New study says marijuana users are more likely to visit the ER and be hospitalized when compared to nonusers.
A new study says marijuana users more likely to need emergency care, painting a different picture than most people think. The study claims marijuana users are more likely to be visit emergency rooms when compared to non-users.
The study, published in the journal BMJ Open Respiratory Research, relied on self-reporting from Canadian residents between the ages of 12-65 over a six-year period. After adjusting for counfounding factors, cannabis users were 22% more likely to visit the ER or to be hospitalized.
Per the study’s abstract, its objective was “to evaluate the association between cannabis use and respiratory-related emergency room (ER) visits and hospitalisations.” Researchers didn’t find a link between cannabis use and respiratory emergency occurrences, instead, they found that people who consumed cannabis often visited the ER due to physical bodily injury.
“Physical bodily injury was the leading cause of emergency department visits and hospitalizations among the cannabis users, with respiratory reasons coming in a close second,” said study author Nicholas Vozoris, in an email exchange with CNN.
“Although no significant association was observed between cannabis use and respiratory-related ER visits or hospitalisations, the risk of an equally important morbidity outcome, all-cause ER visit or hospitalisation, was significantly greater among cannabis users than among control individuals,” concludes the research.
Marijuana use has long been associated with slower response times from users, which is why most experts recommend avoiding the use of heavy machinery or doing any physical task that demands coordination after consuming cannabis. This is a valid concern, yet one that shouldn’t be mythologized and brought out of proportion.
There are a lot of things we don’t know about cannabis, making it a priority for researchers and experts to analyze every possible aspect of the drug and how it could impact the population as a whole. Still, it’s important not to fall back on fear mongering; as we continue to embark on this new stage of cannabis use on a national level, responsible authorities should advocate for safe and responsible use of the drug.
There is no single answer or solution for how to improve the current state of cannabis in indigenous Sovereign nations because the issue is complicated, and opinions and challenges vary from tribe to tribe throughout the land.
Many lawmakers continue to say marijuana policy should be left up to individual states. Often, they then proceed to either oppose federal marijuana legalization, or deflect back to their opinion that it is a state issue. With more states legalizing marijuana, it may seem that slowly but surely the United States might fully legalize marijuana with or without federal legislation. This logic, however, overlooks a major group of people: Native Americans.
Cannabis and its tricky legality among indigenous people and their sovereign nations continues to be a topic so unresolved that the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs launched a hearing called “Cannabis In Indian Country,” which had alistening session recently.
While this committee may spark some necessary dialogue and highlight major issues on the subject, there is not one universal opinion or solution. This is because nearly every Tribal Nation has its own unique views and challenges when it comes to marijuana legalization.
A sovereign nation, by definition, should have supreme authority over how it runs, but history has shown this is not always the case with Native American Nations, and this includes marijuana laws. While many rules and governance can not be infringed upon by the federal government “Under US law, however, Congress has the authority to legislate on tribal issues. Thus, in the context of marijuana legalization efforts in Indian Country, federal laws may affect legalization implementation,” according to theCDC.
Federally recognized Native American tribes, of which there are well over 500, are often caught in limbo when it comes to marijuana legalization. “State and territorial medical marijuana markets have been protected by Congress for years. But Native American tribes were never included in those protections,” wrotePolitico. The article goes even further to say that some tribes gave up part of their own sovereignty to states just to make sure their cannabis markets were protected from the federal government. These kinds of deals between states and tribal nations are only one way that borders become blurred.
Lands within the Cherokee Nation, for example, became the first area in North Carolina where medical cannabis was legalized, making marijuana policy a bit foggy in that Western region of the state. In New York, where marijuana was recently legalized, a strange twist of fate in the form of a legal ordinance is currently allowing the Mohawk Tribal Council in Upstate New York to sell marijuana legally in dispensaries months before it was legal off the reservation.
William Roger Jock, a partner in Good Leaf Dispensary on Mohawk lands, explained this change in fate to ABC News: “We have been stepped on for so long and to have something like this happen, it’s almost liberating.” While this change of fortune is a short lived one, it is a welcome opportunity for those who often seem to get the short end of the legal loophole.
