Poor sleep has been linked to cardiovascular conditions, mental health disorders and more. Now, a new study reveals a connection to a dangerous disease.
Getting a solid amount of sleep is a challenge for many, especially as we near the stress-filled holidays and family gatherings. According to the National Institutes of Health, it’s estimated that 50 to 70 million Americans are experiencing sleep-related problems. These problems are not only annoying, they impact factors that range from your weight to your mood.
Now, researchers have found another aspect affected by poor sleep: diabetes.
A new study, published in the journal Nature and Science of Sleep, collected data from over 80,000 adults with a median age of 62. Participants who regularly slept under 5 hours were 58% more likely to suffer from diabetes when compared to participants who slept between 7 and 8 hours a night.
Irregular sleep patterns were linked with heart disease as well. “Those who sleep <5 hours/night are 36 percent, 25 percent, 33 percent, 27 percent, 37 percent and 36 percent more likely to have hypertensive diseases, ischaemic heart diseases, pulmonary heart diseases, cerebrovascular heart diseases, other forms of heart diseases, and diseases of arteries, arterioles, and capillaries, respectively,” explain the authors of the study.
Aside from this, the study also found that poor sleep correlates to an increased risk of mental health and mood disorders, by 106% and 44% respectively. These results have been echoed in a variety of studies.
According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (AMNI), sleep issues are signs or side effects of a variety of mental health conditions, like bipolar disorder and depression. Insomnia cases are 50% of the time related to depression, anxiety, and psychological stress.
Sleep is one of those things that we tend to sacrifice when life gets in the way, putting our work and social life ahead of it in order to accomplish the things we want to get done. This is understandable. While the occasional sleepless night may not be crippling, sleep is a very delicate activity, one that’s necessary for our functioning and that can be easily disrupted. Dozens of experts have said that prioritizing it can only impact us for the better, resulting in a healthier mind and body.
While the cannabis industry is known for offering investors its own mixture of tricks and treats, a new report by CNN Business is expressing new hope for the cannabis sector.
“Despite a global pandemic, discombobulated supply chains, ballooning inflation and an ongoing fight to legalize marijuana on a federal level, the cannabis industry in America is flourishing,” writes CNN Business.
Photo by Hillary Kladke/Getty Images
The report pointed to data from Marijuana Business Daily, which states that cannabis sales hit $20 billion in 2020, are on pace to top $26 billion this year and are projected to jump to $45.9 billion in 2025, making the cannabis industry larger than the craft beer industry by the mid-decade.
Chris Walsh, chief executive officer and president of MJBizDaily, a cannabis analysis firm that organized the sector’s largest trade show last week, stated that “these are potentially conservative numbers with what we see playing out.”
Cannabis To The Moon
With the majority of Americans now living in a state where some form of cannabis is legal, the industry got a substantial push when dispensaries were deemed essential businesses throughout the pandemic and quickly became the worthy recipients of extra cash people had on hand from much-need stimulus checks. And this is not to mention that COVID-19 restrictions kept people at home and in front of their TVs or binging on Netflix.
Be that as it may, “the past 12 to 18 months show there is more to the story than a COVID bump,” Walsh said, as “sales continued to accelerate at a record pace in markets across the US — notably in established states, such as Colorado, Washington and Oregon.”
“The industry is also expanding rapidly and creating jobs. It’s estimated that there were 321,000 full-time jobs in the cannabis industry in 2020, up from 234,700 the year before,” said Karson Humiston, CEO and founder of Vangst, a company that provides job recruiting services for the cannabis sector.
Walsh said that on Capitol Hill, whispers of federal marijuana reform and legalization have grown to a clamor. But because of a lack of consensus among lawmakers and industry members, change is not on the immediate horizon, he opined.
“I’m still doubtful that we’re going to see any significant federal reform next year… including in banking,” Walsh told CNN Business.
