Consultant Physician at Victoria Hospital (VH) Dr. Martin Didier has added his voice to recent pronouncements by VH Medical Director Dr. Lisa Charles, admonishing the common practice of mixing marijuana and tobacco.

The Practice is cited as a cause of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

COPD is a lung disease which makes it difficult for one to breathe. It includes two main illnesses, chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Most people who develop COPD have both of these conditions.

Dr. Didier has observed a steady trend of young men and women who have developed severe cases of COPD.

"The patients reasons [for smoking] are many and can range from cost to taste, but the end result is that it's a toxin, it's a poison," Dr. Didier said. "Tobacco contains over 4,000 toxic substances which destroys your lungs. Marijuana for all we know is less toxic, it probably contains up to 400 toxic substances, but the combination of the two changes the whole thing into a poison which destroys the structure and function of the lungs."

Many of the current COPD patients at VH began smoking in their early teens.

By late twenties or early thirties their lungs are destroyed and they become what Dr. Dider described as "respiratory cripples."

“They are so described because they cannot breathe without coming to hospital, without medication, without oxygen. They cannot even go to the bathroom, they cannot even sleep. They spend the whole night just trying to get their breath. I want to send a message to smokers. If you want to smoke marijuana that's a choice you have to make. Marijuana [on its own] can cause lung disease and there is going to be many if's or buts about whether it does or not. But do not wrap or smoke the marijuana with tobacco because what you do is that you convert the whole thing into a lung poison which will destroy your lungs."

Dr. Didier also lamented the burden the epidemic is putting on the resources of the Hospital. 

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