Cannabis workers, like employees in lots of different industries, can be exposed to potentially harmful materials. A new study from Michigan State University found that those situations are causing cannabis workers to develop asthma, which can turn deadly.
For the study, MSU researchers pulled data from Michigan, California, Massachusetts and Washington and found 30 cases of work-related asthma and two deaths linked to asthma-related complications. Nearly half of the cases were people who did not have asthma prior to their work in cannabis.
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Cannabis workers doing the harvesting, processing and packaging were the ones most exposed. Kenneth Rosenman, an MSU medical researcher who co-authored the study, said cannabis dust and disinfectants were two of the biggest culprits.
In 2022, a worker at a cannabis processing facility in Massachusetts died after inhaling kief, a powdery substance containing cannabis trichomes.
According to an OSHA inspection report, the Trulieve employee was filling pre-rolls when she complained that she couldn’t breathe. Trulieve later settled with OSHA, although the fine was reduced and some of "serious" violations were removed from the complaint.
Rosenman warned employees and medical professionals to take work-related asthma complaints seriously. He said in the case of one of the asthma-related deaths, the employee's doctors didn't provide any medical restrictions.
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