In-home cannabis smoking raises odds that children will test positive
Key takeaways:
- Each daily cannabis smoking event doubled the odds of children having biomarkers in their urine.
- Pediatricians should include cannabis in discussions about in-home smoking.
Children living in homes with adults who smoked cannabis were 5 times more likely to have cannabis biomarkers in their urine compared with children in households without reported cannabis use, according to a study in JAMA Network Open.
“Smoking is the most common method of cannabis use and is known to generate harmful emissions,” John Bellettiere, PhD, assistant professor of epidemiology at University of California San Diego Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Longevity Science, told Healio. “As young children spend most of their time at home, reducing in-home cannabis smoking could substantially reduce their exposure to these toxic and carcinogenic chemicals.”
The researchers performed a cross-sectional study of 275 households enrolled in Project Fresh Air, which aimed to decrease fine particulate matter inside of homes where children lived. All households in the study had at least one adult who smoked tobacco and at least one child aged younger than 14 years. Bellettiere said most of the households were low income and enrolled in the Women, Infants and Children Supplemental Nutrition Program. Data collection took place from October 2012 to February 2016.
Bellettiere and colleagues asked participants about in-home cannabis use and looked for cannabis biomarkers in children’s urine. They also placed air particle monitors in each home to detect nonspecific smoking events, which included tobacco or cannabis smoke, burning candles or incense, or cooking with oil.
Overall, 29 households (10.6%) reported in-home cannabis use in the prior week, and 169 (61.5%) did not report recent cannabis use. The researchers reported missing data about cannabis use for 77 households (28%).
Air particle monitoring detected a mean of 2.9 smoking events per day (standard deviation, 5; range, 0-33.6), according to the researchers.
Out of 275 children (52.4% boys; mean age, 3.6 years; standard deviation, 3.6 years), the researchers detected at least one cannabis biomarker in the urine of 75 children (27.3%). Children who lived in homes with reported cannabis use were 5 times more likely to have detectable biomarkers in their urine (OR = 5.02; 95% CI, 2.42-10.4). Each daily smoking event increased their odds of detectable cannabis exposure by 10% (OR = 1.10; 95% CI, 1.04-1.17), and each reported cannabis smoking event doubled children’s odds of having biomarkers in their urine (OR = 2.5; 95% CI, 1.59-3.92).
Urinary biomarker levels appeared higher in children who were exposed to more smoking events, but the difference was not statistically significant, according to the authors.
“The findings highlight the potential health risks to children from secondhand cannabis smoke exposure,” Bellettiere said. “Cannabis smoke contains harmful chemicals, including carcinogens and respiratory irritants, which could have long-term health complications.”
“Pediatricians should counsel parents on the risks of secondhand cannabis exposure and encourage smoke-free home environments for children.”
Perspective
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This study was very creative in using existing data from a study about other types of indoor air pollution to study children’s exposure to cannabis in the air. It measured exposure in the children’s urine and in the air directly, which has advantages over just asking people about whether their child was exposed because some people will not want to disclose cannabis use.
Although in our research we have not measured children’s exposure to cannabis in the air, this study aligns with our work in that it highlights that there are multiple ways young children can be exposed — for instance, during fetal development or postnatally through the air or ingesting cannabis-containing products like gummies.
Future research is needed to understand the long-term effects of cannabis smoke exposure among children, on the developing lungs, heart and brain, in particular.
Routinely, pediatricians ask about children’s exposure to smoking in the home and advise families that smoking cessation, or at least smoking outside, is important for children’s health. They should also consider clarifying that they are referring to both tobacco and cannabis smoking.
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