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Carlos Santana Talks COVID Fatigue And How ‘Cannabis Opens Doors To Divine Wisdom’

Benzinga Staff Writer
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Carlos Santana Talks COVID Fatigue And How ‘Cannabis Opens Doors To Divine Wisdom’

The music icon thinks marijuana is starting to find its way into “straight culture” through topicals and ingestible and older people with arthritis and other ailments are learning the medicinal qualities that cannabis offers.

By Nina Zdinjak

Carlos Santana has openly shared his respect towards the plant throughout the years.

A magician on the guitar, the music legend and entrepreneur has often touted the healing properties of marijuana ever since he was a little kid. Santana credits his mother for shaping his outlook, as well the appreciation of his native Mexican culture, which cherishes earth given medicines.

The 10-time Grammy-award winning musician is also known to the public for his charity work. Back in 1998, Santana founded The Milagro Foundation (The Miracle Foundation) with his family. The group helps underserved and vulnerable children around the globe, and supports organizations that work with children in the areas of health, education, and the arts.

Since its inception, the foundation managed to raise and grant more than $8 million, thus helping 396 organizations across 18 countries and 36 U.S. states.

Santana seems to be passionate about helping others in any way possible — getting involved and sharing, not only his art, but his knowledge and beliefs. That’s why Santana decided to join the cannabis sphere.

In January, he partnered with Leaf Coast Ventures to help create high-quality cannabis and CBD brands. The first line of cannabis products yielded from this partnership debuted in October. Santana named it Mirayo, which means “My Ray” in Spanish.

Mirayo was created to honor his Latin roots and spiritual approach towards the plant. When it comes to cannabis, Santana sees it as an ancient remedy, something that can help us alleviate pain and, what’s more, awaken out consciousness and creativity and find our “inner light.” I reached out to Santana and asked him to elaborate:

You were familiar with the plant’s healing properties since you were a child. Nevertheless, throughout your entire life, stigma around it was present. How did that make you feel? Did that ever shake you up and make you question the things you knew about the healing and spiritual benefits cannabis brings?

From when I was very young, I understood the healing benefits from marijuana plants from my mother, Josefina. She would infuse it into alcohol then use it for different ailments. Growing up, I was very aware of medicinal uses of various herbs as it is part of the Native Mexican culture. When I was a kid on the street and working in bars in Tijuana, there were people who smoked marijuana, so I never really bought into the stigma. In the 60s, it was a consciousness revolution and the counterculture where we rejected what Uncle Sam was selling us and opened up our hearts and minds to all sorts of possibilities. I made a conscious choice to take my own path.


What’s your advice to older folks who are hesitant to try Mirayo because of the stigma around marijuana when they grew up?

Medicine is made by a beam of sunlight into plants, so it is natural. Drugs are man made in a laboratory. American Indians from Canada to Brazil knew about healing, by changing the molecular structure through the earth and we are finally catching on to what they always knew. I think it is starting to find its way into the “straight culture” through topicals and ingestible and older people with arthritis and other ailments are learning of the medicinal qualities that cannabis offers.

RELATED: What Isiah Thomas Learned On The Court Helped Him Find Success In Cannabis

Ask most cancer patients if they find cannabis to help. Now they have a legal way to find relief. People are starting to understand that so much good can come from these plants and we are just beginning to understand the healing properties it offers. We have come a long way. It is interesting that people will blindly take pills that have side effects because the FDA says it ok, but have not opened up to cannabis. Perhaps now, with it being legalized in California, Nevada and so many other states, you can go to licensed dispensaries where you can access safe, tested products, people will feel more comfortable.


The cannabis industry won many battles in regards to legalization in the U.S. throughout 2020. The stigma seems to be slowly fading. Was this perfect timing to join the industry, or was it something else that moved you in this direction now?

It’s an exciting time in the cannabis industry and in the world. So many walls are coming down. In the 60’s it was the Black Panthers, marching against Vietnam, Woodstock, the Women’s Movement. In the 70’s and 80’s it was the Berlin Wall coming down and Nelson Mandela being freed. Then Barack Obama as President and now Kamala Harris breaking the glass ceiling. We are evolving and people’s view on cannabis is too.

RELATED: For Former Senator Tom Daschle, Marijuana Reform Matters ‘For My Grandchildren’

To see society transition from where it was back in the 60s and 70s when you bought your herb in a matchbox, or you needed to hide it from the cops to being able to buy it in a store is inspiring. What’s most exciting to me is now cannabis is more widely available, so that more can access this healing medicine.

