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Cannabis as Medicine? Overview

It is utterly mind-blowing that people have no idea that Cannabis has been part of the medical prescription landscape for over 20 years. That’s right T. G. A (Therapeutic Goods Administration) trialled and approved cannabis based medicines have been available as an option to alleviate, if only in small ways, some of the symptoms of a couple of diseases or help with recovery from treatment. However, the claims of this plant being a ‘miracle cure’ for just about everything, have existed for of 100 years… yet in no credible and advanced research has any of the properties of the Cannabis plant ‘cured’ anything, ever!

There is no argument that some components of this incredibly complex plant can have some therapeutic benefit, be it ever so small, but deriving such from the plant with out co-opting some of the more detrimental components has proven incredibly difficult. On top of that, the evidence emerging from latest science, sees that some of these therapies, do more harm than good, with the temporary alleviating of a symptom on one hand, and incurring along term genetic harm on the other!

Again if facts and evidence matter to your best-practice health care, then this is the space for you. Make informed decisions based on science, and not quackery!

Canadian Government: Cannabis health warning messages

Details
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Part 1: Health warning messages for cannabis products that are dried cannabis or cannabis accessories that contain dried cannabis

  • WARNING: Cannabis smoke is harmful. Harmful chemicals found in tobacco smoke are also found in cannabis smoke.
  • WARNING: Do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding. Using cannabis during pregnancy may harm your baby and result in low birth weight.
  • WARNING: Do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding. Substances found in cannabis are also found in the breast milk of mothers who use cannabis.
  • WARNING: Do not drive or operate machinery after using cannabis. More than 4,000 Canadians were injured and 75 died from driving after using cannabis (in 2012).
  • WARNING: Do not drive or operate machinery after using cannabis. After cannabis use, coordination, reaction time and ability to judge distances are impaired.
  • WARNING: Cannabis can be addictive. Up to half of people who use cannabis on a daily basis have work, social or health problems from using cannabis.
  • WARNING: Cannabis can be addictive. 1 in 11 people who use cannabis will become addicted.
  • WARNING: Cannabis can be addictive. Up to 1 in 2 people who use cannabis daily will become addicted.
  • WARNING: Regular use of cannabis can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia. Higher THC content can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia.
  • WARNING: Regular use of cannabis can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia. Higher THC content can lower the age of onset of schizophrenia.
  • WARNING: Regular use of cannabis can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia. Young people are especially at risk.
  • WARNING: Adolescents are at greater risk of harms from cannabis. Early and regular use increases the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia.
  • WARNING: Adolescents are at greater risk of harms from cannabis. Using cannabis as a teenager can increase your risk of becoming addicted.
  • WARNING: Adolescents are at greater risk of harms from cannabis. 1 in 6 people who start using cannabis in adolescence will become addicted.

Part 2: Health warning messages for all other cannabis products

  • WARNING: Do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding. Using cannabis during pregnancy may harm your baby and result in low birth weight.
  • WARNING: Do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding. Substances found in cannabis are also found in the breast milk of mothers who use cannabis.
  • WARNING: Do not drive or operate machinery after using cannabis. More than 4,000 Canadians were injured and 75 died from driving after using cannabis (in 2012).
  • WARNING: Do not drive or operate machinery after using cannabis. After cannabis use, coordination, reaction time and ability to judge distances are impaired.
  • WARNING: Cannabis can be addictive. Up to half of people who use cannabis on a daily basis have work, social or health problems from using cannabis.
  • WARNING: Cannabis can be addictive. 1 in 11 people who use cannabis will become addicted.
  • WARNING: Cannabis can be addictive. Up to 1 in 2 people who use cannabis daily will become addicted.
  • WARNING: Regular use of cannabis can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia. Higher THC content can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia.
  • WARNING: Regular use of cannabis can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia. Higher THC content can lower the age of onset of schizophrenia.
  • WARNING: Regular use of cannabis can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia. Young people are especially at risk.
  • WARNING: Adolescents are at greater risk of harms from cannabis. Early and regular use increases the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia.
  • WARNING: Adolescents are at greater risk of harms from cannabis. Using cannabis as a teenager can increase your risk of becoming addicted.
  • WARNING: Adolescents are at greater risk of harms from cannabis. 1 in 6 people who start using cannabis in adolescence will become addicted.

Canadian Government 2019  (https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/drugs-medication/cannabis/laws-regulations/regulations-support-cannabis-act/health-warning-messages.html)

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  • Cannabis oil failed to improve pain or quality of life in palliative care cancer patients, study shows

    Wednesday, November 30, 2022 585
    Researchers say despite the lack of symptom relief, more trials are needed to focus on the targeted use of medicinal cannabis Melissa Davey 29/11 2022 The first high quality study looking at the impact of cannabidiol oil on palliative care patients with advanced cancer found it did not improve their pain, depression, anxiety, or quality of life. Palliative care is one of the conditions for which medicinal cannabis has been approved in Australia. The trial, led by the Mater hospital and the...
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  • Cannabis & Pain – Media Hype & the Placebo Reality?

    Wednesday, November 30, 2022 515
    (Why not exploit the placebo effect of Cannabis, placebo’s will not addict!) There are numerous examples of the relationship between treatment expectations and placebo responses . If a person thinks they will experience relief from their pain by using a certain product or treatment, this can change the way they end up perceiving incoming pain signals – making them think their pain is less severe. Recent evidence suggests that the placebo effect may work even if we’re presented with evidence...
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  • Maternal Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) Exposure Induces Abnormalities of the Developing Heart in Mice

    Wednesday, November 09, 2022 415
    Discussion : The results show that maternal THC exposure during gestation induces myocardial hyperplasia and semilunar valve thickening in the fetal heart and postnatal cardiac dysfunction. Our study suggests that maternal cannabis consumption may induce abnormalities in the developing heart and cardiac dysfunction in postnatal life. View PDF
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  • Heavy metal and phthalate contamination and labelling integrity in a large sample of commercially available cannabidiol (CBD) products

    Friday, September 02, 2022 505
    Key Findings: Heavy metal and phthalate contamination in CBD may counter-balance its proposed health benefits. Heavy metals (Pb, Cd, As, Hg), phthalates, and CBD label accuracy were quantified in CBD products. Only 42 % of products fell within ±10 % of the CBD claimed on the manufacturer label. Low-level heavy metal and phthalate contamination of edible CBD was pervasive. Tight regulations for CBD product label integrity are needed . View PDF
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  • Study of cannabis and other drugs as risk factors for female breast cancer USA 2003-2017

    Tuesday, August 23, 2022 694
    Breast cancer (BC) is the commonest human cancer and its incidence (BC incidence, BCI) is rising worldwide. Whilst both tobacco and alcohol have been linked to BCI genotoxic cannabinoids have not been investigated…Data show that exposure to cannabis and the cannabinoids Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol, (THC) CBD, CBG and alcoholism fulfil quantitative causal criteria for BCI across space and time. Findings are robust to adjustment for age and several known sociodemographic, socio-economic and hormonal...
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  • Effects of cannabis on congenital limb anomalies in 14 European nations: A geospatiotemporal and causal inferential study

    Thursday, August 11, 2022 453
    (Europe is not exempt from cannabis caused congenital cannabis defects) Data indicate that metrics of cannabis exposure are closely linked with CLAR and satisfy epidemiological criteria for causality. Along with Hawaii and the USA, Europe now forms the third international population in which this causal link has been demonstrated. Cannabis as a predictor of limb anomalies was more potent than tobacco or alcohol. Cannabinoid access should be restricted to protect public health and the community...
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  • Cannabis may affect anaerobic power, risk for cardiovascular disease in female athletes

    Wednesday, August 10, 2022 481
    Compared with non-users, female athletes who regularly use cannabis had reduced early anaerobic power production and may have an increased risk for cardiovascular disease, according to published results. Researchers from the School of Sport and Exercise Science at the University of Northern Colorado…overall, found non-users produced “significantly greater” anaerobic power output compared with cannabis users, as determined by stage-1 and stage-2 Wingate assessment scores. However, researchers...
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  • How Men's Cannabis Use Could Affect Their Kids' Health

    Thursday, August 04, 2022 612
    Research on pot and sperm quality, gene expression, and child development. July 28, 2022 KEY POINTS Paternal consumption of marijuana prior to conception has been found in rodent studies to alter offspring brain development. Children whose fathers consumed marijuana during their partner's pregnancy may be at higher risk of psychotic symptoms. Pot consumption can trigger epigenetic changes in gene expression, which fathers can pass along to their children. Not all human studies of pot's effects...
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  • Cannabis and Limblessness – Here we go again Thalidomide 2.0?

    Tuesday, August 02, 2022 734
    Cannabis and Limblessness – Here we go again Thalidomide 2.0? This disturbing evidence has significant ramifications for #publichealth for the entire community. Cannabis as a predictor of limb anomalies was more potent than tobacco or alcohol. Cannabinoid access should be restricted to protect public health and the community genome/epigenome transgenerationally. Download PDF
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  • Careful with CBD – Very Careful: Some CBD Creams, Patches Don't Match Labels: Study

    Wednesday, July 27, 2022 615
    By Damian McNamara, MA July 25, 2022 Cannabidiol (CBD) products made from hemp have gotten more popular in recent years. But how much can you trust what the label says, compared to what really is in CBD patches, creams, and lotions? A team of investigators decided to find out. They bought 105 hemp-derived CBD topicals – products designed to be applied to the skin – from physical stores and online sites. Of the 89 labels that list the amount of CBD, for example, 24% matched what was inside; 58%...
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  • Do gummy bears work for COPD? Short Answer NO!

    Thursday, June 30, 2022 1277
    People take cannabis in several ways to try to relieve the symptoms of COPD. ResearchTrusted Source indicates that smoking and vaping cannabis or CBD may cause respiratory symptoms such as: wheezing coughing shortness of breath Therefore, edible cannabis or CBD may be preferable. However, edibles take longerTrusted Source to produce effects than smoking cannabis, so there is a risk of people ingesting too much because they are not feeling anything. The existing research on CBD for COPD and...
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  • Association of Comorbid Behavioral and Medical Conditions With Cannabis Use Disorder in Pregnancy

    Tuesday, June 07, 2022 534
    This is the madness you get when the largely unregulated #marijuana marketing monster is permitted to promote non-clinically trialled products with unsubstantiated claims of care and cure! But that’s exactly what you get in a ‘vote for medicine’ framework. The short-term and intergenerational harms of this #madness is all but guaranteed. It is disturbing enough when the ‘grown ups’ want to self-destruct, but when their actions condemn children to often irreversible harms, it’s beyond...
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  • An Analysis of Over-the-Counter Cannabidiol Products in the United Kingdom

    Thursday, June 02, 2022 595
    Published Online: 19 Apr 2022 Abstract Introduction: Over-the-counter cannabidiol (CBD) products have seen unprecedented recent growth in the United Kingdom. However, analysis of these predominantly unregulated products from other countries tells us that they are often mislabeled or contain unlabeled and potentially dangerous chemicals. Thus, the aim of the present study was to analyze CBD oils available in the United Kingdom. Materials and Methods: Phytocannabinoids, residual solvent, and...
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  • Clearing the Smoke on Cannabis: Cannabis Use During Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

    Wednesday, June 01, 2022 913
    Cannabis is the second-most common psychoactive substance (after alcohol) used during pregnancy. Elements of cannabis can pass through the placenta and affect the fetus’s development. Frequent cannabis use during pregnancy is associated with low birth weight and is part of a cluster of risk factors related to other adverse birth outcomes. There are also effects on behaviour in children and young adults, including attention deficits, emotional disturbances, increased hyperactivity and...
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  • Cardiovascular Effects of Marijuana & Synthetic Cannabinoids

    Tuesday, May 24, 2022 548
    Key points Activation of cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1R) by endocannabinoids or synthetic ligands mediates acute haemodynamic effects and might contribute to pathology in cardiovascular disease; activation of cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2R) exerts anti-inflammatory effects The psychoactive constituent of marijuana, Δ9‑tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), exerts its cardiovascular effects via CB1R activation; at low doses it might have beneficial properties via partial activation of CB1R and CB2R, and...
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  • Sedation and Acute Encephalopathy in a Paediatric Patient Following Ingestion of Delta-8-Tetrahydrocannabinol Gummies

    Tuesday, May 17, 2022 568
    Children eating the grown-ups ‘medicinal marijuana’ Gummy Bears, being not only sedated but experiencing a disease that affects brain structure and/or function. Encephalopathy causes altered mental state and confusion – Welcome to THC – and its analogues – use! Sedation and Acute Encephalopathy in a Paediatric Patient Following Ingestion of Delta-8-Tetrahydrocannabinol Gummies Abstract BACKGROUND Delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-8 THC) is an isomer of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9...
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  • Potential Adverse Drug Events and Drug–Drug Interactions with Medical and Consumer Cannabidiol (CBD) Use

