2014. Among these, there were 17,755 (0.45%) cannabis users. In the matched cohort, cannabis users were less likely to have AF (19.08% vs 21.39%; AOR 0.87 [0.77 to 0.98]). In conclusion, cannabis users have lower odds of AF when compared with nonusers, which was not explained by co-morbid conditions, age, insurance type, and socioeconomic status.

dicardiology.com/content/ma...

[kathie659]

I'll look it up again, but I thought I read medical marijuana should not be used of you have afib.(because I was hoping I could use it to relax)

[jwsonoma]

Sadly I think that is related to developing AF not treating it. I read a side effect of pot use is rapid HR. If anyone knows anything to the contrary please post it. I live in California and would love try some. Less pain, better sleep..what's not to like.

[Hardjuice in reply to jwsonoma]

CBD oil is great 👍

[saulger in reply to jwsonoma]

jwsonoma, you might be right. I was quoting from the article (please see link) and it seems to suggest that weed users 2% are less likely to develop AFib.

[Hidden]

Right, I'll admit to smoking the odd joint years ago (I'm friends with some famous musicians)

And it definitely makes your HR go through the roof. I would never even think about smoking it again, I know it would put me in to AF.

It did help with my ankylosing spondylitis pain though!

As for CBD oil, I couldn't find anything to contra indicate taking it with AF. My wife has tried it for her arthritis and did get some relief, I had a couple of doses and can't say it did much for me, maybe I felt slightly more relaxed and possibly less pain. But not enough to make me want to continue.

Oh, and it tastes like the tour bus ashtray 🤢

[saulger]

Again, I am not for or agin the weed, but came across this:

We do not have a lot of clinical data on marijuana and atrial fibrillation simply because it’s so new. What we know is purely anecdotal at this point.

Some afibbers say it works great. Others say it puts them into afib.

There has been some research saying that smoking marijuana might lead to the development of afib and it may affect the cardiovascular system, but this is general data without a whole lot of really hard studies indicating that.

If there is any benefit of marijuana for afib, the best form is probably CBD in edible form (but we really don’t know for sure).

An unpublished study followed 6 million heart failure patients. Those in the group that were non-dependent on marijuana were 18% less likely to develop afib. Dependent marijuana users were 31% less likely to experience afib.

livingwithatrialfibrillatio...

[HiloHairy in reply to saulger]

I live in California part-time as well.

At least for me sativa makes me excited, gives me anxiety and makes my heart beat faster. I may never use it again😩. Indica relaxes me and allows me to sleep. Not certain if it keeps the afib away but it doesn't seem to hurt.

Lately I've been experimenting with CBD for my insomnia.Thus far, it hasn't done much but I'm still plugging away.

[Flimmeri in reply to HiloHairy]

Hi HiloHairy! Just wondering how you are making out with your insomnia and cannabis? I suffer terrible insomnia and have been taking chocolate with cannabis that a friend is making. It seems to help, haven’t slept like this for ages. I don’t get any other feelings from it, which is fine. But I still have my Atrial Fibrilliation episodes. Just wondering if it makes AF worse or?

[HiloHairy in reply to Flimmeri]

I never got anything from the CBDs that I've tried but the THC e-cigarette that I buy from a dispensary that's marketed specifically for sleep does help me get back to sleep if I wake up after just a short sleep. I wouldn't risk taking it in the middle of the night as I think it might leave me with a hangover. I do feel its effects before I get back to sleep but rather slightly such that no stoner would be satisfied by the high. To get to sleep it takes just one pre-measured puff.

[Flimmeri in reply to HiloHairy]

Thank you for your reply. Very interesting. I am seeing my cardiologist next week, so plan to ask his opinion. Almost can guess what the answer is, not enough studies done.

[Jafib]

I too was under the impression that the use of THC or CBD was not encouraged for those with afib and/or on anticoagulants. It would seem that just about everything that I want to try for sleep and pain is contraindicated with taking anticoagulants and having afib! I don't really have the afib anymore now that I had an ablation but do not want to risk bringing it back either!

[djmnet]

I've used marijuana for years and have used it since my diagnosis 4 years ago. No issues as far as I can tell.

[saulger in reply to djmnet]

Good luck and keep up the good work.

[Yngerberg]

That's true, you're not allowed to use marijuana if you have AFib, but it can prevent this disease, so people should take it in order to not develop this condition. I'm not sure if it's actually true, to be honest, but I think it's better to be prepared, so I take these capsules cornbreadhemp.com/product/c... to support my health, and hopefully, it works. I can't use marijuana even for legal purposes in my state, so I hope CBD products are better than nothing.