California was the first state to legalize medical marijuana. Other states followed, legalizing both medical and recreational marijuana. Advocates say that legalizing weed would eliminate criminals selling pot. The state's coffers would be filled with unlimited revenue from sales of the once-illegal drug. 

Unfortunately, legalizing marijuana in California didn't eliminate the pot trade. Hollywood shows like HBO's Entourage glamorized movie and TV stars smoking marijuana in public places. However, a new study reveals that smoking marijuana could cost you your life.

A new study by Massachusetts General Hospital reported by NBC News says that smoking weed just once a month could have serious health consequences. 

Smoking Weed Can Hurt Your Health

As reported by the American Heart Association, the study said folks who smoked marijuana have a twenty-five percent higher chance of having a heart attack. The risk of stroke was higher at forty-two percent. The study was conducted between 2016 and 2020 by the Centers for Disease Control. The ages of the subjects ranged from eighteen to seventy-four.

What happens if you're not a heavy pot smoker?

Perhaps you only smoke the weed once a week? Just smoking marijuana once a week increases the user's chance of a heart attack by three percent and five percent for having a stroke.

Is pot the new big tobacco? One of the researchers told NBC News that he believes there is a troubling correlation between cigarette use last century and pot smoking this century.

Robert Page, a clinical pharmacist who specializes in heart disease at the The University of Colorado Skaggs School of Pharmacy said:

"I think we're beginning to see the same things we saw with smoking 

cigarettes back in the 50s and 60s — that this is a signal," said Page. 

"I feel like we're repeating history."

Despite the health risks, big-money states like Florida and Pennsylvania are considering a move to legalize recreational marijuana. Federal law prohibits the sale of the weed which has limited the drug's proponents from using banks that are regulated by the federal government.

There's an enormous amount of money generated from 'legal' pot sales. Congress has attempted to allow banks to take in the money but has failed to make it out of committee. The House has passed a bill to legalize or decriminalize marijuana, but those bills failed in the Senate.

How Lucrative?

The Wall Street Journal reports that a California pot proprietor had to hire a security team to transport over $400,000 across the state.

There's an enormous amount of money generated from 'legal' pot sales. Congress has attempted to allow banks to take in the money but has failed to make it out of committee. The House has passed a bill to legalize or decriminalize marijuana, but those bills failed in the Senate.

Joe Biden Looks To Marijuana For Reelection Help

President Joe Biden told folks that he would decriminalize marijuana when he was running for the White House. He mentioned pot during his most recent State of the Union speech. NPR reports that the administration will renew efforts due to decriminalizing polling well with younger voters.