As an epidemiologist and a parent, I am perplexed with the recent momentum toward legalizing marijuana. Of all the arguments I have heard, I have yet to hear any that are compelling enough to remove the drug from prescription status. One argument I have heard is that marijuana is harmless. This argument ignores the fact that numerous studies have reported harm in peer-reviewed academic journals. A summary of the evidence, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2014, concluded, "Marijuana use has been associated with substantial adverse effects, some of which have been determined with a high level of confidence." Some of those effects were addiction to marijuana and other substances, motor vehicle accidents and chronic bronchitis. [continues 658 words]
The marijuana expert was in. Dale Gieringer, 70, a coauthor of California's 20-year-old medical marijuana law, was taking questions at a metal desk plopped down in the middle of an unusual new museum exhibit, "Altered State: Marijuana in California." A neatly dressed 77-year-old woman from Walnut Creek took a seat next to him. She seemed hesitant, but determined. Her husband hovered behind her. "I've never smoked anything," the woman told Gieringer, one of several pot experts invited to answer questions on the occasional Friday evening. "And I've been using Blackberry Kush for sleeping. Will it hurt my lungs? That's what I'm worried about." [continues 906 words]
It's hardly news that marijuana causes psychosis. It was proven in that documentary in the 1930s, Reefer Madness. Ian Goble, Ajax [end]
After last week's pot raids, experts talk about restraint, acceptance of the controversial drug Everybody seems to be talking about marijuana these days. Impending legalization has prompted a many-faceted debate about how our society should incorporate the greenery, even as dispensaries selling cannabis and related goods are popping up like, well, weeds. The sprouting conversation involves many people with divergent perspectives and interests in the marijuana regime of tomorrow. Let's listen to some of them. The casual toker [continues 1946 words]
Scientists Studying What Triggers the Phenomenon Say It's A Myth That Using Cannabis Is Free of Risks At first, the voices he heard in his head were pleasant. But then, they turned malevolent. Jean Thibodeau, a 19-year-old University of Toronto student and avid pot smoker, became convinced he was possessed by the devil. He could see blood gushing down his chest and feel a deep gash in his neck. "I remember thinking, 'I'm going to die,' " Thibodeau said. [continues 894 words]
Richard Kirk Is Charged With Murder, but a Lawsuit Contends That Edible Marijuana Made Him Do It. DENVER - Kristine Kirk's last moments were a harrowing collision of terror and confusion. Her husband, Richard, had burst through the door ranting about the end of the world. He began climbing in and out of a first-floor window, lying on the bedroom floor and asking for someone to kill him. Then he retrieved a pistol from his safe. "He's taking the gun out, sir," Kristine, 44, told a Denver 911 dispatcher. "I don't know where to go.... Richard, please stop ... please stop ... please stop." [continues 897 words]
Of course marijuana will be legalized. Only the misplaced morality of our previous Conservative government was impeding the logic that crime will be lessened, tax largesse will be increased and consumer rights will finally be recognized. How could any reasonable person argue that alcohol should be legal but marijuana not? However, legalization does raise a tricky issue with which we have a responsibility to grapple: kids and marijuana. All of us on the front lines of youth mental health and well-being know too well the disastrous results of frequent marijuana usage by kids. [continues 635 words]
Re: High-potency pot poses risks to the developing brain, Opinion, May 16 While we were pleased to see The Sun devote attention to the important topic of adolescent cannabis use, we were disappointed to read Dr. Diane McIntosh's op-ed in which she stated that adolescent cannabis use increases the risk of developing schizophrenia. After intense study, scientists have concluded the evidence to date does not support the claim that cannabis causes schizophrenia. While the correlation between living with schizophrenia and using cannabis has often been observed, much of the research has suggested that the association can be explained, at least in part, by the use of cannabis as a means of self-medication among individuals predisposed to, or living with, schizophrenia. [continues 67 words]
Medical professionals worry about marijuana's effect on young people Even as the federal Liberal government moves toward legalizing marijuana, medical professionals hope that tight regulations will decrease its use and protect young people from what studies have proven can be significant damage to their brains. "Regular use of marijuana before the age of 25 has been shown to negatively affect brain development leading to lower IQ in adulthood," says Dr. Raina Fumerton, the Northern Health Authority's Terrace-based medical health officer for the northwest. [continues 714 words]
The THC Potency Of Street Marijuana Has Increased, Writes Diane McIntosh In my psychiatric practice, I treat patients with psychotic illnesses including schizophrenia. Most were born with a genetic vulnerability to develop the disorder, but many share another important life experience: they smoked pot from an early age. Debate has raged across Canada about the impending legalization/decriminalization of marijuana. Canadian physicians, in their role as advocates for physical and mental health, have been conspicuously absent from the debate. This troubling void in leadership is apparent from the lack of informed discourse exhibited across all forms of media. Our failure to educate Canadians regarding the potential risks of street pot, particularly for a developing brain, has important social, physical and psychological implications. [continues 916 words]
