With the federal government’s decision to legalize cannabis, it won’t only be smoke from fireworks that we see on Canada Day. July 1, Canada’s birthday, will now be shared with those who celebrate their ability to legally light a joint.

There has been much debate about whether to legalize cannabis or not, but that ship has sailed. While each province may have a different approach to the age limit, the sales regime or enforcement, the reality will certainly be that millions more Canadians will have legal access to cannabis. And, with it, the serious lung health effects that come with smoking any substance.

So now the important public policy question that governments must tackle is how do we avoid losing ground on all the work we have put into tobacco control – and the lasting impact of that progress – by making cannabis readily available.

As our younger generation will now be exposed to the health risks associated with smoking this soon-to-be-legal psychoactive drug, our governments need to be prepared to properly educate them and make them aware of all the risks they can potentially face. Young adults must be able to make an informed decision, as many already believe smoking pot is a low-risk activity. It is now, more than ever, the responsibility of the government to ensure they have that information in hand.

Having worked for a decade at The Lung Association, I have seen first-hand what it’s like for people to live with and suffer from lung disease. Witnessing people struggle to breathe on a daily basis shouldn’t have to be a reality, but now we have to watch more people being exposed to a substance that can potentially make them a client of one of our support programs in the future.

We work tirelessly to implement programs, services and fund research to help those living with lung disease, and a large portion of those lung diseases are a result of smoking tobacco. With cannabis, the government is giving us another enemy to fight.

Cannabis smoking has been linked to a greater incidence of aggravation of asthma, chest tightness and shortness of breath. It can increase your risk of lung cancer, as it contains more than 450 chemicals, including many carcinogens.

Regular smoking of cannabis by itself causes injury to the large airways that can cause an increased likelihood of symptoms like chronic bronchitis. We still don’t know the link between heavy cannabis smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, but if you have COPD, or know anyone who does, why would you even want to take that chance? Does all of this sound familiar? It should, because most of these negative health impacts arise from smoking tobacco.

Although further research is needed to really observe and understand the effects of cannabis use on vital organs over the long-term (and we’re obviously not just talking about lungs), the emerging evidence is quite compelling.

It is ironic that we have sued tobacco manufacturers to recover the healthcare dollars spent on tobacco-related illness and disease, yet, we are about to unleash a new cause of more illness, more disease, and the need for more public healthcare dollars. We have invested and had great success in lowering smoking rates and protecting the health of Canadians when it comes to tobacco.

We have worked hard to ensure our youth and young adults don’t start smoking, and provide endless cessation tools for those looking to quit. But, against the backdrop of all this success, we know that more than half of Canadians 18-24 say they will try smoking cannabis after it becomes legal.

So, will this be déjà vu all over again? It doesn’t have to be. If the government of Ontario has truly learned from the tobacco experience, it will not waste another day before investing in public education campaigns that will inform young people about all the impacts associated with smoking cannabis, including the real impacts on lung health.

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Our government will find innovative ways to get the message out, and they won’t wait until the new product has already hit the shelves. And, our government will show leadership by never letting the pull of profit eclipse the health and well-being of young Canadians.

George Habib is President and CEO of the The Lung Association – Ontario.