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Cannabis in Native American Nations is a complicated matter. There is no single answer or solution for how to improve the current state of cannabis in indigenous Sovereign nations because the issue is complicated, and opinions and challenges vary from tribe to tribe throughout the land.
There is one simple thing that can be done, however, in order to improve these conflicting and confusing legalities. And that thing is for lawmakers to remember and carefully consider Native Americans when making future marijuana laws, and how these laws will impact their lands and the lands bordering their nations.
Learning disabilities are usually thought of as limitations. New research shows that these conditions have benefits of their own.
A new study reframes the way scientists have been thinking about dyslexia. Researchers found that people with this particular learning disorder might have an edge when compared to people without it, having better decision-making skills, spatial awareness, and more.
The study, published in the Journal Frontiers in Psychology, reexamines the way that developmental dyslexia has been viewed, finding some of the advantages it provides for people with the condition.
The study shows that the brains of people with dyslexia might find it easier to explore their environments for clues, impacting their decision-making skills, abilities that were highly important back when humans made life or death decisions on a frequent basis.
“This research proposes a new framework to help us better understand the cognitive strengths of people with dyslexia,” said Helen Taylor, psychologist of the University of Cambridge and one of the study’s lead authors.
Dyslexia is a condition known for its impact on reading and learning. While this limitation can impact people’s self-esteem, particularly due to how modern learning is designed, scientists have found that people with dyslexia are better equipped at spatial reasoning and are also more inventive, creative, and better at predicting a variety of outcomes.
“We believe that the areas of difficulty experienced by people with dyslexia result from a cognitive trade-off between exploration of new information and exploitation of existing knowledge, with the upside being an explorative bias that could explain enhanced abilities observed in certain realms like discovery, invention, and creativity,” said Taylor.
Researchers explain that people with dyslexia have been around for ages, with our reliance on reading and learning — relatively new developments in terms of evolution — bringing this issue to the forefront, prompting experts to view them as a cognitive limitation.
Dyslexia is a common condition, with around 3 million cases reported in the US annually. It usually runs in families and is often linked with trouble learning, social problems, and problems as adults.
Cannabis vapes and e-cigs are not impacted by the Juul ban. Still, according to people that work in the industry, this could change in the future.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has banned the sale of Juul products. While this decision is unrelated to marijuana vapes and products, some experts predict that it could have an impact on the industry later on.
The FDA ban affects Juuls exclusively, but it shows the organization’s intent to keep its eye on vape products.
MJBusinessDaily spoke with Arnaud Dumas de Rauly, CEO of Blinc Group, a New York-based vape company. He explains that the federal illegality of marijuana should keep the industry safe from FDA interference. “However, this doesn’t mean that will be the case forever,” he said.
The vaping crisis of 2019 is largely responsible for the FDA’s scrutiny of these products. While it was discovered that Vitamin E acetate, an additive present in THC vaping products, was responsible for EVALI disease, it highlighted just how many users consumed vapes. It also highlighted some mismanagement of Juul executives, with the company being found to put its customers at risk.
Still, many experts believe that banning any type of vape product would only result in a new product for the black market, exposing people to even more risk.
“If the FDA truly wants to keep consumers safe then they should regulate and hold vaporizer companies to the highest scientific standards,” said Dumas de Rauly.
In the meantime, Juul obtained a temporary reprieve from the FDA. The company appealed the FDA decision, allowing for their products to remain on shelves. Currently, Juul is the fourth most popular e-cigarette brand among teens, who are favoring disposable vape brands.
According to recent studies, cannabis can function as a substitute for prescription drugs, particularly opioids as the trend of replacing them with cannabis seems to be growing.
House lawmakers approved two amendments to a must-pass defense spending bill concerning marijuana-related issues in the U.S. military.