Benzinga’s take: With or without federal reform, the meteoric rise of cannabis continues, prompting one to wonder what lawmakers and prohibitionists are thinking. Alexandre Auguste Ledru-Rollin, one of the leaders of the French Revolution, had it right: “There go my people. I must find out where they are going so I can lead them”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the fact that vaccines for young children will be available soon means that after careful consideration and study, the benefits outrank the risks. Still, here are a few things you should know about the COVID-19 vaccine and its effect on kids:
While COVID-19 is less dangerous in kids than it is in adults, there have been reports of long COVID-19 affecting children, including reactions of fatigue, pain and headaches. Despite the low transmission rate in schools, children are capable of catching and passing on the disease, which is why families with children should be extra careful with the people they meet up with and their degree of exposure.
Like most vaccines, there are some risks to it
Photo by Ed Us via Unsplash
While the COVID-19 vaccine appears to be safe, there are some side effects associated with it, mainly including pain at the site of injection, headaches and fevers. In order to minimize these side effects, COVID-19 dosages in children are smaller, yet they’re still able to produce a sufficient immune response.
When it comes to risky or strange side effects, although there are no sufficient numbers to support this theory, there is the risk of myocarditis, which has affected some teenagers who’ve received the COVID-19 vaccine. This condition that involves the swelling of the heart has appeared in boys between the ages of 16 and 17. No deaths have been linked to the vaccine.
By using cannabis instead of over-the-counter drugs, athletes have an opportunity to make a faster recovery from their injuries, among other benefits.
Although cannabis has been legalized for medicinal purposes throughout much of the country, there’s still a vast amount of the population that casts doubt on its healing properties. Unfortunately for athletes, in most cases, it’s the people who aren’t familiar with the healing properties of medical marijuana who still happen to be in control of many governing bodies within the sports world.
Even so, the reality is that cannabis can be equally as or even more effective than the opioids and painkillers most athletes are used to taking. There are several factors that make cannabis a more appealing choice for treating injuries than over the counter medications.
Photo by Darwin Brandis/Getty Images
Cannabis Isn’t As Addictive as Opioids
One of the most common ways of dealing with sports injuries is by consuming opioids like vicodin and oxycontin. It’s no secret that opioids may offer pain relief, but not without the prospect of long-term addiction. Although there is the prospect of developing a marijuana dependency, research shows that just less than 10% of consumers end up doing so. Additionally, opioid abuse can lead to fatal consequences. Although marijuana dependence can be detrimental, there are no recorded marijuana overdoses on record.
Cannabis Doesn’t Come With Side Effects of Traditional Painkillers
Along with the risk of developing long-term addiction, using traditional painkillers can lead to a host of other lifelong side effects. Some of those conditions include kidney failure, stomach bleeding and liver failure among others. Cannabis serves as an effective alternative because it can provide relief for many of the same ailments as over the counter drugs like ibuprofen. There’s also a wide variety of cannabis products to choose from that can relieve pain. From CBD tinctures and topicals to THC cartridges and edibles, there are numerous options available that can treat pain without putting the long-term health of consumers at risk.
Cannabis Can Provide Faster Relief Than Traditional Painkillers
The wide variety of cannabis products on the market today means consumers are no longer restricted to over the counter pain medications that can take varying amounts of time to take effect. In many cases, over the counter drugs like ibuprofen can take as long as 30 minutes to set in, whereas consumers who inhale cannabis pretty much feel the effects instantly. Even CBD topicals only take up to about 15 minutes to set in after application.
People unfamiliar with marijuana aren’t usually aware that it has so many healing properties, mainly its anti-inflammatory effect. Inflammation can result after an injury either on the field or due to conditions like arthritis. CBD is especially effective when it comes to fighting chronic pain caused by inflammation because the compound can easily communicate with the receptors within the endocannabinoid system.
The sooner the sports world accepts cannabis for its medicinal properties, the better life will be for everyone involved. By using cannabis instead of over the counter drugs, athletes have an opportunity to not only make a faster recovery from their injuries, but to also benefit from being able to return to their sport without ingesting drugs that could potentially put their post-sport future at risk.
Cannabigerol (CBG) shows great promise as a potential analgesic to manage pain in some medical conditions.
Pain is a common symptom in almost all diseases in the world. Since the dawn of civilization, medical workers have looked for ways to effectively manage pain, and have been successful in finding some. But, the quest is still on for better treatments to relieve pains.