    Tuesday, April 26, 2022 721
    Abstract: Cannabidiol (CBD) is ubiquitous in state-based medical cannabis programs and consumer products for complementary health or recreational use. CBD has intrinsic pharmacologic effects and associated adverse drug events (ADEs) along with the potential for pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic drug–drug interactions (DDIs). Given CBD use among patients with complex conditions and treatment regimens, as well as its expanded consumer use, awareness of potential safety issues with CBD is...
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  • Potential Adverse Drug Events with Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) Due to Drug–Drug Interactions

    Tuesday, April 26, 2022 732
    Abstract: Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the primary psychoactive ingredient in cannabis… ‘medical’ marijuana programs have increased exposure among medically complex individuals with comorbid conditions and many co-prescribed medications. Thus, THC should be recognized as a pharmacologically complex compound with potential for drug–drug interactions and adverse drug events… THC also has broad interactions with drug-metabolizing enzymes and can enhance adverse effects of other medications....
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  • Cannabis Causing Cancer

    Monday, April 04, 2022 1046
    Cannabis Causing Cancer Part 1 - Epidemiological overview and survey of USA cannabis, cannabidiol and cannabinoid genotoxicity expressed in cancer incidence 2003–2017: Part 1: Complete Research here https://rdcu.be/cKfKp Conclusion: Data suggest that cannabinoids including THC and cannabidiol are important community carcinogens exceeding the effects of tobacco or alcohol. Testicular, (prostatic) and ovarian tumours indicate mutagenic corruption of the germline in both sexes; pediatric...
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  • Effect of Medical Marijuana Card Ownership on Pain, Insomnia, and Affective Disorder Symptoms in Adults: A Randomized Clinical Trial

    Wednesday, March 23, 2022 912
    Key Points Question: What are the risks and benefits of obtaining a medical marijuana card for adults who seek medical marijuana for pain, insomnia, and anxiety or depressive symptoms? Findings : In this randomized clinical trial involving 186 participants, immediate acquisition of a medical marijuana card increased the incidence and severity of cannabis use disorder (CUD) and resulted in no significant improvement in pain, anxiety, or depressive symptoms, but improved self-reported sleep...
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  • USA National Cannabis Medicine Review: Missouri Medicine 2020

    Thursday, February 03, 2022 1252
    Are CBD and THC Valid Medicines?
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  • Are CBD & THC Valid Medicines?

    Thursday, February 03, 2022 889
    Are CBD and THC Valid Medicines:Missouri Medicine USA National Review?
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  • Medical’ Cannabis & Driving – Is it an Issue? (DRR)

    Tuesday, December 14, 2021 1029
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  • Using Cannabis Whilst Pregnant Messes with the Baby’s Immune Gene Networks & Predisposes the Child to Anxiety.

    Tuesday, November 16, 2021 826
    (Maternal cannabis use is associated with suppression of immune gene networks in placenta and increased anxiety phenotypes in offspring) PNAS November 23,2021; https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2106115118 Significance: Cannabis use is becoming more prevalent, including during developmentally sensitive periods such as pregnancy. Here we find that maternal cannabis use is associated with increased cortisol, anxiety, aggression, and hyperactivity in young children. This corresponded with widespread...
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  • Weed for ‘Morning Sickness’ is a Bad Option of Many Levels!

    Monday, November 08, 2021 1086
    CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE : Considerable growth was observed in the prevalence of CUD diagnoses among individuals hospitalized prenatally and in the prevalence of depression, anxiety, nausea, and other conditions in individuals with CUD at hospitalization. This study highlights the need for more screening, prevention, and treatment, particularly in populations with co-occurring CUD and psychiatric disorders. Research on the determinants and outcomes associated with CUD during pregnancy is...
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  • ‘Another level’: Race on to get over-the-counter cannabis meds to pharmacies

    Tuesday, October 05, 2021 1033
    By Emma Koehn September 2021 ASX-listed cannabis companies are racing to get low-dose medicinal pot products onto shelves, with hopes they will be available through pharmacies by the end of next year. In February, the country’s medicines regulator - the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) - agreed to change the classification for certain products containing small amounts of cannabidiol (CBD), an active ingredient in the cannabis plant that does not get the user high but is used in...
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  • Planting the seed for marijuana use: Changes in exposure to medical marijuana advertising and subsequent adolescent marijuana use, cognitions, and consequences over seven years

    Wednesday, August 25, 2021 1147
    Results: Higher average exposure to MM advertising was associated with higher average use, intentions to use, positive expectancies, and negative consequences. Similarly, higher rates of change in MM advertising exposure were associated with higher rates of change in use, intentions, expectancies, and consequences over seven years. Conclusions: Results suggest that exposure to MM advertising may not only play a significant role in shaping attitudes about marijuana, but may also contribute to...
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  • Pain response to cannabidiol (CBD) in induced acute nociceptive pain, allodynia, and hyperalgesia by using a model mimicking acute pain in healthy adults in a randomized trial

    Wednesday, June 09, 2021 1332
    Abstract Preclinical studies have demonstrated the analgesic potential of cannabidiol (CBD). Those suggesting an effect on pain-processing receptors have brought CBD back into focus. This study assessed the effect of CBD on acute pain, hyperalgesia, and allodynia compared with placebo. Twenty healthy volunteers were included in this randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded, crossover study assessing pain intensities (using numeric rating scale), secondary hyperalgesia (von Frey...
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  • CBD Use in Children - Miracle Myth or Mystery

    Wednesday, June 09, 2021 1139
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  • Medicinal cannabis blacklisted by Australian pain specialists

    Monday, March 22, 2021 1622
    Doctors are being told not to use medicinal cannabis to treat patients with chronic pain, warning there is no solid evidence it is effective, as Australia’s medical regulator approves its 100,000th cannabinoid script. The recommendation from the country’s peak pain advisory body to doctors is: “Do not prescribe currently available cannabinoid products to treat chronic non-cancer pain unless part of a registered clinical trial.” The Faculty of Pain Medicine at the Australian and New Zealand...
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  • Psychoactive THC from marijuana can stay in breast milk for six WEEKS after new moms quit using it, raising concerns the drug may alter babies' brain development

    Friday, March 12, 2021 1263
    Researchers looked at 25 pregnant women who had a history of marijuana use when admitted to hospitals for delivery Within two weeks of giving birth, the women had levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) of 5.5 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL) on average in their breast milk This is higher than the blood THC level of five ng/mL or higher needed to charge drivers with a DUI, in some states By six weeks post-delivery, the THC levels in breast milk had dropped to about two ng/mL, low but still...
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  • A Review of Cases of Marijuana and Violence – Research March 2020)

    Tuesday, February 23, 2021 1126
    Abstract Marijuana is the most consumed illicit drug in the world, with over 192 million users. Due to the current legalization push of marijuana in the United States, there has been a lack of oversight regarding its public health policies, as marijuana advocates downplay the drug’s negative effects. This paper’s approach is from a public health perspective, focusing specifically on the cases of violence amongst some marijuana users. Here, we present 14 cases of violence with chronic marijuana...
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  • Cannabis is NOT a good ‘Medicine’, but let’s not let ‘facts’ get in the way of a good propaganda juggernaut!

    Friday, February 05, 2021 1380
    The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and University of Michigan report evidence of toxic chemicals in marijuana smokers and withdrawal symptoms in most people using cannabis, Australia’s University of Queensland showed that regular cannabis use has harmful effects and Canada’s University of Montreal confirmed that cannabidiol isn’t effective in reducing dependence on cocaine. For more
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  • Contemporary epidemiology of rising atrial septal defect trends across USA 1991–2016: a combined ecological geospatiotemporal and causal inferential study

    Friday, December 04, 2020 1062
    Abstract: Background: Cardiovascular anomalies are the largest group of congenital anomalies and the major cause of death in young children, with various data linking rising atrial septal defect incidence (ASDI) with prenatal cannabis exposure. Objectives / Hypotheses: Is cannabis associated with ASDI in USA? Is this relationship causal? Results: ASDI rose nationally three-fold from 27.4 to 82.8 / 10,000 births 1991–2014 during a period when tobacco and alcohol abuse were falling but cannabis...
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  • The perceived impact of legalized cannabis on nursing workload in adult and pediatric emergency department visits: A qualitative exploratory study

    Thursday, November 12, 2020 1057
    Abstract Objective: To investigate changes in emergency nursing workload related to cannabis ingestion or inhalation by adult and pediatric patients in states and bordering states where recreational cannabis is legal. Results: The legalization of recreational cannabis in some US states is reported as resulting in an increase in patients presenting with cyclic vomiting syndromes, and increased difficulty in managing both associated behaviors and repetitive ED presentations. New presentations...
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  • The Need for Evidence Regarding Cannabidiol

    Wednesday, November 04, 2020 1207
    Wilson M. Compton, MD, MPE1 ; Emily B. Einstein, PhD1 JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3(10):e2021067. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.21067 Consumer products containing cannabidiol (CBD) have markedly increased in popularity. 1 Although many of these products are marketed in ways that may suggest potential effects on a variety of bodily functions, the precise health conditions that consumers believe they are treating with CBD products is uncertain. Is a consumer seeking a general wellness benefit, or...
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  • Marijuana & Pregnancy

    Wednesday, October 21, 2020 1087
    Marijuana & Pregnancy (American College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists) “Medical marijuana is not safer than recreational marijuana.” View PDF
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  • Maternal cannabis use in pregnancy and child neurodevelopmental outcomes

    Tuesday, October 13, 2020 1664
    Nature Medicine volume 26 , pages1536–1540 (2020) Abstract: Cannabis use in pregnancy has increased 1 , 2 , and many women continue to use it throughout pregnancy 3 . With the legalization of recreational cannabis in many jurisdictions, there is concern about potentially adverse childhood outcomes related to prenatal exposure 4 . Using the provincial birth registry containing information on cannabis use during pregnancy, we perform a retrospective analysis of all live births in Ontario,...
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  • Cannabidiol and Abnormal Liver Chemistries in Healthy Adults: Results of a Phase 1 Clinical Trial

    Monday, October 12, 2020 1298
    Abstract Liver safety concerns were raised in randomized controlled trials of cannabidiol (CBD) in patients with Lennox‐Gastaut and Dravet syndromes but the relevance of these concerns to healthy adults consuming CBD is unclear. The objective of this manuscript is to report on liver safety findings from healthy adults who received therapeutic daily doses of CBD for ~3.5 weeks and to investigate any correlation between transaminase elevations and baseline characteristics, pharmacogenetic, and...
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  • Missouri Medicine: Medical Fraud, Mislabelling, Contamination: All Common in CBD Products – Glaucoma Made Worse by Marijuana

    Monday, October 05, 2020 1265
    Missouri Medicine: Medical Fraud, Mislabelling, Contamination: All Common in CBD Products – Glaucoma Made Worse by Marijuana – Other Critical Reviews of Unscientific Cannabis Claims Download PDF
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  • Prenatal cannabis exposure associated with adverse outcomes during middle childhood

    Thursday, September 24, 2020 1240
    The findings are reported as use of cannabis during pregnancy has 'skyrocketed' Date: September 23, 2020 Source: Washington University in St. Louis While cannabis use during pregnancy is on the rise, researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have found evidence that the resulting children are more likely to have psychopathology in middle childhood. "There have been increasingly permissive and lenient attitudes toward cannabis use among pregnant people," said Sarah Paul, a clinical...
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  • Cannabis Use & PTSD – The Science!

    Friday, September 04, 2020 1304
    Interactive effects of PTSD and substance use on suicidal ideation and behavior in military personnel: Increased risk from marijuana use Background: The current study examines the unique and interactive effects of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and days using alcohol, opioids, and marijuana on PTSD symptoms, suicidal ideation, and suicidal behavior up to 1 year, later in a high‐risk sample of military personnel not active in mental health treatment. Conclusions: Results suggest...
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  • Oral THC:CBD Cannabis Extract for Refractory Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting

    Friday, August 28, 2020 1271
    Annals of Oncology In this phase II double-blind crossover study, patients with refractory chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting following intravenous chemotherapy receiving standard antiemesis prophylaxis were randomized to receive an oral THC: cannabidiol (CBD) combination pill or placebo. Multiple cancer types were included, and breast cancer accounted for about a third of cases. Complete response (no vomiting or use of rescue medications) was seen in 24% of patients while on THC:CBD...
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  • Medical Marijuana, Recreational Cannabis, and Cardiovascular Health

    Tuesday, August 18, 2020 1409
    The current article from the American Heart Association critically reviews the use of medicinal and recreational marijuana from a clinical, policy, and public health standpoint. While medical marijuana may play a therapeutic role in certain disease…data to date do not support its use as a therapy for cardiovascular disease. In fact, cannabis has been associated with adverse cardiovascular events, including myocardial infarction (especially in younger patients), arrhythmias, strokes, heart...
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  • What You Should Know About Using Cannabis, Including CBD, When Pregnant or Breastfeeding

    Tuesday, August 11, 2020 1880
    FDA strongly advises against the use of cannabidiol (CBD), tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and marijuana in any form during pregnancy or while breastfeeding. What do we know about the effects of marijuana use during pregnancy and while breastfeeding? There are many potential negative health effects from using marijuana and other products containing THC during pregnancy and while breastfeeding. In fact, the U.S. Surgeon General recently advised consumers that marijuana use during pregnancy may...
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  • Cannabis in Medicine: State of the Evidence (Springer Press Release)

    Wednesday, August 05, 2020 1409
    New Springer book deals with the use of cannabis in medicine and provides an evidence-based approach as well as different perspectives on this controversial issue. View PDF
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  • Concerns About CBD?