The House Armed Services Committee passed both measures on voice votes during a markup of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
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Panel To Review Marijuana Penalties For Soldiers
Sponsored by Rep. Anthony Brown (D-MD), the first proposal deals with cannabis sentencing standards under the military code, and is seeking that the Military Justice Review Panel “develop recommendations specifying appropriate sentencing ranges for offenses involving the use and possession of marijuana.”
The panel’s assignment is to investigate how sentencing for marijuana-related offenses compare to “comparable offenses, such as alcohol, and the overall burden on the military justice system of our current approach to marijuana-based offenses,” according to a press release.
“Today, cannabis-related offices are treated harshly in comparison with other comparable offenses,” Brown said. “My amendment doesn’t change current law, but what it does do is require our armed services to review and provide recommendations for potential reform.”
Another Study On Marijuana As Alternative For Opioids
The other proposal from Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) seeks a Defense Department-led study on how efficient cannabis is for certain conditions as compared to opioids, reported Marijuana Moment.
According to recent studies, cannabis can function as a substitute for prescription drugs, particularly opioids as the trend of replacing them with cannabis seems to be growing.
Earlier this year, Moulton sponsored a bill that would allow VA physicians to discuss medical cannabis treatment with military veterans and would protect veterans who are honest about their marijuana therapy history.
In February, the VA said that although marijuana use is still considered federally illegal, “veteran participation in state marijuana programs does not affect eligibility for VA care and services. VA providers can and do discuss marijuana use with Veterans as part of comprehensive care planning, and adjust treatment plans as necessary.”
Here are some precautions and considerations to think about when you decide to get high and embrace the soaring temperatures.
Record heat events are starting to become the norm these days. Much of the US has already experienced multiple heat waves, and summer has only just begun. When the weather gets oppressively hot, there is not much you can do to improve the situation other than to stay hydrated, and if you consume cannabis, maybe get high and hope for a breeze.
Enjoying some quality THC on a particularly hot day can certainly improve your mood, even if it can’t make it cooler. There may even be some physical benefits to getting high on a hot day. But there are some precautions and considerations to think about when you decide to get high and embrace the soaring temperatures. Here are five things to remember about marijuana during these brutal summer heat waves.
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1. Don’t Let Your Edibles Melt
Edibles are great for all sorts of occasions. Long plane rides, might nights and days in nature can often be improved by a gummy or piece or THC chocolate. It is important to remember, however, that these products can easily melt and perish in the heat, and extreme heat can render them almost useless.
“I recommend tinctures and flower as they won’t quickly break down in high heat,” cannabis educator Emma Chasen told MedMen. When you do purchase edibles, make sure you store them somewhere safe, and only take out what you need during the hot months.
2. Summer Heat Can Weaken Your Weed
Just like with edibles, all your weed needs to be stored properly in these extreme temperatures. Remember to store your weed in a cool dark place, especially if you are an infrequent user or like to buy in bulk. As we have previouslyreported, sunlight can break down and weaken the product and heat can induce moisture and cause mold.
Airtight glass containers like mason jars are great storage containers for your weed, as they seal airtight, and don’t promote moisture. Any dark place in your home that is climate controlled is a good spot to store your weed during a heat wave.
There have been several studies suggesting that marijuana can, in fact, lower your body temperature in some cases. This is certainly a handy side effect for those braving temperatures in the 90s and above. As we have previously reported, marijuana can cool your body temperature down, and this is thought to be due to the way THC interacts with a receptor called TRPA-1.
Not all weed is created equal, however, when it comes to this cooling phenomenon. According to Arizona’s The Flower Shop, “switching out the tinctures and edibles for bong rips, dabs, or other methods that heat the product is sure to activate the body’s cooling response quicker.” So if you are hoping weed will cool your body down, be sure to do your research to understand more about how it works.
4. Stay Hydrated, Consider A Cannabis Cocktail
The last few years have seen a tremendous boom in cannabis beverages. These drinks are both refreshing and highly effective. They often use emulsifying technology to infuse weed into their drinks, which means you feel the effects much quicker than an edible. This will help you monitor how the THC is making you feel in hot weather.