You mentioned many times how cannabis helps people accept the light inside their hearts and how your mission with Mirayo is to “help people use cannabis as a door to a more benevolent behavior like kindness and compassion.” Imagine a scenario — a utopian one I guess — where most of the negative associations with cannabis have been removed and the use has been legalized globally. Do you think with more people accepting and consuming it there would be more compassion around the world, and also less illness?

Absolutely! Cannabis opens a door to divine wisdom and the everlasting gift of our uniqueness. It can lift the veils of illusion of mental slavery from feeling programmed to be a wretched sinner unworthy of your own light. That is an illusion. Cannabis can help you go within your center, relieve your daily stress and find your light. We need to open our minds beyond the Bible or the constitution and listen to our hearts’ light. That in itself will create more compassion and less mental and physical illness. When you are centered and at peace, you have more compassion, and your body can thrive. As Bob Marley said “Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds.”

This year, people were social distancing, and quarantining. How did you keep busy in 2020? And what’s your advice to people feeling COVID fatigue?

We are inspired by the incredible work the Milagro Foundation does, in making a difference in the lives of children around the world. We continue to put our energy towards helping children and their families adversely affected by COVID. In addition to the launch of Mirayo, we started working on a new album in October and that has been a beautiful process, discovering new melodies and ideas. Stay in your heart and wake up each day to make a positive difference on the planet. Thank you for helping transmit the frequency of benevolence. Peace.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and has been reposted with permission.

Cannabis And HPV: Friend Or Foe?

Kate-Madonna Hindes
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Cannabis And HPV: Friend Or Foe?

With ever-climbing HPV-positive cancer rates, research on the effect CBD and THC has on the human papillomavirus can’t come soon enough.

Often called the common cold of the sexual world, the Centers for Disease Control states that HPV has infected over 79 million individuals worldwide. Both prevalent and highly contagious, HPV tends to thrive on porous skin located in the throat, anal cavity, cervix and tongue, making it extremely difficult to test and eradicate around the world.

Risk factors of HPV are a compromised immune system, smoking and poor diet and sleep. Thought to cause over 70% of cervical cancers, the World Health Organization states that HPV has more than 100 types and has one of the best known defenses: vaccination. 
For decades, researchers believed that marijuana played a role in HPV-related cervical cancer. However, a 2010 study, published in the U.S. National Library of Medicine, found that marijuana did not cause cervical cancer.

Understanding HPV’s infectivity

While once thought to only be contracted through sexual conduct, studies in the last two decades have showcased that HPV can live on surfaces. A 2002 study, published in the British Medical Journal found HPV DNA could live in a clinical environment, without skin-to-skin contact. A more recent and in-depth study, featured in Taylor & Francis Online, found that when comparing the bovine papillomavirus with the human papillomavirus, both showed a remarkable ability to retain a 50% infectivity at room temperature after 3 days. 

Additionally, in 2014, Penn State further researched earlier findings, discovering that unless a special method of cleaning instruments (autoclaving) or bleach was present, HPV was persistent on surfaces and was able to be transmitted. While still cited as a “sexually-transmitted infection,” HPV appears to be anything but. 

Craig Meyers, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Penn State College of Medicine explained, “Chemical disinfectants used in the hospitals and other healthcare settings have absolutely no effect on killing human papillomavirus…unless bleach or autoclaving is used in the hospital setting, human papillomavirus is not being killed and there is a potential spread of HPV through hospital acquired or instrument or tool infection.”

HPV
Photo by Joe Raedle/Staff/Getty Images

THC’s Role with HPV

A recent study published by Joseph A. Califano III, MD, found an interesting juxtaposition between HPV and THC. He shared in a report to UC San Diego Health that he felt since HPV-related head and neck cancers along with marijuana use were both on the rise, there might be a correlation between the two. His father, Joseph A. Califano Jr., is the former Secretary of State and well-known founder and chairman to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University, who heads an organization speaking out against marijuana.

In the study, Califano III cited that THC turned on the p38 MAPK, (protein that respond to stress or other stimuli) and while the protein was signaled on, HPV-positive head and neck cancer lost apoptosis (a form of cell death.) Meaning, THC seemed to ignite the protein that allowed HPV to continue growing at an alarming rate. Citing the study as a, “cautionary tale,” Califano III is now heading a study to see if CBD has the same effect. 

