Freizeitmedikamente können das Schlaganfallrisiko mehr als verdoppeln, so eine Studie. Medizinische Daten von 100 Millionen Menschen zeigen, dass das Risiko für Amphetaminkonsumenten um 122 %, für Kokain um 96 % und für Cannabis um 37 % höher ist.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/mar/08/recreational-drugs-can-more-than-double-the-risk-of-stroke-study-suggests
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Recreational drugs can more than double risk of stroke, study suggests
Medical data from 100m people shows risk 122% higher for amphetamine users, 96% higher for cocaine and 37% higher for cannabis
Recreational drugs can more than double the risk of stroke, with some of the most concerning impacts seen among younger people, a major review suggests.
Scientists analysed medical data from more than 100 million people and found that the risk of stroke was 122% higher for amphetamine users and 96% higher for cocaine users compared with those who did not take the drugs.
Cannabis users were also at greater risk, suffering 37% more strokes than non-users, the review found, though researchers saw no evidence that opioids, a highly addictive painkiller, added to a person’s risk of stroke.
The rise in strokes observed in connection with some drugs was not confined to older people. When researchers focused on under-55s, they saw a near tripling in stroke risk among amphetamine users. The additional risk linked to cannabis was a more modest 14% in the age group, while the risk from cocaine was much the same at 97%.
To delve deeper, the researchers ran more analyses to see if drugs were the probable cause of higher stroke risk. They looked at whether people who were genetically predisposed to having a drug disorder were more likely to suffer a stroke and found they were. The finding bolstered the suspicion that drugs were to blame, rather than drug users being at greater risk for other reasons. Details are published in the International Journal of Stroke.
The drugs appear to raise stroke risk in multiple ways. Amphetamines and cocaine can send blood pressure soaring, but also constrict blood vessels in the brain, potentially explaining why users are at greater risk of both bleeds and blockages in the brain. Cocaine also seems to accelerate atherosclerosis, where cholesterol, fat and other substances build up in arteries, causing them to harden and narrow. Cannabis constricts blood vessels too, and may exacerbate the problem by encouraging the formation of blood clots.
For those interested, here’s the link to the peer reviewed journal article:
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17474930261418926
Why is the strake risk not higher for adderall users? Volume? Is it the amphetamine or the dosage?
Wow- when I became high risk for stroke they took away my estrogen birth control, sudaphed, told me I couldn’t take adhd medicine, certain cough syrups.
The doctor didn’t think to mention cocaine…
„recreational drugs“ is quite broad as a category, especially given that the study focused on like 3 stimulants (coke, amphetamines as a category, nicotine), opioid as a category (no correlation found), weed and alcohol (higher risk associated).
No doubt, but there aren’t „recreational drugs,“ just drugs, and any distinction is a political one. Two of those are also currently pharmaceutical drugs
Meanwhile other parts of Reddit insist that coke usage is perfectly safe
Would be interesting to see the age distribution of this data.
When researchers focused on under-55s, they saw a near tripling in stroke risk among amphetamine users.
I’m guessing that under 55’s already have a lower risk of stroke so a tripling of risk might be lower numbers than ,say over 65s.
So, it definitely seems like a variable that was missing was lifestyle.
The article says they found people more genetically prone to drug disorders were at higher risk, but wouldn’t that just mean these people are likely to be one of the least healthy anyway for this study? If someone is predisposed to developing a drug disorder, do they have other addictions that would be a relevant risk factor, like binge eating disorders?
I would be interested to see how the stroke risk increases for cannabis users that have healthy lifestyles. I doubt that cannabis is doing more damage to the human body than something like alcohol or bad diet leading to hypertension.
Are hallucinogens like LSD and shrooms not recreational drugs? They don’t seem to be covered here..
How much of that 37% related to cannabis risk was purchased by Big Alcohol?
Recreational alcohol use increases stroke risk 29%-57% too.
Does ANYONE believe ANYTHING that governments or corporations tell us now?
Title seems overreaching…really all recreational drugs? Even if it’s further broken down in the paper that title is bad
Did the study make a distinction between those that consume alcohol and those that did not?
Feels like there’s more and more research coming out recently that cannabis is actually worse for you than expected. I guess now that it’s legal in many places these sort of studies are easier to do, but I don’t know if it will actually change anything as far as it being legal goes.
Is there somewhere in the paper that they showed which confounds they controlled for in the multivariate analysis? I’m looking on my phone but wasn’t able to find how they controlled for other health conditions present. This might be relevant in the case of cannabis use due to its somewhat common medicinal use.
I can tell you right now that your risk of a stroke is very high if you are tripping balls on acid and the devil starts chasing you with a chain saw. Or it will gradually get lower if you do it every week and run like 40-50 km.