    Thursday, March 19, 2020 1459
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  • Association of Depression, Anxiety, and Trauma With Cannabis Use During Pregnancy

    Monday, March 02, 2020 1489
    Depression, anxiety, and trauma diagnoses and symptoms were associated with higher odds of cannabis use among pregnant women in California. These results support previous qualitative findings that pregnant women self-report using cannabis to manage mood and stress3,4 and suggest a dose-response association, with higher odds of cannabis use associated with co-occurring depressive and anxiety disorders and greater depression severity. However, research is needed to determine the direction of...
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  • Cannabis and cannabinoids for the treatment of people with chronic noncancer pain conditions: a systematic review and meta-analysis of controlled and observational studies.

    Tuesday, February 18, 2020 1273
    There were no significant impacts on physical or emotional functioning, and low-quality evidence of improved sleep and patient global impression of change. Evidence for effectiveness of cannabinoids in CNCP (Chronic Non-Cancer Pain) is limited. Effects suggest that number needed to treat to benefit is high, and number needed to treat to harm is low, with limited impact on other domains. It seems unlikely that cannabinoids are highly effective medicines for CNCP. For complete research
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  • Preventing the Use of Marijuana

    Sunday, January 12, 2020 1596
    Preventing the Use of Marijuana: Focus on Women and Pregnancy addresses the established health risks of marijuana use to pregnant women and their children, as well as the expanding evidence base on other potential harms of use during pregnancy. I encourage you to use this guide to be informed of the adverse health consequences and potential effects of marijuana use, and to promote healthy decision-making among pregnant and postpartum women. Elinore F. McCance-Katz, M.D., Ph.D. Assistant...
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  • University of Southern California said unproven health claims

    Sunday, January 12, 2020 1527
    University of Southern California said unproven health claims coming from pro-marijuana bots on Twitter illustrate “how false statements may drown out solid science on social media” Cannabis Surveillance With Twitter Data: Emerging Topics and Social Bots Published Online: December 2019 Objectives. To use publicly accessible data from people who post to Twitter to rapidly capture and describe the public’s recent experiences with cannabis. Methods. We obtained Twitter posts containing...
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  • Neonate Death Due to Marijuana Toxicity to the Liver and Adrenals – 11 day old baby dies.

    Thursday, December 19, 2019 1679
    Am J Case Rep 2019; 20:1874-1878 DOI: 10.12659/AJCR.919545 CASE REPORT : We report a death of an 11-day-old white female neonate due to acute marijuana toxicity. She died of extensive necrosis and hemorrhage of the liver and adrenals due to maternal use of marijuana. CONCLUSIONS : This case is unique in that other possible causes of death can be eliminated. With growing use of marijuana by pregnant women and increases in newborn drug screening of umbilical cord homogenate, more cases of...
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  • The Online CBD Industry Unmasked

    Monday, December 16, 2019 1771
    Hard Truths About Today's CBD Products, Websites, and Financial Activity Potency Gaps, Carcinogens, High Heavy Metal Levels — LegitScript Study Reveals Even More LegitScript reviewed hundreds of CBD websites for regulatory compliance, tested dozens of products for potency and safety, and investigated financial activity behind the transactions. A peek at just some of the findings revealed: 67% of tested CBD products had massive potency deviations 7% of tested CBD products contained harmful...
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  • Cannabis Use Based on Urine Drug Screens in Pregnancy and Its Association With Infant Birth Weight.

    Monday, December 16, 2019 1332
    Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology (DSH, DND, DSL) and Hatton Research Institute, TriHealth, Cincinnati, Ohio (CGD). Abstract OBJECTIVES: This study aims to clarify any association between infant birth weight and cannabis use in pregnancy based on urine drug screens. METHODS: A retrospective medical record review of singleton births from August 2013 through December 2014 with available urine drug screens (UDS) at initiation of prenatal care and delivery was conducted at a large tertiary...
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  • FDA Says Most CBD Products May Not Be Safe, and Warns 15 Companies to Stop Selling Them

    Saturday, November 30, 2019 1545
    CBD may pose unknown health risks and cannot be marketed as a dietary supplement, food or therapeutic cure-all. CBD products may be trendy, but health officials are worried that these products — which are often marketed illegally — may not be safe. Yesterday (Nov. 26), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued warning letters to 15 companies that sell CBD products because the products violate federal law. The agency also issued an update to consumers about the popular products, and...
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  • What You Need to Know (And What We’re Working to Find Out) About Products Containing Cannabis or Cannabis-derived Compounds, Including CBD

    Tuesday, November 26, 2019 1567
    The FDA is working to answer questions about the science, safety, and quality of products containing cannabis and cannabis-derived compounds, particularly CBD. The FDA has approved only one CBD product, a prescription drug product to treat two rare, severe forms of epilepsy. It is currently illegal to market CBD by adding it to a food or labeling it as a dietary supplement. The FDA has seen only limited data about CBD safety and these data point to real risks that need to be considered before...
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  • Cannabinoids for Psychiatric Disorders? Evidence of Effectiveness is Lacking, Report Concludes

    Sunday, November 10, 2019 1469
    There is little evidence that the use of cannabinoids can improve symptoms of anxiety, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), psychosis, or Tourette syndrome, according to a report in Lancet Psychiatry . “Cannabinoids are often advocated as a treatment for various mental disorders,” wrote Nicola Black, Ph.D., of the University of New South Wales and colleagues. Doctors and patients “need to be aware of the low quality and quantity of...
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  • THC and CBD during early pregnancy might cause alcohol-like fetal defects

    Saturday, November 09, 2019 1398
    The research suggests that there is no safe period to consume marijuana during pregnancy. Scientists have shown in a new study that one-time exposure during early pregnancy to cannabinoids (CBs) like THC or CBD can trigger growth abnormalities in the developing embryo. This was the first time that such a connection has been highlighted in the mammalian womb. Parnell says that CBD and THC may be causing defects as a result of interactions at the cellular level that disrupt signaling between...
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  • FDA, FTC warn company marketing unapproved cannabidiol products

    Friday, October 25, 2019 1529
    FDA, FTC warn company marketing unapproved cannabidiol products with unsubstantiated claims to treat teething and ear pain in infants, autism, ADHD, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease… Cannabis Chaos & Crack Pot Clinical Claims! Read More
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  • Contribution of Marijuana Legalization to the U.S. Opioid Mortality Epidemic:

    Friday, October 11, 2019 1470
    Contribution of Marijuana Legalization to the U.S. Opioid Mortality Epidemic: Individual and Combined Experience of 27 States and District of Columbia Conclusions The marijuana protection hypothesis is not supported by recent U.S. data on opioid mortality trends. Instead, legalizing marijuana appears to have contributed to the nation’s opioid mortality epidemic. View PDF
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  • Medical Marijuana Miscalculation

    Wednesday, October 09, 2019 1505
    Pennsylvania legalized medical marijuana in 2016, and since then its use has skyrocketed. 1 The doses of the active ingredients of marijuana — tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) — are not standardized, product concentrations are not regulated, and prescribing practices vary… Neurotoxic effects, ranging from central nervous system (CNS) excitation (anxiety, paranoia, and delirium) to CNS depression, are a well-described consequence of exposure to excessive amounts of cannabinoids,...
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  • Association of Prenatal Cannabis Exposure With Psychosis Proneness Among Children in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study

    Monday, September 30, 2019 1513
    JAMA Psychiatry. 2019;76(7):762-764. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2019.0076 Mirroring increases in the general population, the prevalence of past-month marijuana use among pregnant mothers in the United States increased by 75% between 2002 (2.85%) and 2016 (4.98%). 1 Although cannabis use has been linked to psychosis, little is known about prenatal exposure. 2 , 3 Unprecedented increases in marijuana use during pregnancy, alongside evidence that cannabis use is correlated with psychosis and that...
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  • The Canadian government is taking a public health approach to legalizing, strictly regulating, and restricting access to cannabis.

    Monday, September 16, 2019 1291
    Those were the words of Minister of Health Ginette Taylor in November 2017, spoken as the government of Canada began to put together Bill 45, known as The Cannabis Act. Over a year has passed since the enactment of Bill 45 and questions still remain regarding the safety of legal cannabis to our pregnant population, both in the short- and long-term. Even preceding the legalization of cannabis in Canada, a 2017 survey by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) indicated that from...
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  • FTC Sends Warning Letters to Companies Advertising Their CBD-Infused Products as Treatments for Serious Diseases, Including Cancer, Alzheimer’s, and Multiple Sclerosis

    Friday, September 13, 2019 1320
    FOR RELEASE: September 10, 2019 As part of its regular monitoring of health-related advertising claims, the Federal Trade Commission today sent warning letters to three companies that sell oils, tinctures, capsules, “gummies,” and creams containing cannabidiol (CBD), a chemical compound derived from the cannabis plant. The letters warn the companies, which the FTC is not identifying publicly, that it is illegal to advertise that a product can prevent, treat, or cure human disease without...
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  • Why Marijuana Will Not Fix the Opioid Epidemic

    Friday, September 13, 2019 1320
    Currently, there is no widely available or accepted medical literature showing any benefit for pain with dispensary cannabis in common pain conditions. For full article
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  • No proof red wine makes you slim or is good for your gut

    Tuesday, September 03, 2019 1417
    How to use evidence to say what you want! Conclusion: When a headline sounds too good to be true, it usually is. There's nothing in this study to suggest that people should start drinking red wine to lose weight. The potential effect of diet on the micro-organisms in the gut is a new and interesting field of science. This study provides new evidence about a possible effect of substances found in red wine on the growth of micro-organisms in the gut, and suggests that this may affect the way the...
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  • JAMA: insufficient evidence on medical cannabis 2019

    Tuesday, September 03, 2019 1459
    Insufficient evidence exists for the use of medical cannabis for most conditions for which its use is advocated, but various US state governments recommended it for over 50 medical conditions, Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School found. The lack of evidence was separately confirmed by NICE in the UK.
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  • Incidence of Pediatric Cannabis Exposure Among Children and Teenagers Aged 0 to 19 Years Before and After Medical Marijuana Legalization in Massachusetts

    Wednesday, August 28, 2019 1304
    JAMA Netw Open. 2019;2(8):e199456. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.9456 Question Does the number of pediatric cannabis (marijuana) exposure cases before medical marijuana legalization in Massachusetts differ from the number afterward? Findings: In this repeated cross-sectional study, there were 218 calls related to cannabis exposure received by the Regional Center for Poison Control and Prevention in Massachusetts, constituting 0.15% of all calls concerning children and teenagers aged 0 to 19...
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  • Mayo Clinic Scientists Raise Concerns About CBD's Unexplored Risks

    Monday, August 26, 2019 2161
    But a new systematic research review from Mayo Clinic, one of the country’s leading medical centers , warns there’s still a lot to learn about CBD. The big takeaway from the review is that no one knows exactly how effective or safe CBD really is. The researchers argue that more research on humans is needed to confirm many of the health claims made on the packaging of products containing CBD, short for the Cannabis -derived compound cannabidiol … The Mayo Clinic encourages physicians to keep “a...
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  • NICE will not recommend medical cannabis for epilepsy and chronic pain

    Thursday, August 22, 2019 1871
    The Pharmaceutical Journal Draft guidance says patients with chronic pain should not be offered tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or mixtures of cannabidiol and THC unless the treatment is part of a clinical trial. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has said it is currently unable to recommend cannabis-based medical products (CBMPs) for severe treatment-resistant epilepsy. In draft guidance on the use of CBMPs, NICE said that more research into the use of CBMP for the...
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  • Dr Robert L Dupont's written Testimony to the FDA Regarding the Health Impacts of CBD

    Thursday, August 22, 2019 1594
    Dr Robert L Dupont's written Testimony to the FDA Regarding the Health Impacts of CBD
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  • Adults who mix cannabis with opioids for pain report higher anxiety, depression

    Wednesday, August 14, 2019 1441
    A researcher from the University of Houston has found that adults who take prescription opioids for severe pain are more likely to have increased anxiety, depression and substance abuse issues if they also use marijuana. Under the guidance of advisor Michael Zvolensky, Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished University Professor of psychology and director of the lab and clinic, Rogers surveyed 450 adults throughout the United States who had experienced moderate to severe pain for more...
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  • Self-reported Daily, Weekly, and Monthly Cannabis Use Among Women Before and During Pregnancy

    Monday, August 05, 2019 1670
    Conclusions: Results of this study show that the frequency with which women in California use cannabis in the year before and during pregnancy has increased over time, corresponding with increasing acceptance of cannabis use and decreasing perceptions of cannabis-associated harms. Future studies are critically needed to determine whether and how the adverse outcomes of maternal perinatal cannabis use on the health and development of infants and children vary with daily vs less frequent use....
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  • F.D.A. WARNING LETTER Challenging ‘Health Claims of CBD’

    Tuesday, July 30, 2019 1744
    F.D.A. WARNING LETTER Challenging ‘Health Claims of CBD’ Curaleaf, Inc MARCS-CMS 579289 — JUL 22, 2019 This letter is to advise you that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reviewed your website at the Internet address https://curaleafhemp.com External Link Disclaimer in April and June 2019 and has determined that you take orders there for the products “CBD Lotion,” “CBD Pain-Relief Patch,” “CBD Tincture” (5 versions), “CBD Disposable Vape Pen” (5 versions) and “Bido CBD for Pets” (3...
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  • Britain's GW Pharmaceuticals set to win first EU approval for cannabis medication

    Tuesday, July 30, 2019 1248
    GW Pharmaceuticals has become the first firm to win European approval for a drug derived from the cannabis plant. Epidyolex treats patients, mostly children, who suffer from two severe forms of epilepsy: Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome. Sufferers can endure up to 74 full-blown “drop seizures” a month, in which they shake and fall down. The treatment is already approved in the US and it is thought that about 40,000 patients in Europe could benefit from Epidyolex. For complete story
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  • Self-reported Daily, Weekly, and Monthly Cannabis Use Among Women Before and During Pregnancy

    Thursday, July 25, 2019 1427
    JAMA Netw Open. 2019;2(7):e196471. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.6471 Findings In this serial cross-sectional study of 367 403 pregnancies among women in Kaiser Permanente Northern California who were universally screened for self-reported cannabis use as part of standard prenatal care, annual relative rates of daily, weekly, and monthly cannabis use in the year before pregnancy and during pregnancy increased from 2009 to 2017. Relative rates of self-reported daily cannabis use in the year...
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  • US Surgeon General – ‘No Such Thing As Medical Marijuana!’

