12/07/2016

“We see specific morphological changes in the brain to important neurotransmitter systems, and individuals who are exposed to THC early in life show greater sensitivity to opiates than others do,” she said. “We know that the brain definitely adapts to marijuana. It is profoundly changing the receptors and receptor signaling that impact gene expression. And the changes it makes last through adulthood and even into the next generation. So we see that there’s something about the ongoing processes in the developing brain that this drug somehow sensitizes—in the cells, the receptors, and in the signaling cascades—that makes kids more vulnerable to addiction and other problems later.”

“There is a lot of optimism for what components of the marijuana plant may offer on a medicinal level but, like all other drugs, the caveat is that you have to know what it does, what population it can be used for, and who could be vulnerable to its effects. We need a lot more research before we can say anything concrete about its future as a treatment.”

12/01/2016

Both of the boys who died in a horrific crash on Olympic View Drive in Edmonds over the summer had THC, the ingredient in marijuana responsible for most of its psychological effects, in their bodies.

11/21/2016

Colorado has experienced a significant jump in patients seeking emergency medical treatment for complications related to suspected marijuana use since 2014, when the state legalized the drug for commercial sales, according to a presentation by Denver health officials. Still, marijuana-related emergency department visits represent less than 1 percent of all ER visits, said the officials, who shared their experiences and lessons learned during a phone call with the Boston Public Health Commission.

11/17/2016

n 2015, the report notes, substance-abuse disorders affected 20.8 million people in the United States — as many as those with diabetes and 1.5 times as many as those with cancer. Yet, Murthy said, only one in 10 people receives treatment.
“We would never tolerate a situation where only one in 10 people with cancer or diabetes gets treatment, and yet we do that with substance-abuse disorders,” he said.

11/15/2016

11/13/2016

2015 Stats: Hillsborough County reported 66 alcohol crash fatalities up from 56 in 2014 (17.86% increase) This is the highest number of fatalities in the state. #2 Orange and Duval both 55, #3 Miami Dade 53
Hillsborough also #1 in alcohol-related injuries: 993 and #1 alcohol related-crashes: 1,469
Let's compare next year when legal marijuana hits our highways!
 
 

11/02/2016

The Governor is now proposing new and significant budget cuts for this upcoming legislation session in the following areas:  capital construction for our schools, health and human services,  public safety/courts, healthcare including Colorado hospitals, and education including K-12 and higher education.  Areas that have experienced and reported increased negative impacts and/or costs associated with increased marijuana availability/commercialization.  

Areas mentioned where marijuana tax revenues will be spent highlight some of the negative impacts from increased marijuana availability/commercialization, and include:  

"Hiring of more mental health professionals in schools and child welfare caseworkers“

$18 million program to create affordable housing for the homeless" (Denver has reported dramatic increases in student homelessness as has other areas in Colorado.)

10/31/2016

omeone handed out candy infused with cannabis during trick-or-treating in the small town of Manlius, Illinois on Sunday, according to the Bureau County Sheriff’s Department.

10/30/2016

"More than anything, what we have done is provided good, solid evidence that there is a direct link between marijuana policies and education," lead author Andrew Plunk, PhD, from Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk,

10/19/2016

Governor Owens –
Four years ago, Colorado voted to legalize marijuana.
Colorado now leads the nation in the teen use of marijuana.
Marijuana edibles are marketed to children and marijuana-related traffic deaths have increased 62 percent.
 
Mayor Webb –
We were promised new money for education. Instead, that money has gone to marijuana regulation and the pot industry. Denver schools got nothing.
In one Colorado hospital, 50 percent of newborns tested had marijuana in their system.
Don’t repeat our terrible mistake.

10/16/2016

The Marijuana-Opioid Connection

Connection between legalization of marijuana and increase opioid addiction.
The effects of marijuana on the brain of an unborn child. Predisposing children for addiction. Here are the studies cited. 

10/06/2016

“Whether it’s a stoned tourist or a stoned resident, our highway and transportation systems will be laden with impaired operators if we allow these dispensaries to set up shop,” warned Teresa Miller if Amendment Two passes next month. “Our county is already No. 1 in the state for DUI arrests and crashes. Do we want to put our families at greater risks by sanctioning more impaired drivers? Do we really want to attempt to regulate a plant that can be grown in someone’s backyard? Do we want pot shops, or palm trees down Dale Mabry?”

09/30/2016

09/28/2016

Using a quasi-experimental design wherein we assessed cannabis use patterns after the onset of psychosis, we were able to investigate the causal nature of the association between cannabis use and risk of relapse in psychosis. Although it has been proposed that a common genetic liability or reverse causation may underlie the association between continued cannabis use and relapse,13 our results indicate that change in cannabis use represents a robust risk factor for relapse in patients with FEP.

