This is a Reader Rant in regard to the Texas Legislature’s recent ban on any type of cannibus product.
Here’s a clear, fact-based comparison of deaths related to alcohol, tobacco (cigarettes), and marijuana (cannabis and THC products) based on the most reliable available public health data in the U.S.
📊
Annual Deaths in the U.S. from Substance Use
🚬
Tobacco (Cigarettes)
- Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S.
- Causes over 480,000 deaths per year, including from secondhand smoke.
- Strong link to lung cancer, heart disease, COPD, and more.
- Regulated but legal and widely sold.
🍺
Alcohol
- Causes about 140,000 deaths per year, according to the CDC.
- Includes:
- Chronic conditions (e.g. liver disease)
- Accidental injuries (car crashes, falls)
- Violence and suicides
- Legal, despite its major impact on public safety and health.
🌿
Marijuana / THC Products
- As of now, no recorded deaths from a marijuana overdose.
- Impossible to fatally overdose on cannabis in the way one can with opioids or alcohol.
- Risks do exist — such as:
- Impaired driving
- Mental health issues in some individuals (especially teens)
- Contaminated or unregulated products
- But in terms of direct lethality, marijuana ranks among the least deadly substances used recreationally.
🧠 The Bottom Line
- Cigarettes and alcohol kill hundreds of thousands every year — and they’re legal.
- Marijuana has never caused a confirmed fatal overdose — yet it remains heavily criminalized in many states, including Texas.
- The science and the data show a clear contradiction in public policy.
SPEAK UP!