RELATED: Cannabis And HPV: A Treatment Or A Cause?

Interestingly, a 2016 study published by North-West University in Potchefstroom, South Africa, was found to be in direct opposition of Caifano’s findings.

Citing the same method of apoptosis, researchers found that CBD could be considered anticarcinogenic for cervical cancer. The data further illustrated that, “cannabidiol rather than cannabis sativa crude extracts prevent cell growth and induced cell death in cervical cancer cell lines.” Could cannabis hurt head and neck cancers while CBD kills cancer cells in the cervix?

RELATED: 6 Essential Facts You Need To Know About HPV

Kellie Lease Stecher, MD,  a gynecologist in Edina, a suburb of Minneapolis, Minn. believes both studies highlight the importance of ongoing research. “While marijuana use is climbing due to legality, more studies must be done to look at the HPV’s DNA and how each strand is effected by CBD or marijuana,” Stecher explained. “Further studies should examine how HPV expression is altered by marijuana or its components in different tissues; as we don’t have enough data to determine if CBD or THC is helpful or harmful due to conflicting data.”  

With an eye to the future and ever-climbing HPV-positive cancer rates, research can’t come soon enough.

Will Senator Mitch McConnell Be A Problem For Marijuana In 2021?

Mike Adams
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Will Senator Mitch McConnell Be A Problem For Marijuana In 2021?

We imagine that the same reasons he has for refusing the American people money they need to stay alive is part of his motivation for wanting to stop legal marijuana from taking hold.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is perhaps the most despised person in the United States. The top Senate Republican recently sidelined an effort to provide the American people with checks for $2000 instead of the $600 stimulus approved under the latest coronavirus relief bill.

The entire nation has been screaming at McConnell for days from their computers, televisions and smartphones because the lawmaker fails to see the necessity of providing folks with enough cash to actually aid them in catching their fiscal breath. Meanwhile, the cannabis advocacy troop is presumably happy that the rest of the country is finally seeing what they’ve known for years: McConnell is anti-progress.  

When the U.S. House of Representatives passed the MORE Act (Marijuana Opportunity and Expungement Act), they knew the bill didn’t have a fighting chance at being taken seriously with this Congress. As Senate Majority Leader, McConnell determines which legislation sees the light of day and which doesn’t. Marijuana-related legislation is always something he has ignored to the bitter end.

Although McConnell was instrumental in reviving industrial hemp cultivation in 2018, the self-proclaimed grim reaper of Capitol Hill wants nothing to do with making its stoner cousin an American staple. Some think he is apprehensive because he wants to give hemp farmers a chance to thrive first, while others believe that he’s just too old school for pot’s progressive ways. Regardless of which is true, McConnell is one of the main reasons that cannabis prohibition is alive and well. So how much longer is this lawmaker going to be a problem for pot? 

Senator McConnell seems to be against all Americans, but his Kentucky peeps keep reelecting him for the job. He’s spent three decades in Congress, working his way up to majority leader, and now he’s essentially become the most powerful man in Washington D.C. He has more corporate sponsors than professional sports, which has a lot of people questioning exactly who he works for. And while antics like blocking additional corona relief cash for the American people are top of mind right now, the voters always seem to forget about these snubs at the polls. 

Senate Republicans Balk At Democratic House Move To Legalize Marijuana
Photo by Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images

But McConnell’s reign of terror might be at the end of its rope. Although he won the 2020 election, he could still get knocked off his high horse in the new year. 

Next week is Georgia’s runoff election. Since none of the Senate candidates received enough votes to be declared a winner in November, the voters will hit the polls again in a bid to flush out a victor. As we’ve pointed out in previous columns, if the Democrats take over the two seats, the party will have the majority in both the U.S. House and U.S. Senate — giving them the most power in D.C. However, if the Republicans maintain those seats, well, it will be business as usual for a divided Congress.  

One scenario specifically spells doom for Senator McConnell. Since Biden won the presidential election, a Democratic victory in Georgia means that he would no longer control the Senate majority. This demotion would strip most of the bill-blocking power away from the Kentucky Republican, and the Democrats would gain that clout and use it to pass just about any measure they want, including those pertaining to marijuana.

RELATED: Senator Mitch McConnell Congratulates Biden, But Will He Work With Him On Weed?