You can also have some fun at home in the AC mixing up some of your owncannabis cocktails. This allows you to have some fun in the kitchen while you beat the heat and stay hydrated. Whatever way you decide, adding hydration to your cannabis routine is a good way to stay safe in extreme heat.
5. Be Careful With Your Smoking Devices
If you are someone who likes to vape, be sure you pay attention to where you store your vape during the summer months. Overheating the device can cause malfunction, leaks and weakening of the product. Storing indoors in a cool dark place, just like your other marijuana products, is the best bet.
Also remember that glass can retain heat. If you leave a pipe or bong in the hot direct summer sunlight it can reach high temperatures. The glass even risks cracking and shattering if it changes dramatically in temperature. So while it might seem like a great idea to put ice cold water in your bong this summer, make you do this in a cool place, not while you and your bong are baking in the sun.
The country’s parliament previously agreed on an amendment to the law in March 2021 to enhance access to medical marijuana, aiming to “facilitate access to cannabis for medical use for patients.”
The Swiss government confirmed that it will remove limitations on medical marijuana use, starting August 1. Medical marijuana patients are required to seek exceptional authorization from the health ministry to get medical cannabis prescriptions, which causes needless delays.
Starting in August, the decision to use a cannabis-based medicine for therapeutic purposes will be taken by the physician in consultation with the patient, reported Leafie.
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The country’s parliament previously agreed on an amendment to the law in March 2021 to enhance access to medical marijuana, aiming to “facilitate access to cannabis for medical use for patients.” According to the Federal Office of Public Health, new rules should benefit thousands of patients, some suffering from cancer or multiple sclerosis, who deal with chronic pain daily. It turns out that the demand for medical marijuana treatments has boomed in Switzerland recently. In 2019 alone, the health ministry issued 3,000 exceptional permissions.
At the moment in Switzerland, only licensed medical marijuana products containing less than 1% THC, such as Jazz Pharma’s Sativex, are allowed.
“Switzerland just took another big step in opening up access for cannabis patients by giving the doctors freedom to prescribe cannabis products easier and with less government restrictions,” Mike Sassano, founder, chairman & CEO of Somai Pharmaceuticals told Benzinga. “Switzerland is following suit of European countries; Germany did something similar in 2019 by allowing more medical indications to be treated. More European countries are now revisiting restrictive policies, like only allowing cannabis as a last resort. Changes in regulations like what Switzerland is doing is expected to sweep Europe over the next 2 years. Recently Spain just announced they will be creating regulations to allow medical cannabis, and they will most likely look at the success in Germany and positive regulations by the Swiss.”
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Recent Cannabis Developments In Switzerland
In May 2021, an amendment to the Federal Narcotics Act came into force in Switzerland, allowing pilot trials involving the dispensing of cannabis for non-medicinal purposes. These trials are intended to create the basis for future legal regulation and will include 5,000 registered participants, who have proven to the federal government they already have been consuming cannabis.
In April 2022, Swiss authorities green lighted a pilot project under which a few hundred people in the city of Basel will be allowed to buy cannabis from pharmacies for recreational purposes.
The same month, Schlosshotel Zermatt, the first CBD Spa in Europe was inaugurated at the foot of the Matterhorn Mountain (famous for its ski resorts and for being the logo of the Toblerone chocolate brand) in the Swiss Alps.
In addition, CBD companies will be able to air ads during MLB games though as yet there is no info available yet as to what the league and its teams will receive in compensation.
Major League Baseball has officially approved CBD sponsorships for team jersey patches and more, according to Sports Business Journal.
Although CBD sponsorships can only be sold if the company is certified by the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF). The means the company’s CBD products cannot contain psychoactive levels of THC, which goes without saying because, well, that’s what CBD is.
“We’ve been watching this category for a while and waiting for it to mature to the point where we can get comfortable with it,” MLB chief revenue officer Noah Garden said. “… It’s a good opportunity for us and the clubs. The last few companies that came to see us about this, the process of NSF certification was embraced. That gave us a comfort level to be able to move forward.”