09/25/2016

Compassion compels efforts to care for the sick and to alleviate suffering. However, in this pursuit, society must ensure that those in need are not further endangered by exposing them to even greater harm. While there could be beneficial applications to the proposed use of marijuana, voters must carefully assess the risks and anticipated problems involved in amending the Florida Constitution to garner them.http://flaccb.org/news/amendment-2-concerns-to-weigh-before-voting 

09/19/2016

09/16/2016

As former Florida Supreme Court justices who love Florida and its great Constitution, we urge voters to protect and defend our Constitution and the fundamental principles of representative government by voting "no" on Amendment 2.

09/13/2016

Alcohol use during pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs), which are physical, behavioral, and intellectual disabilities that last a lifetime. FASD is 100% preventable.

09/05/2016

•  If you grow no more than five plants, you will not be prosecuted — but if police discover your plants, they can (and usually will) take all of them.
• The most recent coffeeshop count in the Netherlands was 582, with about a third of them, 187, located in Amsterdam. Tourists who only visit Amsterdam can easily get the impression that Dutch cities have a coffeeshop on every corner, but this is far from the truth.
• The proportion of Dutch national residents, ages 15 to 64, who have consumed cannabis at least once in their life is 24.1 percent, the European average for the same group is 24.8 percent. In France, a country with a very repressive cannabis policy, the number is no less than 40.9 percent. And a recent poll found that 43 percent of American adults have tried cannabis at some point. 
• Consuming in public: This might have been true 20 or 30 years ago, but times have changed. If you smoke a joint on a terrace of a bar or restaurant, the staff will most likely ask you to put it out. Many cities, including Amsterdam, have introduced zones where you can be fined if you consume cannabis in public.

09/01/2016

09/01/2016

A common theme among every article in this issue is the overlap be- tween NMUPD, excessive drinking, and marijuana and other forms of substance use. In every investigation, nonmedical users were observed to have a history of using alcohol, marijuana, tobacco, and other psycho- active substances. Kalyanam, Katsuki, Lanckriet, and Mackey (2017)
Kalyanam, J., Katsuki, T., Lanckriet, G., & Mackey, T. K. (2017). Exploring trends of non- medical use of prescription drugs and polydrug abuse in the Twittersphere using un- supervised machine learning. Addictive Behaviors, 65, 289–295. http://dx.doi.org/10. 1016/j.addbeh.2016.08.019.

08/31/2016

The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) is a professional organization of over 28,000 practicing neurologists and neuroscientists with a deep and abiding interest in assuring the best possible care of patients with all types of neurologic disorders. With officials at state and federal levels adopting policies regarding the use of medical marijuana, it is important for the AAN to have an official position on the issue that can assist policymakers.

08/24/2016

“While marijuana can cause anxiety and paranoia, addiction, decreased cognition, behavioural problems and impaired driving,” doctors said, Trudeau’s promise to legalize it means all they can do is try to persuade him to anticipate future health costs, introduce measures to protect public safety, and ensure there is appropriate surveillance of consequences.

08/20/2016

Florida is a target for THC pushers who are already bringing in THC-infused “edibles” which are often disguised as cookies and candy that are marketed to escape detection.

08/20/2016

Edible marijuana exposures are increasing and may lead to severe respiratory depression.

08/19/2016

No medical association to include the AMA or any of the related organization associated with the disease(s) "medical" marijuana claims to cure or help proponents bring false hope and misinformation to thousands of families. 

08/17/2016

The ordinance limits the approved area of medical marijuana dispensaries to just under 4 acres next to South Florida Baptist Hospital and Maryland Fried Chicken in the C1-B Neighborhood Business District.  Additionally, medical marijuana dispensaries in Plant City must be at least 500 feet from any pre-existing school, church, daycare facility, substance abuse treatment facility, public park or residential area. 

08/15/2016

The Japanese man who stabbed and killed 19 disabled people in 2016 frequently advocated for marijuana legalization.  Just weeks before his attack, Uematsu had been diagnosed with cannabis-induced psychosis and paranoia.   

08/09/2016

If you wonder why America is in the grips of a heroin epidemic that kills two hundred people a week, take a hard look at the legalization of pot, which destroyed the profits of the Mexican cartels. How did they respond to a major loss in revenue? Like any company, they created an irresistible new product and flooded the market. The scariest part: this might not have happened with El Chapo in charge.

08/05/2016

Marijuana is typically four-times stronger than it was a couple decades ago. On top of the boosted potency, since legalization, growers have been able to refine their skills to grow strains for unique and specific ailments. Not to mention the exploding market of concentrates and dab culture.

08/04/2016

A June report by the DEA's Denver division warns of potential dangers and annoyances posed by large-scale marijuana growing operations hidden in residential neighborhoods. These operations can be a nuisance to neighbors, prompting complaints about "strong odors, excessive noise from industrial air-conditioning units, blown electrical transformers, and heavy vehicle traffic," according to the DEA.

Beyond that, a big indoor marijuana operation requires lots of high-powered lighting, water, and ventilation. People making these modifications in a haphazard or amateurish way risk doing serious damage to their homes.