The widespread acceptance of cannabis, as well as the new legislation supporting the plant’s use, has paved a way for scientists to discover what compounds make cannabis an effective therapeutic. Now, the world has learned that most cannabinoids are responsible for the medical abilities of cannabis.
The recent clinical studies and experiments being carried out on cannabis plants have revealed that one of its minor cannabinoids can be a better and more effective treatment for pain. This compound is cannabigerol (CBG).
Photo by Lukas Dvorak/EyeEm/Getty Images
Compared to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), cannabigerol is a fairly ignored compound. There is a lesser demand for it and like other minor cannabinoids, phytochemicals, and terpenes, very little research has been carried out on it.
To meet the demand for THC and CBD cannabis products, breeders have pushed aside the notion of trying to improve the other compounds that make up the plant. Growers are also focused on primarily cultivating cannabis plants for their THC and CBD contents.
Studies have shown that CBG may be a better treatment to provide pain relief, calm and balance in medical marijuana patients. But, just how effective can this compound be?
What Is Cannabigerol (CBG)?
Cannabigerol, commonly called CBG, is a minor cannabinoid that is non-psychoactive. It can be found in large concentrations in high-CBD and low-THC cannabis strains like hemp.
The distinction between CBG and other minor cannabinoids is that cannabigerol is the main producer of THC and CBD. This may sound confusing, but the explanation is that all cannabinoids were formed from their acidic precursors. In this case, CBGA (the acidic precursor of CBG) is produced in extreme amounts in cannabis plants, however, as the plant matures, most of it is converted to THCA and CBDA (both are acidic precursors of THC and CBD respectively). A very little amount of CBGA is converted to CBG. For this very reason, CBG is commonly referred to as the mother of all cannabinoids.
Like other cannabinoids, CBG binds with the cannabinoid receptors in the brain to elicit therapeutic responses. Rather than induce a psychoactive reaction in the user like THC does, CBG works instead to reduce the psychoactive effects brought about by THC. For example, when a cannabis user consumes products with higher levels of THC, it works to ease the induced paranoia or stress.
Photo by Catherine Falls Commercial/Getty Images
Scientists claim that cannabigerol has the capabilities to fight pain, nausea, inflammation, and even has anti-cancerous properties. Clinical studies show that the compound was effective against glaucoma, as it was observed to significantly lower intraocular eye pressure associated with the condition. With CBG, conditions like Crohn’s disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and cancer can be managed effectively.
Effects of Cannabigerol
This rare cannabinoid has shown potential in treating a host of symptoms and disease conditions. Some of the symptoms it has shown effective in providing relief include
Pain
Inflammation
Oxidative stress
Anxiety
Stress
Cannabigerol and Pain
As stated earlier, cannabigerol is a rare and versatile cannabinoid that has the potential of managing a bunch of ailments, and a handful of studies have been published to corroborate these claims. When ingested, CBG is immediately broken down in the body to THC, CBD, and CBD compounds.
Exploring the Relationship Between Cannabigerol and Pain
A recent experiment studied the connection between chronic pain and cannabigerol. Patients who identify as frequency consumers of high-CBG products volunteered in numbers for the survey/study.
The researchers reported that this was the first clinical study in the use of cannabigerol. The survey documented the effectiveness of high-CBG cannabis in treating depression, chronic pain, anxiety, and insomnia. Over half of the volunteers reported that the drug was more efficenting than traditional pharmacotherapy. They also noted that there was a mild adverse effect that occurred. In addition to this, some respondents claim they had issues trying to withdraw from the products.
At the end of the survey, the researchers established that high-CBD cannabis and by-products are available in some dispensaries and are being sold in high numbers by cannabis patients. They also added that there is a need for more controlled trials of CBG-based cannabis medications to be precisely studied. More tests and research will assess the efficacy and safety of using CBG to treat symptoms like pain and stress. Researchers will also be able to establish a standard dosage for administration as well as the therapeutic implications of using the drug.
