Heart surgeon shares terrifying reality of smoking weed if you've never had a cigarette in your life

Having personally gone through a heart attack quite recently, an experienced heart surgeon has issued an urgent warning against smoking weed.

Dr Jeremy London, a cardiovascular doctor from Georgia, US specialises in recognising heart attack symptoms and arranging emergency interventions.

But after ignoring the 'life threatening' signs like low energy, fatigue, and occasional heartburn-like symptoms, he suffered a heart attack three years ago.

Since then, the health professional, who boasts 25 years of experience in his field, shares heart-related advice on his social media pages.

In a YouTube video, Dr London spoke about cannabis and the misconception that because it is 'natural, it is safe'. He said it has led to countless patients underestimating the strain it can place on the heart and the lungs.

Cardiovascular surgeon Dr Jeremy London has issued a warning against smoking weed (Getty Stock Images)

"Well, let's all agree on one thing," he said. "The lungs have one simple function, and that's to bring air into and out of your lungs.

"Anything else is potentially harmful."

He stressed that 'natural' does not automatically mean 'harmless' and still carries a big risk.

"Here's the truth. Smoking marijuana regularly increases your risk of coronary disease and acute heart attack by one point three to two times those that don't smoke marijuana regularly," Dr London said.

"That's the same increased risk as high blood pressure or increased cholesterol."

Dr London says weed carries the same heart risks as other bad habits (Getty Stock Images)

Dr London said his view on marijuana changed after first-hand witnessing the physical consequences.

"Now, I have operated on multiple patients over the years that smoke marijuana regularly and I can tell you that their lungs are totally blackened," he added.

"It looks like they've worked in a coal mine and they've got such severe blockages that I have to do bypass surgery."

What surprises him the most is how consistently patients express the same disbelief.

"And these are folks that have never smoked a cigarette in their lives and they all say the same thing, 'I thought it was safe'," he said.

"What's important to me is that you know the inherent risk."

Heart and circulatory diseases cause a quarter of all deaths in the UK, according to the British Heart Foundation (BHF). That's the equivalent of 'more than 170,000 deaths each year'.

“Coronary heart disease (CHD), also known as ischaemic heart disease, is the most common type of heart disease,” the BHF explains.

“It is the most common cause of heart attack and was the single biggest killer of both and men and women worldwide.”