    Thursday, July 25, 2019 1360
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  • Using Cannabis during pregnancy linked to fetal alcohol spectrum disorder-like symptoms in animal study.

    Thursday, July 25, 2019 1302
    Professor Jennifer D. Thomas, co-director of the Center for Behavioral Teratology at San Diego State University who co-authored the rodent study told Newsweek : "Although it has been known that prenatal alcohol exposure can adversely affect later behavioral development, this study suggests that prenatal cannabis exposure can also influence behavioral development, and that effects may be more severe when combined with alcohol. "These results are important, as pregnant women may not be aware...
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  • NEW STUDY: Living Near Marijuana Dispensaries Increases Likelihood of Youth Use, Favorable Opinions

    Thursday, July 18, 2019 1534
    Today, a new study published in the journal Addiction found that living near a marijuana dispensary increases the likelihood of marijuana use and frequency of use among young people aged 18-22. “This study proves if you live near pot shops and their ads, you’re more likely to use marijuana,” said Dr. Kevin Sabet, president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) and a former senior drug policy advisor to the Obama Administration. “It proves what parents and teachers have been saying for...
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  • Self-Reported Marijuana Use Is Associated with Increased Use of Prescription Opioids Following Traumatic Musculoskeletal Injury.

    Sunday, July 07, 2019 1305
    BACKGROUND : Cannabinoids are among the psychoactive substances considered as alternatives to opioids for the alleviation of acute pain. We examined whether self-reported marijuana use was associated with decreased use of prescription opioids following traumatic musculoskeletal injury. METHODS : Our analysis included 500 patients with a musculoskeletal injury who completed a survey about their marijuana use and were categorized as (1) never a user, (2) a prior user (but not during recovery),...
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  • Prenatal Exposure to Cannabis Affects the Developing Brain (Marijuana for Morning Sickness a Massive Mistake!)

    Friday, July 05, 2019 1377
    Earlier this year, our laboratory published work demonstrating that rats whose mothers were given low-dose THC (or an analogous synthetic cannabinoid) while pregnant showed significant changes in synaptic plasticity and altered levels of several important proteins lasting well into adulthood. We found that the consequences of these changes manifested as a reduced sociability in the exposed offspring. Male rats in particular were much less likely to approach, play with, or sniff other rats. 4...
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  • Cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabidivarin (CBDV)

    Wednesday, July 03, 2019 1953
    Cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabidivarin (CBDV) are natural cannabinoids which are consumed in increasing amounts worldwide in cannabis extracts, as they prevent epilepsy, anxiety, and seizures. It was claimed that they may be useful in cancer therapy and have anti-inflammatory properties. Adverse long-term effects of these drugs (induction of cancer and infertility) which are related to damage of the genetic material have not been investigated. Therefore, we studied their DNA-damaging properties...
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  • Marijuana Edibles: Buyers and Users Beware

    Tuesday, July 02, 2019 1589
    April 9, 2019 -- When he arrived at the hospital by ambulance, the 70-year-old man said he felt like he was dying. He was pale, nauseated, and reported severe chest pain . "He had had hallucinations at home," says his doctor, Alexandra Saunders, MD, chief medical resident for Dalhousie University in St. John, New Brunswick, Canada. Soon, the medical team confirmed he’d had a heart attack . He had eaten a marijuana -laced lollipop, given to him by a friend who thought it might help him sleep....
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  • Marijuana Study Finds CBD Can Cause Liver Damage

    Monday, July 01, 2019 1869
    Researchers at the University of Arkansas for Medical Science recently rolled up their sleeves to investigate CBD hepatotoxicity in mice. What they found was while this cannabis derivative is gaining significant recognition as of late in the world of wellness , people that use CBD are at an elevated risk for liver toxicity. The findings, which were published earlier this year in the journal Molecules , suggest that while people may be using CBD as a safer alternative to conventional pain...
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  • Chemical in Marijuana Raises IOP

    Friday, June 14, 2019 1706
    March 2019 A study from researchers at Indiana University has found that a major chemical component in marijuana called cannabidiol (CBD) appears to increase the pressure inside the eye. The results were reported in the journal Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. The study, which was conducted in mice, specifically found that CBD caused an increase in pressure inside the eye of 18% for at least 4 hours after use. Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the primary psychoactive ingredient of...
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  • Cannabis – NO CURE – for Opioid Crisis!

    Wednesday, June 12, 2019 1592
    A new study took the same methodology of the previous study and expanded it to include states that legalized medical marijuana between 1999 and 2017 and found a surprising result: medical marijuana was associated with a 23% INCREASE in opioid deaths . The Misplaced Optimism in Legal Pot Legalizing medical marijuana does not reduce the rate of fatal opioid overdoses, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. (National Academy of Science...
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  • Association between medical cannabis laws and opioid overdose mortality has reversed over time

    Wednesday, June 12, 2019 1365
    Chelsea L. Shover, Corey S. Davis, Sanford C. Gordon, and Keith Humphreys Edited by Kenneth W. Wachter, University of California, Berkeley, CA, and approved May 16, 2019 (received for review February 27, 2019) Medical cannabis has been touted as a solution to the US opioid overdose crisis since Bachhuber et al. [M. A. Bachhuber, B. Saloner, C. O. Cunningham, C. L. Barry, JAMA Intern. Med. 174, 1668–1673] found that from 1999 to 2010 states with medical cannabis laws experienced slower...
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  • Why Medical Marijuana May Not Be OK for Treating PTSD

    Wednesday, June 12, 2019 1518
    Just to lay the foundation, I have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) , anxiety and depression …on a recent trip to Las Vegas, where Pot has been legalized, I decided to try a very small amount of chocolate with what they said was about 20 milligrams of THC to see if it would help me with some pain I was having. What followed was a nightmare. It took roughly two hours to kick in and by the time it did, we were poolside. I literally felt like I was in and out of...
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  • Stoned Babies and Underachieving Adults

    Wednesday, June 05, 2019 1657
    STONED BABIES AND UNDERACHIEVING ADULTS By Dr. Drew Edwards Physicians and medical professionals routinely warn women not to use marijuana while they are pregnant or nursing. Why? The best available scientific evidence has established that exposure to marijuana’s psychoactive constituent, THC, in utero causes neuroadaptive changes in their baby’s brain, especially in the regions where their cognitive capacity and emotional regulation is formed. As a result, the life trajectories for prenatally...
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  • Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome in Palliative Care

    Wednesday, June 05, 2019 1628
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  • (U.S.A.) - Key Takeaways From FDA’s Historic CBD Regulations Meeting

    Monday, June 03, 2019 1438
    “Currently, states are struggling with the lack of sound scientific research available in CBD and long-term health impacts, including those to children,” Pam Miles of the Virginia Department of Agriculture, said. She added that her department “is hopeful that FDA will begin to supply significant leadership as it related to CBD, including research related to its health impacts.”…Brenda Morris, representing the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, talked about the “patchwork...
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  • Impossible to escape: The need for stronger restrictions on the placement of alcohol marketing in Australia

    Tuesday, May 28, 2019 1560
    The report, Impossible to escape: The need for stronger restrictions on the placement of alcohol marketing in Australia released by the Public Health Advocacy Institute of WA (PHAIWA) at Curtin University, found almost two-thirds of complaints made to the Alcohol Advertising Review Board (AARB) over the past seven years had raised concerns about the placement of alcohol marketing in Australia. The report found that 760 of the total 1126 complaints were about where alcohol marketing was placed...
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  • Ireland ‘sleepwalking’ into liberal cannabis regime, warn doctors

    Tuesday, May 21, 2019 1404
    Campaigners say medicinal cannabis being used as ‘Trojan horse’ towards legalisation. Ireland is “sleepwalking” into the legalisation of cannabis on the back of a campaign of misinformation about the drug, according to doctors who have set up a new group to campaign against liberalisation. The initial 20 members of the Cannabis Risk Alliance include the head of the College of Psychiatrists, Dr John Hillery , and former president of the Irish Medical Organisation Dr Ray Walley . Criticising the...
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  • Hepatotoxicity of a Cannabidiol-Rich Cannabis Extract in the Mouse Model

    Monday, May 20, 2019 1724
    Abstract : The goal of this study was to investigate Cannabidiol (CBD) hepatotoxicity in 8-week-old male B6C3F1mice. Animals were gavaged with either 0, 246, 738, or 2460 mg/kg of CBD (acute toxicity, 24 h) or with daily doses of 0, 61.5, 184.5, or 615 mg/kg for 10 days (sub-acute toxicity). These doses were the allometrically scaled mouse equivalent doses (MED) of the maximum recommended human maintenance dose of CBD in EPIDIOLEX®(20 mg/kg). In the acute study, significant increases in...
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  • USA - NL holds up employer’s refusal to hire medical cannabis user

    Monday, May 20, 2019 1506
    The Union filed a grievance due to alleged discrimination of the employer against Mr. Tizzard due to his disability. However, Arbitrator Roil concluded that medical cannabis use creates a risk of employer impairment at work and cited lack of available technology to measure cannabis-induced impairment and manage associated risks, causing undue hardship for the employer. Therefore, the grievance filed by the Union was dismissed. For complete story
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  • The Need for Federal Regulation of Marijuana Marketing

    Saturday, May 18, 2019 1397
    The Need for Regulation: It is critical that regulators investigate these problematic marketing practices across all marijuana brands, not just MedMen, to ensure that health claims are independently verified and youth are protected from marijuana marketing. Precedent exists for federal action to regulate MedMen’s national marketing strategy because the responsibility to regulate “products containing cannabis and cannabis-derived compounds” currently rests with the FDA under the Federal Food,...
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  • Former ‘Budtender’ from the Marijuana Industry Speaks Out

    Wednesday, May 15, 2019 1542
    Former ‘Budtender’ from the Marijuana Industry Speaks Out about the Harms and Shocking Deception – But Officials Aren’t Listening: WHY? View Video
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  • Clinicians and Scientists release Statement of Concern regarding marijuana policy (USA)

    Monday, May 13, 2019 1609
    BOSTON – A consortium of clinicians and scientists from across Massachusetts has joined together to publicly release a "Satement of Concern” expressing their disagreement with how marijuana policy is being shaped in the Commonwealth. According to the Statement of Concern , marijuana is being governed and regulated as if it were an “ordinary commodity”, rather than following a Public Health Framework. This is of concern because scientific evidence clearly establishes that marijuana (and...
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  • Cannabis Use During Pregnancy May Affect Brain Development in Offspring

    Monday, May 13, 2019 1445
    Reports new study in Biological Psychiatry Cannabis use during pregnancy is associated with abnormal brain structure in children, according to a new study in Biological Psychiatry . Compared with unexposed children, those who were prenatally exposed to cannabis had a thicker prefrontal cortex, a region of the brain involved in complex cognition, decision-making, and working memory. Author of the study Dr. Hanan El Marroun, of Erasmus University Medical Center in The Netherlands, said: “this...
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  • Cannabis sativa (Hemp) Seeds, D9-Tetrahydrocannabinol, and Potential Overdose

    Monday, May 06, 2019 1984
    Abstract Introduction: Cannabis sativa (hemp) seeds are popular for their high nutrient content, and strict regulations are in place to limit the amount of potentially harmful phytocannabinoids, especially D9-tetrahydrocannabinol (D9-THC). In Canada, this limit is 10 lg of D9-THC per gram of hemp seeds (10 ppm), and other jurisdictions in the world follow similar guidelines. Materials and Methods : We investigated three different brands of consumer-grade hemp seeds using four different...
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  • There's nothing funny about today's highly potent marijuana. It killed my son.