08/02/2016

“There is nothing medical about this proposal, and the lack of scientific evidence that pot is helpful in treating medical conditions is far from inclusive.”

07/28/2016

The FDA just approved a new, synthetic THC product for use in treating a variety of ailments, in liquid form. But despite being the first liquid THC replacement on the market, this may not be worth the buzz.

07/25/2016

The exposures can make kids really sick, she said. The majority of the children had symptoms including sleepiness or trouble with balance, which typically goes away within six to 24 hours. But about 20 percent needed to be admitted to the hospital and 15 percent of cases were so severe they ended up in the intensive care unit. "Marijuana exposures in young children have resulted in respiratory compromise requiring the use of a ventilator and intensive care unit admission in a handful of cases,"

07/22/2016

 Risk communication was the most common form of communication. In multivariate models, risk communication was associated with increased odds of a student remaining abstinent but not with frequency of marijuana use or negative consequences. Greater permissive communication was associated with more approving student attitudes, greater odds of non-abstinence, more frequent use in the past year, and more negative consequences. These findings highlight the need to consider the different types of messages parents deliver when designing interventions aimed at engaging parents in marijuana prevention efforts.

07/14/2016

9:50 to 14:30. - Temple Terrace and Lakeland strategies.

07/01/2016

An increased risk of psychosis, changes in the brain's reward system and the scrambled neuron signals that may underlie "the munchies" are just some of the many potential effects of marijuana use on the brain.

06/30/2016

Legalizing the recreational use of marijuana sends a message to children and young people that drug use is socially and morally acceptable. As people of faith, we must speak out against this effort and the damaging effects its passage would have on the children and families of Arizona.
Studies have shown that adolescents who use marijuana have significant differences in brain structure and cognitive functioning compared to those who do not use marijuana and experience up to an eight-point drop in IQ. Furthermore, based on what happened in just two years after Colorado legalized marijuana, it is estimated that if Arizona passes this measure, tens of thousands of additional 8th graders here will smoke marijuana for the first time.

06/29/2016

“Many existing marijuana intervention programs target students age 15 and older,” Chen said. “Our findings demonstrate the need to start drug education much earlier, in the fourth or fifth grade. This gives us an opportunity to make a preemptive strike before they actually start using marijuana.”

06/25/2016

Officers searched Calloway’s vehicle after smelling the pot. Officers say they found 22.9 grams of hash oil, 2,320 grams of pot and 84 bags of gummy candies laced with THC. 

06/21/2016

In Colorado, homeless programs are severely overextended, housing costs are skyrocketing and while marijuana might be legal, public consumption of it isn’t — which means those like Butts who don’t have private residences can still face harsh consequences for using it. It doesn’t help that marijuana jobs are difficult, if not impossible, to obtain by those struggling with homelessness. 

06/20/2016

Summary: Cannabis use during pregnancy is associated with abnormal brain structure in children, according to a new study. 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.

06/19/2016

It's certainly possible to go to a musical festival and take in the performances while consuming the substance(s) of your choice responsibly and having a genuinely enjoyable time, and it's just as possible to experience the exact opposite.

06/17/2016

Analysis indicated that for each year adolescent boys engaged in regular marijuana use, their projected level of subsequent subclinical psychotic symptoms increased by 21% and projected risk for subclinical paranoia or hallucinations increased by 133% and 92%, respectively.

06/14/2016

"The rapid growth in concentrates and edibles is the continuation of a two-year trend, as consumers increasingly prefer alternative consumption methods to smoking," BDS Analytics CEO Roy Bingham told Civilized in an e-mail. 
Also, increased are hospitalization, ER visits and vehicle fatal accidents. 

06/06/2016

“They told me I was having a psychotic episode brought on by cannabis,” said Thibodeau, who requested that the Star use his grandmother’s surname as he is still recovering from the breakdown.
“I was shocked. We live in a society where there is such a culture around smoking dope that people think it is cool to be a stoner. Nobody ever talks about the pitfalls.”

06/06/2016

A 17-year-old boy beat a 14-year-old to death in Virginia last month after he asked the younger teen to smoke marijuana with him and the younger boy told an adult, law enforcement sources told News4.

05/26/2016

Recent research has documented high rates of comorbidity between cannabis use disorders and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in veterans.
Overall, 14.6% of participants reported using cannabis in the past 6 months. After controlling for age, race, service era, and combat exposure, past 6-month cannabis use was associated with unmarried status, use of tobacco products, other drug use, hazardous alcohol use, PTSD severity, depressive symptom severity, and suicidality. The present findings show that cannabis use is quite prevalent among veterans seeking PTSD specialty treatment and is associated with poorer mental health and use of other substances.

05/22/2016

The driver involved in the crash that killed a Massachusetts state trooper in March had visited a medical marijuana dispensary and had a half-burnt marijuana cigarette in his car, authorities said Wednesday.