On a recent bright afternoon, two teenage boys in boat shoes and shorts strolled up Fifth Avenue in Manhattan in a crowd of passers-by. At 56th Street they paused as one pulled an electronic pipe out of his pocket and held it to his friend's lips. Inside was a potent and little-studied drug made from distilled marijuana; they were emboldened, they said, by the fact that the gooey wax hardly has a smell, and is so novel in New York that, even if discovered, parents, teachers or even the authorities hardly seem to know what it is. [continues 1085 words]
The three sons of a woman shot to death in 2014 have filed what appears to be the country's first wrongful-death lawsuit against the recreational marijuana industry. The lawsuit claims that the company that made the marijuana edible and the store that sold the candy to Richard Kirk recklessly and purposefully failed to warn him about the bite-sized candy's potency and possible side effects - including hallucinations and other psychotic behaviors. Hours after Kirk purchased the marijuana candy April 14, 2014, Kristine Kirk, 44, called 911 terrified of her husband, who was ranting about the end of the world and jumping in and out of windows. All three of the couple's young sons heard the gunshot that killed their mother. Their youngest son, who was 7 at the time, watched his mother die, according to an amended complaint filed Monday night. [continues 1068 words]
Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit Calls on PM to Keep Tight Grip on Legal Marijuana The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit has sent a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, hoping to spark up a conversation about the pending legalization of marijuana. The local health unit is the latest to call for strict regulations controlling how legal marijuana is grown, promoted, sold, distributed and used. Janice Greco, the health unit's injury and substance misuse manager, said the government needs to take a public health approach to cannabis legalization. [continues 524 words]
With a proposed constitutional amendment on the horizon, the House voted 71-26 on Tuesday to potentially make Ohio the 26th state to give residents legal access to medical marijuana. Some members expressed reluctance about the bill - a vote on which would have been near unfathomable just a few years ago - but after hearing of the drug's benefits and facing the prospect of a less-restrictive constitutional amendment on the November ballot, the bill was sent to the Senate. Hearings will start this morning. [continues 716 words]
My father is 84 and has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. The medication he has been prescribed for pain isn't working. He wants to try medical marijuana. But getting a doctor to prescribe cannabis is like pulling teeth. His doctor says there isn't enough scientific evidence to support its use, even though it's legally permitted by the Canadian government. What can I do to get my father cannabis? I'm surprised the doctor didn't comply with your father's wishes. [continues 730 words]
Western University Researchers Find Link to Psychosis A London scientist whose research on marijuana has also paved the way to a commercial enterprise has discovered that when it comes to schizophrenia, the use of pot can be the best and worst of times. It turns out that though one of the major chemicals in marijuana is linked to psychosis, another may serve as an effective treatment, said Steven Laviolette, an associate professor at Western University's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. [continues 299 words]
A London scientist whose research on marijuana has also paved the way to a commercial enterprise has discovered that when it comes to schizophrenia, the use of pot can be the best and worst of times. It turns out that though one of the major chemicals in marijuana is linked to psychosis, another may serve as an effective treatment, said Steven Laviolette, an associate professor at Western University's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. "Within the same plant, you've got two different chemicals that are producing opposite effects," said Laviolette, whose study was published in the journal Neuroscience. [continues 275 words]
High- Profile Coalition Will Submit 600,000 Signatures to Give Voters a Chance to Legalize Marijuana. SACRAMENTO - A measure to legalize marijuana for recreational use in California appears headed for the Nov. 8 ballot. A coalition that includes former Facebook President Sean Parker on Tuesday said it had collected 600,000 signatures, more than enough to qualify the initiative. Democratic Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and other supporters of the measure plan to kick off a campaign for voter approval of the Adult Use of Marijuana Act on Wednesday in San Francisco. [continues 605 words]
Last week, on April 20 no less, the federal government announced that legislation legalizing and regulating the recreational use of marijuana will be ready next spring. It's been a long time coming. The history of marijuana prohibition is a long and complicated one, but its origins can be summarized as a part of a widespread movement of white middle class progressives who believed in the benefits of social engineering based on ethnic, class, and Victorian moral grounds. It was a movement designed to 'uplift' society and advocated for things like women's suffrage, improved working conditions, and public health and education reform. Sadly, they also supported things like eugenics, and forced sterilization, and residential schools. [continues 969 words]