    Monday, May 06, 2019 1550
    “I want to die,” he wrote before hanging himself at the age of 31. “My soul is already dead. Marijuana killed my soul + ruined my brain.” Andy wanted to quit. He couldn't A new study shows he's not alone The peer-reviewed medical journal The Lancet last month published a major study that found people who use high-potency marijuana daily are five times more likely to develop psychosis than those who never partake. The researchers compared data for more than 2,100 people in multiple countries....
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  • Canadian Government: Cannabis health warning messages

    Monday, May 06, 2019 1731
    Part 1: Health warning messages for cannabis products that are dried cannabis or cannabis accessories that contain dried cannabis WARNING: Cannabis smoke is harmful. Harmful chemicals found in tobacco smoke are also found in cannabis smoke. WARNING: Do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding. Using cannabis during pregnancy may harm your baby and result in low birth weight. WARNING: Do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding. Substances found in cannabis are also found in the breast milk of mothers...
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  • Medical cannabis industry should be told to provide evidence if it wants products prescribed, MPs hear

    Wednesday, April 17, 2019 1389
    Keith Ridge told the House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee hearing on medical cannabis policy that he saw the primary purpose of rescheduling medical cannabis as supporting development of good evidence. Evidence for the prescribing of medical cannabis is lacking, Keith Ridge, chief pharmaceutical officer for England, has told MPs. For complete story
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  • Pregnant women who use marijuana heavily to treat morning sickness affect part of the baby's brain associated with memory

    Wednesday, April 17, 2019 1557
    Daily Mail April 2019 11:16 Using marijuana during pregnancy to treat morning sickness could damage an unborn baby's brain, a new study says. Research conducted on rats found that expecting mothers who used cannabis affected the section of the brain involved in memory and learning. The rate of pregnant women using pot for severe nausea and vomiting has increased by 11.3 percent over the last decade and by more than 62 percent for general overall use. Previous studies have shown that children...
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  • Opioid and Cannabis Co-Use among Adults with Chronic Pain

    Wednesday, April 17, 2019 1454
    Relations to Substance Misuse, Mental Health, and Pain Experience - Journal of Addiction Medicine: doi: 10.1097/ADM.0000000000000493 Results: Results suggest that, compared to opioid use alone, opioid and cannabis co-use was associated with elevated anxiety and depression symptoms, as well as tobacco, alcohol, cocaine, and sedative use problems, but not pain experience. Conclusions: These findings highlight a vulnerable population of polysubstance users with chronic pain, and indicates the...
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  • Online cannabis oils contain dangerous amounts of psychoactive THC

    Wednesday, April 17, 2019 1556
    Although specialist doctors registered with the General Medical Council (GMC) have been allowed to prescribe cannabis-derived medicines since November 2018, a lack of research into their effects is leaving patients open to buying unlicensed products, sometimes containing over 400 times the legal limit of certain key ingredients. Leading scientists and clinicians from the University of Bath and University College London (UCL) recently published a review that describes the ranges of...
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  • Marijuana as a cure for opioid use? Nation's top drug scientist says she's skeptical

    Monday, April 01, 2019 1594
    ( USA Today , March 20) As opioid misuse continues to grip the nation, some states are allowing medical marijuana to be used as a treatment for opioid addiction. However, Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) , says there is currently no scientific evidence for marijuana to be used in such a way. "If you don’t treat it properly, your risk of dying is quite high," Volkow told USA TODAY . "My main concern is by basically misinforming potential patients about...
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  • USA: Workplace Weed use a Worry – Funeral Director May Seek Reasonable Accommodation for Off Duty Medical Marijuana Use

    Sunday, March 31, 2019 1548
    On March 27, 2019, the New Jersey Appellate Division in Wild v. Carriage Funeral Holdings Inc. Background Facts : Justin Wild, a licensed funeral director, was employed by Carriage Funeral Holdings (Carriage). In 2015, Wild was diagnosed with cancer and was prescribed medical marijuana as part of his treatment. In May 2016, while working, Wild was in a car accident and was taken to an emergency room. Wild disclosed to the hospital that he had a license to use medical marijuana. Because Wild...
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  • Medical marijuana does not exist

    Sunday, March 24, 2019 1531
    Marijuana is not recognized in the medical community as legitimate medicine. (Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics) Download PDF
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  • Marijuana Use is Not Associated with Changes in Opioid Prescriptions or Pain Severity Among People Living with HIV and Chronic Pain

    Tuesday, March 19, 2019 1644
    JAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes: February 20, 2019 - Volume Publish Ahead of Print - Issue - p doi: 10.1097/QAI.0000000000001998 Background: People living with HIV (PLWH) commonly report marijuana use for chronic pain, though there is limited empirical evidence to support its use. There is hope that marijuana may reduce prescription opioid use. Our objective was to investigate whether marijuana use among PLWH who have chronic pain is associated with changes in pain...
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  • Doctors accuse Britain's first medical cannabis clinic of making unfounded claims over pain relief

    Tuesday, March 12, 2019 2077
    The private Medical Cannabis Clinic (MCC) opened in Manchester last week Further branches are scheduled for Birmingham and London’s Harley Street Doctors now claim the drugs pain-relieving qualities have been exaggerated Britain’s first dedicated medical cannabis clinic has been accused by doctors of making unfounded claims for the drug’s pain-relieving qualities. For complete article
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  • Should Physicians Recommend Replacing Opioids with Cannabis?

    Tuesday, February 26, 2019 1689
    JAMA. 2019;321(7):639-640. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.0077 The evidence that cannabis is an efficacious treatment for opioid use disorder is even weaker. To date, no prospective evidence, either from clinical trials or observational studies, has demonstrated any benefit of treating patients who have opioid addiction with cannabis. If Cannabis Is Recommended Medicine, It Should Be Held to Medical Standards Conclusions For chronic pain, there are numerous alternatives to opioids aside from cannabis....
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  • Legal cannabis oil sold in British health shops can get users high and make it dangerous to drive, study shows

    Friday, February 22, 2019 1885
    Cannabis oil sold as a health product in Britain can get users 'high', study finds Researchers found driving under the influence of CBD cannabis ‘may be harmful' The products have soared in popularity amid claims they help combat ailments By JONATHAN BUCKS FOR THE MAIL ON SUNDAY 17 February 2019 The legal version of cannabis sold as a health product in the UK can get users ‘high’ and even make it dangerous to drive, a study has found. Cannabis oils and capsules said to help reduce anxiety and...
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  • Cannabinoids could help manage spasticity in motor neuron disease

    Monday, February 04, 2019 2247
    Cannabinoids could help manage spasticity in motor neuron disease A very similar drug already exists as a trailed, tested and approved pharmaceutical; if fact has been in on the register for decades… Sativex (nabiximols) is the first cannabis-based medicine to be licensed in the UK. The drug can prescribed for the treatment for MS-related spasticity when a person has shown inadequate response to other symptomatic treatments or found their side effects intolerable. Sativex can be used in...
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  • Why the Cleveland Clinic won’t recommend medical marijuana for patients

    Monday, February 04, 2019 1874
    “In the world of healthcare, a medication is a drug that has endured extensive clinical trials, public hearings and approval by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration,” Medical Director says. “Medications are tested for safety and efficacy. They are closely regulated, from production to distribution. They are accurately dosed, down to the milligram. Medical marijuana is none of those things!
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  • Watchdogs are set to ban High Street CBD

    Monday, February 04, 2019 1937
    Watchdogs are set to ban High Street CBD 'cannabis' oil for up to 18 months as experts probe whether it has any real health benefits The CDB oil is derived from cannabis but does not contain 'active' THC drug The oil is promoted as a cure for anxiety, insomnia and joint and muscle pain The Food Standards Agency says it counts as a 'novel food' and needs approval So Trading Standards will be instructed to pull items from shops for 18 months
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  • 2018 Papers

    Wednesday, January 23, 2019 1841
    2018 European Pain Federation Cannabis Position 2018 PAIN-Cannabis and cannabinoids for the treatment of People With Chronic Non Cancer Pain “There really is nothing, zero, in the literature which would support dispensary cannabis in any chronic non-cancer pain condition.” K. Finn, MD
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  • Colorado Emergency Medical Doctors Open Letter to ALL Physicians!

    Friday, January 18, 2019 1708
    Dear Doctors, who are mandated to do 'No Harm'! My name is Karen Randall. I am an emergency physician (also residency trained in pediatrics and family medicine). I spent numerous years as an academic teaching physician at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. I moved to Colorado to be back home. I moved here in 2013. I moved just in time to see this town I live in, Pueblo, go from a blue collar working town to a drug infested town that is not safe. I appreciate your article about brain sizes, view...
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  • Medicinal cannabis a honey pot for crooks

    Monday, January 14, 2019 2361
    The documents offer unprecedented insight into the challenges of establishing and regulating an industry where the product is traditionally ­illegal. Picture: AFP SEAN PARNELL 12:00AM JANUARY 7, 2019 High demand for a stake in Australia’s medicinal cannabis industry — including from people with links to organised crime — has caught the regulator unprepared and under-resourced, an internal audit has found. Documents obtained under Freedom of Information laws show independent auditors hired by...
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  • Low doses of widely consumed cannabinoids (cannabidiol and cannabidivarin) cause DNA damage and chromosomal aberrations in human-derived cells.

    Thursday, November 29, 2018 1919
    Abstract Cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabidivarin (CBDV) are natural cannabinoids which are consumed in increasing amounts worldwide in cannabis extracts, as they prevent epilepsy, anxiety, and seizures. It was claimed that they may be useful in cancer therapy and have anti-inflammatory properties. Adverse long-term effects of these drugs (induction of cancer and infertility) which are related to damage of the genetic material have not been investigated. Therefore, we studied their DNA-damaging...
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  • Medicinal cannabis for chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting: prescribing with limited evidence

    Wednesday, November 21, 2018 1810
    Med J Aust || doi: 10.5694/mja17.01099 bPublished online: 12 November 2018 Although medicinal cannabis can now be prescribed for CINV, high quality clinical trial evidence is required to determine its efficacy and safety Access to medicinal cannabis in Australia is a rapidly evolving and controversial field that is relevant to clinicians across a range of medical disciplines. There is widespread community interest in allowing access to medicinal cannabis for a variety of unapproved...
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  • Is there a link between marijuana and COPD?

    Wednesday, November 07, 2018 2314
    What is COPD? Symptoms of COPD can include wheezing, shortness of breath, and tightness in the chest. COPD describes a group of long-term lung diseases that includes bronchitis and emphysema . These diseases cause inflammation , which impairs airflow in and out of the lungs, making breathing difficult. COPD is progressive, meaning that a person's symptoms tend to get worse over time. Cigarette smoking is the most common cause of COPD. Symptoms of COPD can vary in severity but typically...
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  • Medical cannabis products 'will drive patients to addiction and crime' and turn doctors into drug dealers, warn experts in scathing letter

    Wednesday, October 31, 2018 1928
    Cannabis oil will become available on the NHS next Thursday, November 1 A group of 166 pain consultants has written a letter slating the plans They say it is being done for political reasons, not based on medical advice And patients are already demanding cannabis, losing interest in other treatment For complete article
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  • Snake Oil Cannabis?

    Monday, October 22, 2018 2232
    The ‘claims’ on cannabis often reach legendary status, particularly as the pro-drug lobby hijack the market place communications and create ‘feeding frenzy’ headlines! We have always said that a 140 character Tweet is mightier than 10,000 hard evidence-based research journals, in our current information rich, but knowledge poor social media culture! This webpage Snake Oil Cannabis? Scientific evidence for the medical benefits Scientific evidence for the medical benefits , is at least one...
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  • Known Cannabis Teratogenicity Needs to be Carefully Considered

    Monday, October 22, 2018 1549
    Whilst much research has focussed on the effects of endocannabinoids in the adult brain relatively little research has looked at the impact of these same effects in the developing brain of the foetus and neonate. Whilst the brain stem is almost devoid of type 1 cannabinoid receptors (CB1Rs) they are in high concentration in many parts of the midbrain, limbic system, subcortical regions and cerebral and cerebellar cortices 3. Foetal CB1Rs have been shown to play key roles in virtually all...
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  • I Tried CBD to Help Manage My Anxiety, and Here's What Happened

    Monday, October 22, 2018 5376
    Men's Health October 18, 2018 Instead of endlessly ruminating on these hypothetical scenarios, I tested whether CBD supplements could help me relax and take my stress level down a notch. CBD, or Cannabidiol, is one of roughly 100 chemical compounds called cannabinoids found in the cannabis plant — and unlike its brother THC, it doesn't get you high. Among its many purported health benefits, researchers are studying whether CBD could be a viable treatment for a variety of ailments including...
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  • Cannabis and cannabinoids for the treatment of people with chronic noncancer pain conditions: a systematic review and meta-analysis of controlled and observational studies

    Friday, October 19, 2018 1841
    PAIN: October 2018 - Volume 159 - Issue 10 - p 1932–1954 doi: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000001293 This review examines evidence for the effectiveness of cannabinoids in chronic noncancer pain (CNCP) and addresses gaps in the literature by: considering differences in outcomes based on cannabinoid type and specific CNCP condition; including all study designs; and following IMMPACT guidelines. MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, CENTRAL, and clinicaltrials.gov were searched in July 2017. Analyses were...
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  • Systematic review and meta-analysis of cannabinoids in palliative medicine.

