NEW DATA LINK CANNABIS USE AND HEART DISEASE

DEAR DOCTORS: Cannabis is legal where I live. I'm not a heavy user, but I do enjoy it now and then. I just heard about a study that ties using cannabis to heart disease. There's not a lot of information about how using cannabis affects your health, and I would like to know more about that study.

- DR EVE GLAZIER & DR ELIZABETH KO

DEAR READER: We should begin with the fact that, despite changes to regulations in a growing number of states, cannabis remains illegal at the federal level. Commonly known as marijuana, it is classified as a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act. Possession or distribution of cannabis is a federal offence. At the state level, a complex patchwork of laws allows cannabis use for medical or recreational use.

Limits vary on the types and amounts of cannabis products allowed, as well as the legal age for their use.