Has Esophagitis. Can Smoking Pot Be The Cause?

Posted on Mon, 26 Aug 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Mon, 26 Aug 2013 Answered on

Sun, 22 Sep 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : My son has esophagitis. Could it have been "caused" by pot smoking?

Answered by Dr. Shoaib Khan (41 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Yes smoking 'pot' can be the cause

Detailed Answer:
Hello and welcome.

Thank you for writing to us.

Yes, smoking 'pot' or rather the content which is marijuana, can indeed affect the gastric mucosa resulting in various conditions like ulcers, increased acid production, etc.

There has been a few well-documented case of marijuana smoking being the direct cause for esophagitis. Although not more than this has been documented, but if I were your son's doctor I would advice against adding to the list of risk factors.

Hope this helps. Please feel free to write back to me for any further clarifications, I would be more than happy to help.

Best wishes.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Mohammed Kappan