    Thursday, October 18, 2018 1740
    Abstract We provide a systematic review and meta-analysis on the efficacy, tolerability, and safety of cannabinoids in palliative medicine. The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, and http://clinicaltrials.gov , and a selection of cancer journals were searched up until 15th of March 2017. Of the 108 screened studies, nine studies with a total of 1561 participants were included. Overall, the nine studies were at moderate risk of bias. The...
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  • Psychosis: Cannabis extract normalizes brain function

    Thursday, September 06, 2018 2046
    New research, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, shows that a dose of the cannabis extract cannabidiol improves brain function in people living with psychosis. A cannabis extract known as cannabidiol could be the 'ideal treatment' for psychosis. The new study was conducted by scientists at King's College London (KCL) in the United Kingdom. It was spearheaded by Sagnik Bhattacharyya, Ph.D., from KCL's Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience. Cannabidiol has already been proven...
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  • What is the Evidence for Medical Marijuana to Treat the Addiction Epidemic?

    Monday, August 20, 2018 2325
    The Marijuana Policy Project promotes their drug as a substitute for opiate pain pills. Like the worst offenders in the opiate industry, the cannabis lobby follows an addiction-for-profit business model. Their master plan needs 80% of the demand to be met by 20% of the users. Science shows no evidence for using medical marijuana as a substitute for pain pills. Governor David Ige of Hawaii wisely refused to cave to lobbyists, and he vetoed a measure that would have allowed medical marijuana to...
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  • Known Cannabis Teratogenicity Needs to be Carefully Considered

    Friday, August 17, 2018 1711
    Jumping the Gun on ‘Marijuana as medicine’! At What Price? It is no accident that in almost the same week both Australia and UK have decided that cannabis is to be recommended for a host of medical disorders mostly in advance of gold standard clinical trials. This is a direct product of the organized transnational global drug liberalization movement orchestrated from New York 1. I wish to most respectfully disagree with the points made by BMJ editor Dr. God lee. Diarrhoea and colic occur in...
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  • Real Caution Needed: Known Cannabis Teratogenicity Needs to be Carefully Considered

    Tuesday, August 07, 2018 1744
    Medical research has confirmed that the body’s endocannabinoid system is a finely regulated and highly complex system which is involved in the detailed regulation of essentially all body systems including the brain and cardiovascular systems and stem cell niches. Studies have shown that the rate of use of cannabis by expecting mothers closely parallels that in the wider community. In fact given the long half-life of cannabis in tissues even were a maternal habitual smoker to stop when she...
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  • Cannabis, NOT the answer to the Opioid Crisis! Yet again!

    Monday, July 30, 2018 1952
    We wanted to make sure you had seen four key studies just into play A groundbreaking study in The Lancet found that marijuana use over four years actually made it harder for patients to cope with chronic pain, and did not reduce their use of opioids. A study in Frontiers in Psychiatry found that increasing self-exposure to non-medical marijuana was a predictor of greater odds of opioid dependencediagnosis. A study in the International Review of Psychiatry found an increased rate of serious...
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  • Does CBD oil work for menopause symptoms?

    Friday, June 15, 2018 2643
    Cannabidiol is a chemical that occurs in hemp plants and marijuana. It is possible that cannabidiol oil could help to treat the symptoms of menopause. Researchers have looked at other herbal and natural remedies as treatment options but have not yet proved that any of them are consistently effective…At present, there is very little reliable evidence to suggest that CBD oil can treat the symptoms of menopause. Researchers have only just started to understand how the endocannabinoid system works...
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  • Court rules CBD is Schedule 1 controlled substance, cannabidiol sales only where pot legal

    Friday, June 08, 2018 2113
    KRISTEN NICHOLS, Hemp Industry Daily May 4, 2018 On Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018, the Cosmic Grind Coffee Shop on Church Street in Burlington, Vermont, started offering CBD hemp oil shots in their drinks. But don't worry, CBD is a 'non-psychoactive' extract, not to be confused with THC in marijuana. RYAN MERCER/FREE PRESS DENVER (AP) — A federal appeals court sided with the Drug Enforcement Administration and upheld its decision that CBD is a Schedule 1 controlled substance — a major setback for the...
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  • Medical Marijuana Can Have Serious Unintended Effects

    Tuesday, May 01, 2018 1688
    A New Study on Medical Marijuana by Researchers from the University of California–Davis Reveals That Mold, Bacterial and other Toxic Contaminants Were Discovered in Samples from 20 out of 20 Licensed Dispensaries in Northern California. Researchers at the University of California, Davis have discovered that medical marijuana from 20 dispensaries contain multiple fungal and bacterial contaminants that are highly toxic and can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections among cannabis users....
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  • Why marijuana fans should not see approval for epilepsy drug as a win for weed

    Saturday, April 28, 2018 1683
    April 20, 2018 A Food and Drug Administration panel recommended approval of a drug made of cannabidiol on April 19 to treat two types of epilepsy. The FDA is expected to decide in June whether to accept the panel’s 13-0 recommendation to approve Epidiolex, which would would become the first drug made of cannabidiol, a compound in the cannabis plant, to gain approval from the FDA. While the panel’s unanimous decision is not binding, the action will no doubt heighten public debate about the use...
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  • Medical Marijuana Users are More Likely to Use Prescription Drugs Medically and Nonmedically

    Tuesday, April 24, 2018 1850
    Objectives : Previous studies have found a negative population-level correlation between medical marijuana availability in US states, and trends in medical and nonmedical prescription drug use. These studies have been interpreted as evidence that use of medical marijuana reduces medical and nonmedical prescription drug use. This study evaluates whether medical marijuana use is a risk or protective factor for medical and nonmedical prescription drug use. Conclusions : Our findings disconfirm...
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  • It’s All in the Rhythm: The Role of Cannabinoids in Neural Oscillations and Psychosis

    Monday, April 23, 2018 1929
    Patrick D. Skosnik, Jose A. Cortes-Briones, and Mihály Hajós ABSTRACT Evidence has accumulated over the past several decades suggesting that both exocannabinoids and endocannabinoids play a role in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. The current article presents evidence suggesting that one of the mechanisms whereby cannabinoids induce psychosis is through the alteration in synchronized neural oscillations. Neural oscillations, particularly in the gamma (30–80 Hz) and theta (4–7 Hz) ranges,...
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  • Cannabis Exports Dried Cannabis Flower and Oils to Australia for Novel Nose-to-Brain Drug Delivery Research by PreveCeutical

    Wednesday, March 14, 2018 1922
    EDMONTON and VANCOUVER, March 13, 2018 Aurora Cannabis Inc. and PreveCeutical Medical Inc. today announced the grant of three permits by the Australian Government, Department of Health, for the importation of cannabis into Australia for research purposes (the "Permits"). The Permits were granted to the Pharmacy Australia Centre of Excellence ("PACE") at the University of Queensland ("UQ") and allow PACE to import shipments of cannabis plant material for research purposes. Aurora, in turn, has...
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  • Cannabis for paediatric epilepsy: challenges and conundrums

    Friday, February 23, 2018 1578
    Summary Research is expanding for the use of cannabidiol as an anticonvulsant drug. The mechanism of cannabidiol in paediatric epilepsy is unclear but is thought to play a role in modulation of synaptic transmission. Evidence for its efficacy in treating epilepsy is limited but growing, with a single pharmaceutical company-funded randomised double-blind controlled trial in children with Dravet syndrome. Progress towards the use of medicinal cannabinoids incorporates a complex interplay of...
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  • The Cannabis Paradox

    Tuesday, February 20, 2018 2658
    Roger Ladouceur – Canadian Family Physician February 2018 “The evidence indicates the most consistent effects of medical cannabinoids are adverse events. A variety of adverse events have a greater magnitude of effect than the potential benefits for the conditions targeted. 1 The conclusions drawn by this analysis are not surprising. Study after study, analysis after analysis, and review after review 2 , 3 have all reported the same findings: cannabis has little place within current therapeutic...
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  • Cannabis does more harm than good: Health officials warn doctors against prescribing the drug for ailments as the effects outweigh the minor benefits

    Monday, February 19, 2018 1891
    New medical guidelines have been issued in Canada, where cannabis is legal They warn the effects of the drug outweigh minor benefits for most conditions And for some, it states it most often is only marginally better than a placebo The new document will be distributed to 30,000 doctors in Canada New medical guidelines issued in Canada, where cannabis has been legal for medicinal use since 2001, warns that the effects of the drug outweigh any minor benefits for the vast majority of conditions....
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  • Marijuana-based anti-seizure drug could hit U.S. market in 2018 after strong study results

    Thursday, February 01, 2018 1700
    By Ariana Eunjung Cha January 24 A new class of epilepsy medications based on an ingredient derived from marijuana could be available as soon as the second half of 2018 in the United States, pending Food and Drug Administration approval. Officials from GW Pharmaceuticals, the company that developed the drug, on Wednesday announced promising results from a study on 171 patients randomized into treatment and placebo groups. Members of the group, ages 2 to 55, have a condition called...
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  • Cryptococcal meningitis in a daily cannabis smoker without evidence of immunodeficiency.

    Thursday, February 01, 2018 1996
    Abstract Cryptococcal meningitis is a life-threatening condition most commonly observed in immunocompromised individuals. We describe a daily cannabis smoker without evidence of immunodeficiency presenting with confirmed Cryptococcus neoformans meningitis. An investigation of cannabis samples from the patient's preferred dispensary demonstrated contamination with several varieties of Cryptococcus, including C. neoformans, and other opportunistic fungi. These findings raise concern regarding...
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  • US Epidemiology of Cannabis Use and Associated Problems

    Tuesday, January 09, 2018 1683
    This review provides an overview of the changing US epidemiology of cannabis use and associated problems. Adults and adolescents increasingly view cannabis as harmless, and some can use cannabis without harm. However, potential problems include harms from prenatal exposure and unintentional childhood exposure; decline in educational or occupational functioning after early adolescent use, and in adulthood, impaired driving and vehicle crashes; cannabis use disorders (CUD), cannabis withdrawal,...
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  • US Adult Illicit Cannabis Use Disorder & Medical Marijuana Laws:

    Tuesday, January 09, 2018 1858
    Conclusion : Medical marijuana laws appear to have contributed to increased prevalence of illicit cannabis use and cannabis use disorders. State-specific policy changes may also have played a role. While medical marijuana may help some, cannabis-related health consequences associated with changes in state marijuana laws should receive consideration by health care professionals and the public. View PDF
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  • "Medicinal Cannabis (CBD) Has No Abuse Potential": World Health Organisation

    Friday, December 22, 2017 1824
    The World Health Organisation has announced its findings after a months-long study into cannabidiol, or CBD, declaring the medicinal cannabis component to be well tolerated and an effective treatment for some forms of epilepsy. The WHO also recommended CBD not be a scheduled drug. According to the report, the non-psychoactive component of cannabis does not exhibit any effects indicative of abuse or dependence. Adverse side effects were put down to drug-drug interactions between CBD and a...
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  • CBD products are a rip-off for medical marijuana users, study finds

    Wednesday, December 20, 2017 1799
    By Carter Sherman Nov 8, 2017 Cannabidiol, a major component of marijuana, is in high demand these days for its purported health benefits. But a study published on Tuesday discovered that people trying to treat themselves with cannabidiol products likely aren’t getting what they’re paying for. The study, led by the University of Pennsylvania, tested 84 cannabidiol products purchased online from 31 companies and found that less than a third were properly labeled. Nearly 43 percent of the...
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  • Cannabinoid drug found effective for treating sleep apnea

    Thursday, December 07, 2017 1759
    Published Monday 4 December 2017 By Ana Sandoiu Fact checked by Honor Whiteman Sleep apnea is estimated to affect 1 in 5 American adults, and there are currently no drugs available to treat it. But a large-scale clinical trial now offers hope, proving that a drug that uses a synthetic version of the main psychoactive substance in cannabis is effective for treating the disorder. For More
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  • NSW patients to get faster access to medicinal cannabis

    Tuesday, November 28, 2017 1967
    28 November, 2017 View Article
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  • Can cannabis help treat psoriasis?

    Wednesday, November 22, 2017 2825
    20 November 2017 The best way to use cannabis to treat psoriasis is as a tincture or oil applied to the skin. Cannabis smoke should be avoided, as it can aggravate skin conditions by releasing skin-damaging chemicals into the air. For more
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  • Systematic review of safeness and therapeutic efficacy of cannabis in patients with multiple sclerosis, neuropathic pain, and in oncological patients treated with chemotherapy].