Photo by Seth Ryan/EyeEm/Getty Images
CBG or THC: Which Is a Better Pain Reliever?
It is still too early to conclude on the best pain reliever. But, studies are being done to determine which is.
In the early 2000s, multiple clinical kinds of research were carried out to test the effectiveness of THC in relieving pain. Several of these studies reported that THC has more anti-inflammatory qualities than regular aspirin and hydrocortisone. It was also found to not pose the same risks of bleeding as observed in NSAIDs.
The downside of THC is that it is a psychoactive drug, and as such might make it difficult for patients to adapt without the risk of addiction.
On the other hand, CBG and CBD which are non-intoxicating cannabis components may be better options. A 2017 study observed that CBG has even more potent anesthetic quantities than THC. Another study which was published in the 1970s, referenced in this 2008 research, stated that CBG could be used for conditions like chronic pain and anxiety disorders.
Conclusion
Cannabigerol shows great promise as a potential analgesic to manage pain in some medical conditions. Before it can be approved for clinical use, long-term clinical studies have to be carried out to fully observe the potentials of the compound. There are at least a dozen other minor cannabinoids that have also shown therapeutic potential. Some of them are CBC, THCV, and CBN. This shows that cannabinoids research has to progress from this limiting infant stage.
The disappointing aspect of this successful raid is that it is not enough to stop these illicit operators from setting up shop again.
Millions of dollars in cash and over 100,000 cannabis plants were confiscated in late September in the Bay Area of San Francisco. Law enforcement officials in cannabis legal states are clamping down hard on illicit cannabis operations. Although these illegal operators keep springing up every other day.
Black Market Production Of Cannabis In Alameda
The law enforcement officers in Alameda were able to put an end to multiple cultivation sites in the area in a raid that spanned over 48 hours. These sites had one thing in common: they were all unlicensed cultivation sites operating something the police forces termed ‘modern-day bootlegging’. The massive raid is now regarded as one of the biggest illegal cannabis cultivation site busts in California.
The Alameda County sheriff’s office dutifully carried out these operations across the East Bay and they were able to successfully confiscate millions of dollars in cash, while also seizing cannabis plants worth tens of millions of dollars in probable black market sales. This estimation was made by the law enforcement department.
The public information officer for the town’s county sheriff’s office, Ray Kelly, said that the raided sites were organizations operating outside the law, and working around the normal protocols of cannabis governance in the state. These operators were making millions of dollars in profits all because they refused to obtain licenses and remit tax to the government.
Kelly added that upon inspecting the raided sites he found out that these operations made use of high-tech and extremely sophisticated farming practices. The operations weren’t shabby in any way but were rather profit-oriented while being motivated by greed. He also added that several suspects were arrested during the raids on the sites; the names of the arrested individuals have not been released yet. The establishments were built solely for cash grabs.
Raid Had Been In The Works For Several Months
Last week’s raid was successful because over a hundred personnel and agents working in the sheriff’s county devoted the last eighteen months of their lives to the mission. Investigations about the raided sites started around March 2020. As expected, the law enforcement officers did not run into the scene at the first complaint they got. The 100 staff worked together with the Alameda county narcotics task force. The team served search warrants at 18 different cannabis sites in East Oakland, Castro Valley, San Leandro, and Hayward.
Photo by Bloomberg Creative/Getty Images
Alameda county’s narcotics detectives were the first to commence investigations in this area when they received a tip from undisclosed sources about the existence of illicit cannabis grow operation in the Bay area. In addition to the cash and pot Which were confiscated onsite, the agents also seized Rolex watches as well as other jewelry pieces.
In his speech, Kelly disclosed that the raid yielded over 12,000 pounds of marijuana products that have been processed and harvested. If the raid had taken place a day or two later those products would have been transported for sale in other areas or states.
It’s not surprising how much money these illicit operations have on-site because the black market cannabis industry is way larger than the legal market. The raid at a cultivation site in Oakland yielded about $10 million in cash. The officers also obtained evidence of a money-laundering operation at the raided warehouse.
All these could have been avoided if the owners of these cultivation sites had done the legal thing by applying for a license. Now, the police action may as well have cost them everything, because as experienced in the past, the owner of these sites never show up.
