Even Cannabis Can Cause Strokes : Top Neurologist Warns

New Delhi : Joy Dev Mukherji, one of India’s leading neuroscientists, has issued a stern warning against the growing social acceptance of recreational and “party” drugs; He emphasized that even marijuana can trigger strokes, seizures and heart complications, and that this practice has led to an alarming increase in the number of young patients presenting with serious neurological emergencies.

Speaking in an ANI podcast, Dr. has over 28 years of clinical experience and served in the Armed Forces Healthcare before joining Max Healthcare in 2006. Mukherji said there was “absolutely no justification” for drug use. He described its increasing social acceptance as “extremely worrying”.

“We cannot justify using drugs in any way. Unfortunately, it has become so widespread that it is socially accepted that it is wrong and absolutely harmful to the core. All kinds of drugs cause all kinds of problems. It can cause strokes. Even marijuana can cause strokes. It can cause headaches, it can cause lung problems. It can cause heart problems. This is well known,” he said.

While Dr Mukherji categorically rejected the concept of ‘safe party drugs’, he claimed that such substances were portrayed as harmless by vested interests. “People perceive this because it is being propagated that it is good and harmless by the forces behind those pushing these drugs. All this is being propagated. I feel there is an ulterior motive behind this. It is clearly harmful,” Dr Mukherji said.

“There’s nothing like a party drug. These are all promoted as party drugs. It’s spiced up as a party drug. Like it’s going to improve your psychedelic mind or something like that. But I think that’s absolutely wrong; it’s absolutely dangerous,” he added.

According to 2019 data from the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, cannabis and opioids are among the most commonly used substances in India.

Approximately 2.8 percent of the population (3.1 million people) reported using some form of marijuana in the previous year. Cannabis consumption includes bhang, used by about 2 per cent or 2.2 crore people, and illicit forms such as ganja and charas, used by about 1.2 per cent or 1.3 crore people. The highest prevalence of marijuana use is seen in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Sikkim, Chhattisgarh and Delhi.

Meanwhile, opioid use is reported among 2.1 per cent of the population with 2.26 crore people, which includes opium, heroin and pharmaceutical opioids. Heroin is the most widely used opioid nationally at 1.14 percent, followed by pharmaceutical opioids at 0.96 percent and opium at 0.52 percent.

The highest opioid prevalence (over 10 per cent) was recorded in Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram. When asked if he had witnessed a rise in drug-related neurological cases among young people, the senior neurologist confirmed a visible trend.

“Yes, definitely. Maybe not too much. But once a week we see a young boy, 20-years-old, 30-years-old, who has a party-related stroke or a neurological problem related to a party drug. Seizures. Epileptic activity. When we do a urine screening, we find out he’s been taking this drug,” he said.

He also warned against excessive consumption of commercial energy drinks, stating that they do not provide any real benefit and are actually marketed products. Highlighting the gaps in India’s public health response to neurological disorders, Dr. Mukherji emphasized the need for urgent interventions at the policy level.

“We need more awareness about neurological conditions. Deep in the hinterlands, epilepsy is still treated by ‘jharphuk’, even though it can be easily cured. Stroke management is done by putting turmeric in villages. This needs to stop,” he said. He called for broader and more affordable health insurance coverage as well as better emergency healthcare systems.

“Because treatment is expensive, there needs to be cheaper, more meaningful health insurance for individuals. We don’t have an adequate medical evacuation system. These are the policy decisions we need to make; proper evacuation for critically ill patients, deeper penetration of health insurance, and awareness. These three things will make a lot of difference,” he said.

Dr. Mukherji reiterated that the increasing normalization of recreational drug use poses one of the most serious contemporary health threats to India’s youth, emphasizing that early intervention, awareness and strong policy support are critical to reversing this trend. (