    Thursday, November 16, 2017 2528
    Abstract BACKGROUND : medical cannabis refers to the use of cannabis or cannabinoids as medical therapy to treat disease or alleviate symptoms. In the United States, 23 states and Washington DC (May 2015) have introduced laws to permit the medical use of cannabis. Within the European Union, medicinal cannabis laws and praxis vary wildly between Countries. OBJECTIVES : to provide evidence for benefits and harms of cannabis (including extracts and tinctures) treatment for adults in the following...
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  • FDA warns companies marketing unproven products, derived from marijuana, that claim to treat or cure cancer

    Thursday, November 02, 2017 1849
    For Immediate Release November 1, 2017 As part of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s ongoing efforts to protect consumers from health fraud, the agency today issued warning letters to four companies illegally selling products online that claim to prevent, diagnose, treat, or cure cancer without evidence to support these outcomes. Selling these unapproved products with unsubstantiated therapeutic claims is not only a violation of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, but also can put...
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  • The bad science of medical cannabis

    Tuesday, October 31, 2017 2172
    “I am not pro-cannabis; I think 90% is placebo.” “LAST YEAR DEDI MEIRI, A CANNABIS RESEARCHER AT THE TECHNION, ISRAEL’S OLDEST UNIVERSITY, RECEIVED A “BEFORE AND AFTER” VIDEO OF AN AUTISTIC BOY. The before showed the boy helmeted, hands tied behind his back, butting his head against a wall. The after showed him calmly sitting at a table, sketching. The difference: two drops of cannabis oil administered below the tongue. The video had been sent to Meiri by Abigail Dar, an Israeli champion for...
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  • Medicinal cannabis not miracle epilepsy drug, says professor treating Victorian children

    Monday, October 30, 2017 1922
    Alex White, EXCLUSIVE, Herald Sun October 28, 2017 MEDICINAL cannabis is no better than conventional drugs for treating children with severe epilepsy, according to a top Victorian doctor. After months of treatment, none of the 29 Victorian children accessing $1 million worth of medicinal cannabis product, imported from Canada, has been seizure free. Paediatric neurologist Professor Ingrid Scheffer told the Sunday Herald Sunmedicinal cannabis had been effective in some of the cases by reducing...
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  • The cannabis [Snake] oil ‘healers’ preying on Australia’s sick and dying

    Monday, October 16, 2017 2386
    Some of the samples contained a petroleum derivative and household disinfectant. Graphic: Simon Rankin EXCLUSIVE Christiane Barro Seriously ill patients who are turning to medical cannabis for life-saving treatment are being sold fake, poisonous and intoxicating products manufactured in backyard laboratories across Australia. The unlicensed suppliers are sending cannabis oil that contains dangerous chemicals that could lead to cancer, and then charging people $6000 for up to three months’...
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  • Race for CBD medication breakthrough: Is pharmaceutical firm’s boon the hemp industry’s doom?

    Friday, October 13, 2017 1999
    Alicia Wallace - The Denver Post October 6, 2017 Cannabidiol is a non-psychoactive cannabis compound touted for its medicinal promise, but marijuana and hemp-derived extracts rich in CBD and low in intoxicating THC are facing a future yet to be determined. This time next year, an investigational drug hailed as a breakthrough in the science of cannabidiol could be prescribed to children suffering from treatment-resistant epilepsy. The prospect of its success, however, has caused some unease in...
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  • 80 Percent Of Medical Marijuana Tested At Recent NorCal Conference Is Tainted With Mold, Other Toxins

    Monday, October 09, 2017 2331
    By JAY BARMANN IN NEWS 2017 Cannabis sold at Bay Area dispensaries is regularly referred to as "medicine," however a lack of regulation and testing around the product has led to significant supply of marijuana on dispensary shelves being tainted and/or toxic to the people who consume it. Following the recent HempCon at the Cow Palace in August, an array of medical marijuana products underwent testing by Hunters Point-based Anresco Laboratories. As San Francisco Magazine reports , some 80...
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  • Ireland: The medicinal cannabis bill passed through the Dáil last year, but now it's on the shelf

    Tuesday, September 26, 2017 1852
    The Bill and the report The Cannabis for Medicinal Use Regulation Bill 2016 passed through the Dáil on 1 December when the government chose not to oppose it. The bill would allow for the legalisation of cannabis for medicinal purposes. It proposes the establishment of a Cannabis Regulation Authority which would manage and licence the sale of cannabis for medicinal use. The bill also contains provisions for cannabis to be prescribed by general registered doctors and for cannabis to be removed...
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  • An entire state's doctors have shunned medical cannabis

    Friday, September 22, 2017 2564
    Rachel Worsley 30th May 2017 None of WA’s 10,679 doctors have applied to prescribe medical cannabis since it was legalized in November. According to the AMA WA, the lack of interest is because doctors do not believe there is evidence to prescribe medical cannabis for anything other than in paediatric epilepsy and MS. https://www.australiandoctor.com.au/news/latest-news/wa-doctors-shun-medical-cannabis AMA cautious about medicinal cannabis But the Australian Medical Association of WA said it...
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  • Speechlessness in Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome: [Existing, trialled and approved] Cannabis-Based Medicines Improve Severe Vocal Blocking Tics in Two Patients.

    Thursday, September 07, 2017 1917
    Abstract We report the cases of two young German male patients with treatment-resistant Tourette syndrome (TS), who suffer from incapacitating stuttering-like speech disfluencies caused by vocal blocking tics and palilalia. Case 1: a 19-year old patient received medical cannabis at a dose of 1 × 0.1 g cannabis daily. Case 2: a 16-year old patient initially received dronabinol at a maximum dose of 22.4-33.6 mg daily. Both treatments provided significant symptom improvement of vocal blocking...
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  • Concern with potential rise in super potent cannabis concentrates

    Monday, September 04, 2017 1877
    21 July 2017 University of Queensland researchers are concerned the recent legalisation of medicinal cannabis in Australia may give rise to super-potent cannabis concentrates with associated harmful effects. UQ Centre for Youth Substance Abuse Research’s Dr Gary Chan, who led the butane hash oil study, said a significant proportion of cannabis users used the concentrate. “Butane hash oil is a cannabis concentrate that is over 10 times more potent than herbal cannabis,” Dr Chan said. “Although...
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  • Cannabis-derived compound may help treat schizophrenia

    Monday, July 03, 2017 1896
    Uncovering the therapeutic potential of CBD New research paves the way for a new schizophrenia treatment, by testing the effect of a cannabis compound on rats. The study suggests that the cannabis-derived substance may improve schizophrenia-specific cognitive impairment, with none of the side effects that current medication has…CBD can affect learning, memory, and attention, which suggests that the compound could help manage cognitive symptoms more effectively and with fewer side effects than...
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  • False hope driving claims medicinal cannabis is magic pill

    Thursday, May 18, 2017 2189
    13 May 2017 ‘’False hope’’ driving claims medicinal cannabis is ‘’magic pill’’ for chronic pain relief. Prescribing medicinal cannabis for patients with chronic non-cancer pain is not going to revolutionise their treatment and should not be supported until there is substantial proof of its effectiveness, according to a leading pain specialist. Professor Milton Cohen is presenting Medicinal cannabis for chronic non-cancer pain: promise or pothole? at the Australian and New Zealand College of...
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  • Cannabis compound may halve seizures for patients with severe epilepsy

    Thursday, May 11, 2017 1818
    Written by Honor Whiteman Published:19 April 2017 For individuals with a severe form of epilepsy, a new study finds that the occurrence of seizures could be significantly reduced with a daily dose of cannabidiol - a chemical component of cannabis. Researchers say that cannabidiol - an active chemical in cannabis - could help to reduce seizures for patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. Researchers from the Ohio State University found that individuals with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) who took...
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  • Medical marijuana laws linked to greater increase in illicit use, disorders

    Monday, May 08, 2017 1617
    Written by Honor Whiteman Increased legalization of marijuana for medical purposes may be fueling illicit use of the drug, as well as increasing the number marijuana use disorders, according to the results of a new study. Researchers have identified a greater increase in illicit marijuana use and disorders in states that have legalized medical marijuana. An analysis of data from three national surveys in the United States revealed a higher increase in illicit marijuana use and marijuana use...
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  • US Adult Illicit Cannabis Use, Cannabis Use Disorder, and Medical Marijuana Laws1991-1992 to 2012-2013

    Wednesday, April 26, 2017 1520
    Deborah S. Hasin, PhD1,2,3 ; Aaron L. Sarvet, MPH1,2 ; Magdalena Cerdá, DrPH4 ; et al Katherine M. Keyes, PhD1,3 ; Malka Stohl, MS2 ; Sandro Galea, MD, DrPH5 ; Melanie M. Wall, PhD1,2,6 JAMA Psychiatry. Published online April 26, 2017. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2017.0724 Question Are US state medical marijuana laws one of the underlying factors for increases in risk for adult cannabis use and cannabis use disorders seen since the early 1990s? Findings In this analysis using US national survey...
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  • Effects of a Sativex-Like Combination of Phytocannabinoids on Disease Progression in R6/2 Mice, an Experimental Model of Huntington's Disease.

    Monday, April 24, 2017 1684
    Valdeolivas S1,2,3, Sagredo O4,5,6, Delgado M7,8, Pozo MA9,10, Fernández-Ruiz J11,12,13. Author information Abstract Several cannabinoids afforded neuroprotection in experimental models of Huntington's disease (HD). We investigated whether a 1:1 combination of botanical extracts enriched in either ∆⁸-tetrahydrocannabinol (∆⁸-THC) or cannabidiol (CBD), which are the main constituents of the cannabis-based medicine Sativex®, is beneficial in R6/2 mice (a transgenic model of HD), as it was...
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  • Selective post-training time window for memory consolidation interference of cannabidiol into the prefrontal cortex: Reduced dopaminergic modulation and immediate gene expression in limbic circuits.

    Monday, April 24, 2017 1657
    Rossignoli MT1, Lopes-Aguiar C2, Ruggiero RN3, Do Val da Silva RA4, Bueno-Junior LS5, Kandratavicius L6, Peixoto-Santos JE7, Crippa JA8, Cecilio Hallak JE9, Zuardi AW10, Szawka RE11, Anselmo-Franci J12, Leite JP13, Romcy-Pereira RN14. Abstract The prefrontal cortex (PFC), amygdala and hippocampus display a coordinated activity during acquisition of associative fear memories. Evidence indicates that PFC engagement in aversive memory formation does not progress linearly as previously thought....
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  • Low-Dose Cannabidiol Is Safe but Not Effective in the Treatment for Crohn's Disease, a Randomized Controlled Trial.

    Monday, April 24, 2017 1815
    Naftali T1,2, Mechulam R3,4, Marii A5, Gabay G6,7, Stein A6,7, Bronshtain M6,7, Laish I6,7, Benjaminov F6,7, Konikoff FM6,7. Author information Abstract BACKGROUND: Cannabidiol (CBD) is an anti-inflammatory cannabinoid shown to be beneficial in a mouse model of IBD. Lacking any central effect, cannabidiol is an attractive option for treating inflammatory diseases. AIM: To assess the effects of cannabidiol on Crohn's disease in a randomized placebo-controlled trial. CONCLUSION: In this study of...
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  • Australian Psychiatrist Patrick McGorry Plans to Dope “Anxious” 12 Year Olds with “Medical” Cannabis

    Wednesday, April 05, 2017 2248
    “Citizens Commission on Human Rights International is opposing the world-first study that could lead to millions of Australian and American teens being doped with prescribed marijuana.” By CCHR International The Mental Health Industry Watchdog March 15, 2017 Australian psychiatrist Patrick McGorry, renowned for his debunked and dangerous theory that pre-drugging adolescents with antipsychotics can prevent psychosis, now plans to prescribe medical cannabis to treat “anxious” 12 year olds. His...
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  • A 'Catch-22' of medical marijuana and organ transplants

    Tuesday, April 04, 2017 2041
    By Jacqueline Howard, CNN Mon April 3, 2017 A rise in the use of medical marijuana has spurred a debate about organ transplantation, and it's changing some laws across the nation. Garry Godfrey found out in 2010 that he was removed from an organ transplant waiting list in Maine due to a health risk associated with his use of medical marijuana, CNN affiliate WGME reported . Now Godfrey is speaking out in support of a bill in Maine that would prohibit hospitals from determining a patient's...
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  • Epidiolex Trails Advancing – Good news for legitimate trailed and tested CBD Medicines.