Applying for proper permits, paying the required fees for licenses and taxes would have prevented everything that occurred last week in Alameda. At the press conference which was held at the Oakland warehouse, Kelly showed the reporters a bag that had about $1 million in cash. He revealed that the bag was one of the seized props gotten during the raid. In his speech, he disclosed that the raid helped bring down some of the largest illegal cannabis farms ever detected in recent years.
Photo by Olena Ruban/Getty Images
The raided cultivation sites were compared to the cannabis operations which operated in the 1920s. Those were also more interested in bootlegging operations. There is no sense in investing that many millions in a business that has not been licensed. The county revealed that they believe that these illicit grow operations have about 500k square feet of farmland which they use to grow more cannabis.
The entire business operations of these raided sites are even more sophisticated than some legal cannabis grow sites within California. These operators thought everything through, from infrastructure to storage houses, to other necessary buildings and the needed handymen. Everything was in place, except for the papers that would have legalized the entire business.
Weed Worth Millions Turned To Ash
In case you’re wondering what happened to the seized pot, it would interest you to know that they were moved to a site in California’s Central Valley and then burnt. That’s about 12 truckloads of cannabis up in smoke because some operations wanted to get all their cash to themselves without remitting tax.
The sheriff’s spokesman also announced that the office believes forensic accountants had a role to play in the business run by the illicit operations. Search warrants are still being processed to search more areas for evidence that might help the case.
The organization is starting to look like one that exists in Utopia because they were so sophisticated and organized. At least each week they made tens of millions of dollars in profits alone. The Alameda sheriff county announced on Facebook that it had seized more than $10 million in cash alone, not counting the highly expensive equipment, infrastructure, supplies, and even generators that were seized across the raised areas.
At least seven suspects are currently behind bars and more will be getting arrested as soon as the agents are linking the pints and solving the main puzzles.The disappointing aspect of this successful raid is that it is not enough to stop these illicit operators from setting up shop again. The black market has a very lucrative business, hence, this sort of bust will do little to serve as a deterrent.
If you’re just starting to experiment with marijuana, it’s important that you understand why you may not be getting high right off the bat.
The first time people smoke weed is usually a weird experience. While some might get paranoid, giggly, or instantly stoned, there’s a large group of people who smoke weed and feel… nothing. Despite what we know of marijuana tolerance (basically, the more you’re exposed to cannabis, the less it affects you), this phenomenon of not feeling anything the first few times you toke affects more people than you might imagine.
Experts have different theories as to why this happens. But one of the most prominent theories states that in order for people to experience weed properly, they must first learn how to do it correctly. People need to be exposed to the drug repeatedly until their body understands what it’s supposed to feel. Experts call this a “sensitization period,” when THC interacts with the cannabinoids in your system a few times in order to activate them and to produce that high feeling.
It may take a couple of sessions before you smoke and know that you are actually high versus feeling what you think you should be experiencing.
Photo by Matheus Ferrero via Unsplash
First-timers could also have an issue with the smoking part of things, maybe inhaling cannabis but keeping the smoke in their mouths, which prevents the THC from making its way to your bloodstream.
Another important factor is how you view cannabis. Over the years we’ve all taken an approach to weed that functions in binaries, between the states of being not high and being very high. With the vast amount of strains and cannabis consumption methods that are available, this is limiting to what cannabis can do and disregards a variety of cannabis compounds that aren’t exclusively related to THC. A lot of people prefer CBD options, which these don’t make you feel traditionally high. It’s okay for there to be a gray area when consuming weed, for you to not know if you’re high or not.
There’s no definitive answer when it comes to cannabis and its effect on our bodies, but it’s almost always challenging to successfully accomplish a goal the first time you take a stab at it. Your expectations, the people you’re with, and your biology will have a hand in your first couple of experiences with weed, which is why it’s important to be patient and open-minded.