Garden added that between three and five brands are in the process of receiving NSF certification. In addition to NSF certification, the commissioner’s office will need to approve the deal.
Beginning with the 2023 season, MLB jerseys will feature jersey patch sponsorships and CBD companies will be allowed to make deals for those patches. The NBA already has jersey patch sponsorships, and the NHL will also add them in 2022-23.
“We are open-minded to doing a patch deal here, depending on the brand and what that brand represents,” Garden said. “It has to have a brand that represents sports.”
In addition, CBD companies will be able to air ads during MLB games though as yet there is no info available yet as to what the league and its teams will receive in compensation.
Permitting CBD sponsorships could be wildly lucrative for the MLB and other professional sports leagues in view of the fact that the global CBD market is expected to reach nearly $5 billion in the coming years.
Pro Athletes Have Been Using And Praising CBD For A While Now
A number of professional athletes already use and advocate for CBD products, including professional golfer Rickie Fowler, former NFL’s Rob Gronkowski, Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson and US Women’s National Team soccer player Megan Rapinoe.
A recent Forbes.com article list even more Olympians, including hurdler Devon Allen, softballer Haylie McCleney, and WNBA champion Sue Bird, who serve as team ambassadors for Rapinoe’s CBD-infused products.
Given the great risk of fatality and serious brain damage that can occur with meningitis, it’s in the best interest of patients to maximize all the available alternative medications that can work well with conventional treatment.
Meningitis is a condition characterized by inflammation that occurs within the brain’s protective membranes. It’s caused by a viral or bacterial infection of the fluid around the brain and the spinal cord, which causes swelling.
Other possible causes of meningitis include drugs, injuries, various infections, and cancer. Because of the many possible causes of meningitis, there are several names for this condition including bacterial meningitis, viral meningitis, fungal meningitis, parasitic meningitis, and many others. The symptoms can show up within a few days or in as little as a few hours, and it can include fever, confusion, stiff neck, and severe headaches.
Bacterial meningitis can be extremely fatal if diagnosis and antibiotic treatment has been delayed. The longer treatment is delayed, the more it can cause permanent brain damage or even death. This condition has also been associated with other complications such as memory and hearing loss, learning difficulties (especially among children), kidney failure, problems with gait, and shock. According to the World Health Organization, untreated meningitis has a high fatality rate
Depending on the cause of the condition, treatment may vary though it usually includes intravenous antibiotics, corticosteroids, bed rest, and medications to counter the fever and body aches. However, due to the sensitive nature of this condition, the use of other alternative medications such as cannabis can help prevent further complications.
How Cannabis Helps
The human endocannabinoid system is responsible for helping suppress inflammation while improving neuroprotection and immunodilation. Even though there are very few studies documenting the use of cannabis specifically for meningitis, there have been other case studies suggesting that cannabis can be a powerful anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antiviral agent for treating the symptoms of this condition.
There’s a 2021 study, however, conducted by researchers at the University of Queensland together with Botanix Pharmaceuticals Limited. They found that cannabidiol (CBD), the non-psychoactive compound in marijuana, was effective in treating many different types of bacteria. “This is the first time CBD has been shown to kill some types of Gram-negative bacteria. These bacteria have an extra outer membrane, an additional line of defence that makes it harder for antibiotics to penetrate,” explains Dr. Blaskovich, Associate Professor at the University of Queensland.
“Our company is now primed to commercialize viable antimicrobial treatments which we hope will reach more patients in the near future. This is a major breakthrough that the world needs now,” he said. “Those Phase 2a clinical results are expected early this year and we hope that this will pave the way for treatments for gonorrhea, meningitis, and legionnaires disease,” he adds.