    Monday, April 03, 2017 1977
    On September 26, 2016, GW Pharmaceuticals, a British company, announced a second positive Phase 3 pivotal trial for Epidiolex (cannabidiol) in the treatment of Lennon-Gastaut Syndrome, a rare and severe form of childhood-onset epilepsy. According to GW’s website: “In this trial, Epidiolex, when added to the patient’s current treatment, achieved the primary endpoint for both dose levels with high statistical significance. During the treatment period, patients taking Epidiolex 20mg/kg/day...
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  • Medical Marijuana Brief to Australian Parliamentarians

    Monday, February 27, 2017 1679
    Why the rush for unregulated cannabis oils as medicine? The current push for the NSW and Federal Governments to abandon testing strictures on the medical use of cannabis oils is likely due to recreational cannabis users seeking quicker access to medical cannabis for their recreational use. Legislators must recognise that the latest form of recreational use of cannabis is via cannabis oils and tinctures being used with e-cigarettes or vaporiser pens. This form of smoking emits an odourless...
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  • GW Pharmaceuticals Achieves Positive Results in Phase 2 Proof of Concept Study in Glioma

    Tuesday, February 14, 2017 2185
    GW intends to advance oncology research and development efforts LONDON , Feb. 07, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — GW Pharmaceuticals plc (Nasdaq:GWPH) (“GW,” “the Company” or “the Group”), a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel therapeutics from its proprietary cannabinoid product platform, today announced positive top-line results from an exploratory Phase 2 placebo-controlled clinical study of a proprietary combination of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)...
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  • Is your medical marijuana safe? UC Davis doctors say dangerous bacteria, fungi can lurk in pot

    Tuesday, February 14, 2017 1974
    BY CLAUDIA BUCK In uneasy news for medical marijuana users, UC Davis researchers have identified potentially lethal bacteria and mold on samples from 20 Northern California pot growers and dispensaries, leading the doctors to warn patients with weakened immune systems to avoid smoking, vaping or inhaling aerosolized cannabis. "For the vast majority of cannabis users, this is not of great concern," said Dr. George Thompson, professor in the UC Davis Department of Medical Microbiology and...
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  • Can Marijuana Help Treat Fibromyalgia?

    Wednesday, February 01, 2017 1863
    Written by Jayne Leonard Reviewed by Alana Biggers, MD, MPH Studies in the area of marijuana use for the treatment of fibromyalgia are lacking. The findings among the existing literature are mixed. Research into the use of marijuana for treating fibromyalgia has produced mixed findings so far. Some research indicates that the use of cannabis is associated with beneficial effects on some of the symptoms of fibromyalgia. On the other hand, a 2016 review of studies found insufficient evidence to...
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  • Medical marijuana user 'shocked' by recall over hydrogen cyanide risk

    Wednesday, February 01, 2017 1955
    "Putting patient safety at risk is unacceptable, and for a government department that is supposed to take care of people's safety, I think they've fallen down on the job," said Percy. He said he's written to the health minister and to members of Parliament. He believes Health Canada should test marijuana for more than 13 compounds to ensure it's safe for consumption. Percy said he and other licensed medical marijuana patients have discussed starting a class-action lawsuit. Read More
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  • Freedom from the ['Medicinal'] Marijuana Trap

    Friday, January 20, 2017 1887
    I had my recreational marijuana card for 10 years and was a daily smoker/dabber/edible eater/etc etc etc. I’m ashamed to admit that I was very much a part of the cannabis scene, what a complete and utter waste of time. With that said, the best decision I ever made in my life was ripping my California “medical” marijuana doctor’s recommendation to shreds and making the decision to never touch that garbage again. In my early 20s, I was really struggling with mental health issues that were...
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  • Does marijuana affect ADHD?

    Thursday, January 19, 2017 1949
    In a study of 268 separate online discussion threads, 25 percent of people said they believed that marijuana was useful. The researchers point out, however, that research proving a connection between marijuana and positive therapeutic outcomes is limited. Other limited studies have suggested that marijuana would improve cognitive ability and impulse control, so it may be useful for ADHD. Other research shows that marijuana use had no effect on cognitive abilities, or possibly made them worse,...
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  • American Epilepsy Society's Letter On Marijuana And CBD 2016

    Thursday, January 19, 2017 1982
    EXCERPT: "The families and children coming to Colorado are receiving unregulated, highly variable artisanal preparations of cannabis oil prescribed, in most cases, by physicians with no training in pediatrics, neurology or epilepsy. As a result, the epilepsy specialists in Colorado have been at the bedside of children having severe dystonic reactions and other movement disorders, developmental regression, intractable vomiting and worsening seizures that can be so severe they have to put the...
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  • The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics : Cannabis and Cannabinoids

    Thursday, January 05, 2017 2079
    The cannabinoids dronabinol (Marinol, and generics) and nabilone (Cesamet) are effectivefor treatment of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, for which they have been approved in the US. Cannabinoid products may also be effective for second-line treatment of cancer pain and the neuropathic pain and spasticity of multiple sclerosis, but none are currently approved for these indications. Cannabidiol (CBD) alone, which is not psychoactive, may be effective for treatment of epilepsy, but more...
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  • Casual cannabis use: Is there a link to depression?

    Thursday, December 22, 2016 1703
    Conclusion : "Our data indicate that infrequent users have a stronger relationship with negative mood. Our data suggested that those that use cannabis casually scored higher on the CES-D scale for depression, and consequently could be at greater risk for developing pre-depression symptomology compared to both chronic users and controls." For more
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  • Marijuana for morning sickness can harm your unborn child

    Tuesday, December 20, 2016 2170
    By Will Boggs MD (Reuters Health) – Pregnant women who use marijuana to treat their nausea may be harming their unborn children, according to a warning from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). "Although more research is needed, there is strong reason to believe marijuana could be harmful to fetal development,” NIDA director Dr. Nora D. Volkow told Reuters Health by email. “Women who are pregnant should avoid using marijuana, even though it might seem like a 'natural' solution to their...
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  • Cost Recovery Implementation Statement: Regulation of Medicinal Cannabis

    Tuesday, December 20, 2016 1706
    Download Document
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  • Marijuana: Could it slow Parkinson’s Disease Progression?

    Wednesday, December 14, 2016 1951
    Written by Marie Ellis Published: Friday 9 December 2016 Parkinson's disease is the second most common neurological illness in the United States, causing tremors, slowness of movement, postural instability, and impaired balance and coordination. But findings from a new review suggest symptoms of the condition could be improved with marijuana. A new review suggests medical marijuana could improve symptoms of Parkinson's disease, but more research is warranted. The review was led by Prof. Zvi...
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  • GW Announces New Epidiolex® (CBD) Positive Phase 3 Data in Dravet Syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome

    Thursday, December 08, 2016 2043
    At the 70th annual meeting of the American Epilepsy Society in Houston this week, GW Pharmaceuticals announced results of the first ever randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies of CBD. The company’s proprietary CBD drug is called Epidiolex. In the Dravet syndrome study, 43 percent of patients taking Epidiolex had a greater than or equal to 50 percent reduction in convulsive seizures compared to 27 percent of patients taking placebo. Seven patients taking Epidiolex achieved total...
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  • THC Intoxication by Cannabidiol-Enriched Cannabis Extract in Two Children with Refractory Epilepsy:

    Friday, October 21, 2016 1796
    Δ9-THC Intoxication by Cannabidiol-Enriched Cannabis Extract in Two Children with Refractory Epilepsy: Full Remission after Switching to Purified Cannabidiol José A. S. Crippa 1 *, Ana C. S. Crippa 2 , Jaime E. C. Hallak 1 , Rocio Martín-Santos 1 , 3 and Antonio W. Zuardi 1 1 Department of Neuroscience and Behavior, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil 2 Department of Clinical Medicine, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil 3 Institute of Neuroscience, Hospital Clinic,...
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  • GW Pharmaceuticals Announces Second Positive Phase 3 Pivotal Trial for Epidiolex in the Treatment of Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome

    Tuesday, October 11, 2016 2156
    London, UK; 26 Sept 2016: GW Pharmaceuticals plc (Nasdaq: GWPH, AIM: “GWP,” “GW,” “the Company” or “the Group”), a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel therapeutics from its proprietary cannabinoid product platform, announces positive results of the second randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 3 clinical trial of its investigational medicine Epidiolex® (cannabidiol or CBD) for the treatment of seizures associated with...
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  • Why Marijuana Is Not Medicine

    Wednesday, September 21, 2016 1887
    Check out this article For full article
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  • The Dirty Little Secret Pot Pushers Don’t Want You to Know About

    Tuesday, August 16, 2016 2029
    States have passed so-called “medical marijuana” laws under the theory that pot has medicinal benefits that can’t be produced by other, legal means. But what if there was a Food and Drug Administration-approved drug that gave you all the benefits of the active ingredients in marijuana, such as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or cannabidiol? What if that drug had been rigorously tested through clinical trials to make sure that it worked as promised, was properly dosed, and had no unanticipated side...
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  • Does oral cannabidiol convert to THC, a psychoactive form of cannabinoid, in the stomach?

    Thursday, June 30, 2016 2420
    A new study demonstrating the conversion of oral cannabidiol (CBD) to the psychoactive component tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in the presence of gastric fluids could explain why children given CBD to treat epilepsy had an unexpectedly high rate of adverse effects such as sleepiness and fatigue . The study, "Identification of Psychoactive Degradants of Cannabidiol in Simulated Gastric and Physiologic Fluid," is published in Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research, a new peer-reviewed journal from Mary...
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  • Australia legislates for 100% GMO Biotech Cannabis not Marijuana

    Thursday, June 30, 2016 2772
    However, what most people do not know is that the Cannabis Australia is allowing to be imported for the first time includes GMO Cannabis. GMO or Genetically Modified Organism Cannabis has been around since 2011 due to breakthroughs in research and Biotechnology by Ethan Russo and GW UK helping in the process. In 2014 even newer GMO Cannabis strains has been introduced. In early April 2016 as we speak, an Australian delegation is traveling to Asia to look at GMO Cannabis with no THC, and in...
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  • Poster child for medical marijuana dies

    Tuesday, June 21, 2016 2183
    Epilepsy sufferer, 13, who became poster child for medical marijuana after moving to Maine to access alternative treatment has died in her father's arms Cyndimae Meehan, 13, sparked media attention and changed policy. She moved to Maine from Connecticut as FDA drugs had failed her. Only cannabis oil effectively treated her habitual seizures, family claimed. Last year her family was driving force behind Maine bill that approved housing in schools for kids who need round-the-clock medical...
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  • Slow and steady on medicinal cannabis

    Tuesday, June 07, 2016 2009
    Nicole MacKee - Monday, 30 May, 2016 THE importance of building a solid evidence base for the role of medicinal cannabis products must not be lost in moves to make the drug more widely available, say researchers. In a Perspective published online by the MJA today , researchers have called for “considered management” in the wake of federal reforms to enable the cultivation of cannabis for medicinal and scientific purposes in Australia. Sussan Ley, federal Minister for Health, described the...
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  • Chemical in marijuana shows promise in treating schizophrenia

    Friday, May 13, 2016 2027
    Published: Thursday 5 May 2016 According to new research at Western University, marijuana is the ultimate contradiction; at least when it comes to schizophrenia . This first-of-its-kind study, published in the journal Neuroscience, demonstrates that a chemical found in marijuana called cannabidiol, or CBD, affects the brain in a way that makes it an ideal treatment option for schizophrenia. This research comes just months after the same lab found that adolescent exposure to THC, the other...
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  • 5 reasons marijuana is not medicine

    Friday, May 06, 2016 2822
    By Bertha Madras April 29 2016 Each week, In Theory takes on a big idea in the news and explores it from a range of perspectives. This week, we’re talking about drug scheduling. Need a primer? Catch up here. Bertha Madras is a professor of psychobiology at McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School, with a research focus on how drugs affect the brain. She is former deputy director for demand reduction in the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. Data from 2015 indicate that 30...
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  • Medical Marijuana: Review of the Science and Implications for Developmental Behavioral Pediatric Practice

    Tuesday, May 03, 2016 2271
    Scott E. Hadland, MD, MPH,1,2 John R. Knight, MD,1,3 and Sion K. Harris, PhD1,2,3 Author information ► Copyright and License information ► The publisher's final edited version of this article is available at J Dev Behav Pediatr See other articles in PMC that cite the published article. Abstract Marijuana policy is rapidly evolving in the United States and elsewhere, with cannabis sales fully legalized and regulated in some jurisdictions and use of the drug for medicinal purposes permitted in...
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  • Marijuana use is associated with worse outcomes in symptom severity and violent behavior in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder.

    Tuesday, May 03, 2016 2016
    Wilkinson ST1, Stefanovics E, Rosenheck RA. Abstract OBJECTIVE : An increasing number of states have approved posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a qualifying condition for medical marijuana, although little evidence exists evaluating the effect of marijuana use in PTSD. We examined the association between marijuana use and PTSD symptom severity in a longitudinal, observational study. METHOD : From 1992 to 2011, veterans with DSM-III/-IV PTSD (N = 2,276) were admitted to specialized...
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  • Narrative review of the safety and efficacy of marijuana for the treatment of commonly state-approved medical and psychiatric disorders

    Monday, May 02, 2016 2050
    • Katherine A Belendiuk, • Lisa L Baldini and • Marcel O Bonn-MillerEmail author Addiction Science & Clinical Practice201510:10 DOI: 10.1186/s13722-015-0032-7 © Belendiuk et al.; licensee BioMed Central. 2015 Published: 21 April 2015 Abstract The present investigation aimed to provide an objective narrative review of the existing literature pertaining to the benefits and harms of marijuana use for the treatment of the most common medical and psychological conditions for which it has been...
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