When first using marijuana, start off slow, surrounded by people you trust. Put your phone on silent to minimize extra sources of stress. Once you start smoking, pause between puffs for 20 to 30 minutes and monitor your feelings closely, that way you can make sure you get high but not too high. Because that sucks, too. If one method fails, try another one; there’s never been a better time to choose from a wide variety of cannabis products.
A new study shows how consumers integrate cannabis into their lives. Research undertaken by the San Francisco-based cannabis delivery platform Eaze found an increasing crossover between cannabis use and off-the-couch activities including work, fitness and intimacy, reported Adweek.
“It may sound counterintuitive, but cannabis for responsible adults does exist,” said Elizabeth Ashford, vice president of communications at Eaze.
Photo by Catherine Falls Commercial/Getty Images
“We’re seeing the integration of cannabis into parts of life where we previously didn’t see it. It’s not about waking up and hitting a bong,” Ashford told Adweek. “Some people may take a 2-milligram Sativa edible like someone else would drink espresso in the morning.”
The study, which included 1,100 Eaze customers, found the following:
43% of users polled said they microdose cannabis prior to clocking in to their jobs (40% have full-time employment);
36% reported that “productive” is their favorite kind of high;
22% use cannabis for stress and mental health;
17% cited “fun” as their primary motivation to use cannabis; and,
12% said better sleep was their main goal.
The survey also asked about the role cannabis plays in many other aspects of people’s lives, including careers and intimate relationships.
These facts, doubtless, are music to the collective ears of cannabis entrepreneurs and producers who will surely be delighted to provide weed to this busy and rapidly growing segment of the population.
Sometimes, there’s nothing better to do than to zone out with the help of some weed. These online activities can help you get there faster.
The change in weather makes spending time indoors all the more appetizing. And sometimes, there’s nothing that sounds more pleasing than spending the day inside, hopefully horizontally and chilling out. And while Netflix is always an option, sometimes there are better activities you can do, like weed.
If you’ve already worked out or watched a movie while under the influence of THC, there’s a source of reliable fun at your fingertips: the internet. Here are a few fun and trippy suggestions for your stoned viewing pleasure.
Sometimes you smoke weed and want to zone out and do nothing. Electric Sheep, a really trippy screensaver, can help you out, providing you with a fun backdrop that will make you giggle and mumble “wow” every couple of seconds. Electric Sheep is a riff on the sheep we dream about when we sleep, and is a layout made up of collaborations of thousands of people from all over the world.
For some reason, space is always a hit with weed people. While you can always spend your time watching YouTube space videos, NASA’s livestream of Earth provides you with live coverage of the planet, with no voiceover. It’s almost unbearably trippy while sober.
Hannah Hart’s YouTube channel has been around for a while, with her My Drunk Kitchen videos dating back to 2011. While MDK doesn’t feature cooking while high, it’s still messy and funny, resulting in delicious and sometimes not so appetizing entries.
Alison Roman’s home videos
Alison Roman’s recipes tend to be the right amount of challenging while also being relatively accessible for people who are no chefs. They’re also really delicious and inventive, usually providing clever twists to traditional recipes. Her YouTube channel is incredibly fun, containing a good list of clips and recipes, while also being soothing and appetizing, thus catnip for stoners.
Cache Monet is one of those sites that you can’t explain but also one of the reasons why the internet is so great. Once you’re in, you’re presented with a weird set of randomized images set to randomized music. By clicking again, or waiting a bit, the combination is replaced. Described as an “internet enabled art installation,” Cache Monet might be the trippiest and most entertaining place for stoned people to visit.
YouTube gaming channels
YouTube gaming channels are incredibly popular, making it very tough for you to get into them if you don’t have the right guidance. They also make a great pairing with weed, allowing you to zone out to what’s being watched. You can watch famous YouTubers playing your favorite titles, or YouTubers who do analyses of their favorite games. It’s all fair. The video we’ve added is from Videogamedunkey, who makes short and well edited videos, making for a good pick for its accessibility.
I expect that by this time next year, we will see another 50 psychedelics companies publicly listed, countless additional cannabis companies, and still more cannabis companies moving over to the psychedelics space.