Blaskovich has been involved in other similar studies, and in 2019 he presented the findings of his analysis on CBD for treatment-resistant bacteria. “The first thing we looked at is CBD’s ability to kill bacteria,” Blaskovich says. “In every case, CBD had a very similar potency to that of common antibiotics.” Together with his team, they looked at how CBD worked compared to common antibiotics such has daptomycin and vancomycin. “We looked at how quickly the CBD killed the bacteria. It’s quite fast, within 3 hours, which is pretty good. Vancomycin kills over 6 to 8 hours.”
They also discovered that CBD was effective in breaking the biofilm around bacteria which makes it harder for antibiotics to penetrate and thus kill it off.
In another study, researchers from the University of Southern Denmark led by Janne Kudsk Klitgaard, PhD, showed promising results of CBD treating antibiotic-resistant bacteria. For the study, they tested Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, a major pathogen that causes many types of diseases that cause people to be hospitalized. The researchers believe that combining CBD with antibiotics could be a novel treatment for infections especially for antibiotic-resistant cases. When the bacteria was given a combination of both, they were found to be unable to normally divide.
“Based on these observations, the combination of CBD and BAC is suggested to be a putative novel treatment in clinical settings for treatment of infections with antibiotic-resistant Gram-positive bacteria,” they wrote in their research paper. “With fewer antibiotics available to treat MDR bacterial infections, the possibility of entering a pre-antibiotic era is looming ahead,” they wrote.
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Symptoms of Meningitis
Medical marijuana can be used to help alleviate the painful and uncomfortable symptoms of meningitis as well. This is due to its potent neuroprotectant and anti-inflammatory properties from THC and as well as CBD. Since meningitis affects the brain and spinal cord, these benefits are important since cannabis can help reduce the potential of further damage, saving people’s lives.
Pain: Patients with meningitis struggle with extreme pain due to inflammation in the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. The exact way it works to treat pain is unknown although there are several hypothesis, such as the ability of cannabinoids to regulate our pain thresholds by acting on the nociceptors. It also reduces the production of cytokines to minimize the amount of pain we feel while decreasing inflammation, among many others.
Skin rashes: Some cases of meningitis are characterized by skin rashes, another symptom that cannabis can help with. CBD products can be applied topically to the affected area to treat with itching and inflammation, though it can also be taken orally to address inflammation from the inside.
Patients can also take cannabis to help address the depression and anxiety that often comes with this condition.
Given the great risk of fatality and serious brain damage that can occur with meningitis, it’s in the best interest of patients and their loved ones to maximize all the available alternative medications that can work well with conventional treatment.
US congressional lawmakers have included a novel section alongside myriad other marijuana provisions in appropriations legislation covering the fiscal year 2023 financing for several federal agencies
Cannabis has never been more accessible. With its popularity skyrocketing, many professional athletes have been outspoken regarding their use of marijuana.
Megan Rapinoe, an Olympic gold medalist, two-time Women’s World Cup soccer champion and 2019 FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year told Benzinga earlier that she ventured into cannabis in a search of a “healthier, more natural option for pain management, sleep aid, relaxation while flying, and general recovery.”
However, it seems that many of her colleagues have been penalized for cannabis use, including U.S. sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson who made international headlines in 2021 after being suspended for one month after testing positive for THC.
To tackle the growing issue, U.S. congressional lawmakers have included a novel section alongside myriad other marijuana provisions in appropriations legislation covering the fiscal year 2023 financing for several federal agencies, reported Marijuana Moment.
House Appropriations Committee leaders’ move is aimed to push international officials to “change how cannabis is treated” as it seeks to put an end to the practice of suspending athletes from competition after being tested positive for cannabis.
The recently released spending bills and attached reports are related to spending packages for the Financial Services and General Government (FSGG), as well as Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services (HHS) and Education.
Now, the committee is urging the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), which manages the anti-doping program for all U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee-recognized sports, to take action.
“The Committee encourages USADA to support additional research on the effects of cannabis on athletic performance, including whether marijuana use during the in-competition period delivers performance-enhancing effects, and to engage in efforts to change how cannabis is treated under the World Anti-Doping Code and World Anti-Doping Agency Prohibited List,” the committee’s report said.