Last week, I came across an article surveying the 50 (!) psychedelics companies that are now publicly traded on U.S. exchanges— a handful of which we are proud to call our clients. Of these, 41 are listed on over the counter (OTC) markets, while the remaining nine outfits are traded on either the Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Cannabis, of course, has many, many more public companies. Some of these companies are tiny, with market caps of a few hundred thousand dollars; others are relative giants, with market caps into the billions.
Some of the companies referenced in the articles linked above are cross-listed. Cross-listing occurs when a company is able to meet the requirements of two or more exchanges, and lists its securities on each of them. For instance, a company based in Canada that lists on the Canadian Stock Exchange (CSE) may choose to cross-list on a U.S. OTC exchange, or maybe even a European or Asian market. Companies cross-list because selling on multiple exchanges increases the number of investors exposed to the stock, promoting liquidity and increased share prices.
Photo by lo lo via Unsplash
Both cannabis and most psychedelics — especially the classic psychedelic drugs — are Schedule I controlled substances under U.S. federal law. This means that the senior U.S. exchanges (the NYSE and the Nasdaq) won’t list any company “trafficking” in those substances. The prohibition exists even though the chances of federal enforcement are vanishingly remote (at least on the cannabis side), and even if the company faithfully complies with state and local laws. An exception exists with the decentralized OTC markets, but many businesses don’t want to be there and for good reason. As a result, you see U.S. psychedelics and cannabis companies headed up to Canada to list their shares. But you also see cannabis and psychedelics companies listed on the Nasdaq and the NYSE. Why is that?
The reason is that most senior exchanges worldwide hold that if a business is lawful in all of its markets of operation (and meets various other criteria), the exchange will issue a ticker symbol. That’s why you see Canadian cannabis companies like Canopy Growth and Tilray listed on the Nasdaq– doing strange things like acquiring options (and only options) on U.S. cannabis companies to boot. These companies’ operations in Canada are lawful, but they would only be allowed to acquire U.S. cannabis outfits and maintain their U.S. senior listings once our federal laws change. The other way to do it, of course, is to stay in the R&D lane. Compass Pathways, a psilocybin pharma company we’ve written about for years, is based in England but lists on the Nasdaq. Compass can do this because its sole U.S. activity has been FDA-approved research and patent acquisition.
You might say: “Wait, if a business has to be lawful in all of its markets to be listed on an exchange, how are all of these U.S. cannabis companies listed in Canada?” The answer is that these companies are listing on junior exchanges which have relatively lax requirements. We have helped quite a few U.S. cannabis companies roll up into the Canadian Stock Exchange (CSE), for example, but none of these companies are eligible for the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) or the NEO Exchange. U.S. hemp business are another story. After the 2018 Farm Bill passed, the TSX made clear it was open to hemp company businesses. This is because those businesses complied with U.S. federal law.
It’s worth noting, too, that many companies cannabis businesses directly rely upon have full access to senior U.S. and Canadian exchanges. For example, Scott Miracle-Gro trades on the NYSE, even though its wholly owned subsidiary, Hawthorne Gardening Company, focuses on the cannabis production market. Another NYSE outfit, Innovative Industrial Properties, is a REIT focused solely on cannabis. Beyond that, you have a myriad of companies (basically, the whole economy) another half-step out from the plant. It starts to get nonsensical. From a tax policy perspective, it also seems foolish to push so many domestic U.S. companies offshore. Once U.S. federal law changes, those companies may never repatriate their assets or earnings.
Where we are going with all of this is pretty clear. Cannabis and psychedelics companies will continue to go wherever they can to raise money at scale. In the public markets context, this means that any U.S. company that is a “trafficker” and not a research outfit will tend toward the U.S. OTC or Canadian exchanges. A few of the big Canadian outfits will continue to list down here, but operate only in Canada or wherever they can ship. I expect that by this time next year, we will see another 50 psychedelics companies publicly listed, countless additional cannabis companies, and still more cannabis companies moving over to the psychedelics space.
Vince Sliwoski is an attorney at Harris Bricken, a law firm with lawyers in Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Barcelona, and Beijing. This article was originally published on the Canna Law Blog and has been reposted with permission.