The only recourse Republicans would have to block cannabis-related bills (or any other issue they wholeheartedly disagree with) is a legislative filibuster. Republicans could try to delay votes by extending debates and using other means of obstruction. But the Democrats, if they win, are talking about taking this option off the table for good.

Senator Mitch McConnell Congratulates Biden, But Will He Work With Him On Weed?
Photo by Caroline Brehman-Pool/Getty Images

But McConnell could still be a threat.

Even if the Senator gets dethroned as Majority Leader, he will still have a great deal of political influence. As Eastern Kentucky University professor Anne Cizmar pointed out recently, McConnell is a “skilled politician” who, even outside the scope of majority leader, would be useful in furthering the Republican agenda while also snuffing out anything the Democrats try to achieve.

And that might include marijuana legalization. But that’s a big maybe. Even in the event of a Senate deadlock, the vice-president-elect, Kamala Harris, could still swoop in and save the day. And since she is on the right side of marijuana reform, it’s not likely that too much backdoor politics would hold back any pot-related measures. Still, we haven’t seen the influence McConnell has outside his role of majority leader.

RELATED: For Former Senator Tom Daschle, Marijuana Reform Matters ‘For My Grandchildren’

We imagine that the same reasons he has for refusing the American people money they need to stay alive is part of his motivation for wanting to stop legal marijuana from taking hold. After all, the country stands to benefit from job growth and billions in economic benefit in a taxed and regulated market. Why McConnell thinks that is wrong for the country should be questioned extensively.

Perhaps the Republican should talk to former Speaker of the House John Boehner and former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle. Both of these former political figures have since forged careers in the cannabis industry.

Here’s When You Can Expect Your $600 Stimulus Check

Maria Loreto
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Here’s When You Can Expect Your $600 Stimulus Check

The second round of stimulus checks have been approved by Congress. Here’s when you’ll get yours.

After some debate and back and forth, the approved $600 stimulus checks are on their way to eligible Americans and U.S. residents. This information was confirmed by two tweets from Steven Mnuchin, Secretary of the Treasury.

For those who have direct deposit set up with the IRS, checks may have already arrived. The IRS said in a statement: “Some Americans may see the direct deposit payments as pending or as provisional payments in their accounts before the official payment date of Jan. 4, 2021.”

Did Marijuana Users Spend Their Stimulus Checks On Weed Purchases?
Photo by Alexander Mils via Unsplash

Like the previous stimulus check, the speed of its arrival will depend on how you filed your 2019 taxes. If you set up a direct deposit payment with the IRS, your stimulus check is likely on the way. If that information has changed, your check will likely experience a slow down.

RELATED: You Might As Well Spend That $600 Stimulus Check On Weed

If you don’t have a direct deposit set up with the IRS, your check will be mailed to you in the form of a debit card or a paper check, and it will take more time to get to you. These documents will begin to be mailed out to eligible recipients starting Wednesday. People will be able to track their checks through the “Get My Payment” tool on the IRS website.

RELATED: What You Should Know About The New Strain Of COVID-19

In a case where you are eligible for a check and for some reason it still doesn’t get to you, the IRS explains that the check can be claimed on your 2020 tax return once you’re filing it in 2021.

For Former Senator Tom Daschle, Marijuana Reform Matters ‘For My Grandchildren’

Javier Hasse
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For Former Senator Tom Daschle, Marijuana Reform Matters ‘For My Grandchildren’

“I became intrigued by the medical and the medicinal advantages, and the opportunities that cannabis provides.”

When it comes to cannabis, Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle had a change of heart. During his tenure as a public servant, he preferred keeping marijuana in the DEA’s Schedule I category, alongside drugs that aren’t considered safe to use even under medical supervision.

“I was into all of that mindset for many years. I experienced the 60s and 70s and saw the downside of drugs,” Daschle tells Benzinga. “And I think there was a mentality that the best way to address drug abuse and the challenges we face with drugs generally, not necessarily just cannabis, was to try to dissuade people from using drugs by enforcing the laws. And I think that mentality was very pervasive and it was bipartisan.”

Today, the scenario has changed. Cannabis is legal for all adults in 11 states, for medical purposes in 34 and five more states—New Jersey, Montana, Arizona, Mississippi and South Dakota—recently voted to legalize it. And Daschle has changed his tune.

Last year, he even joined the Board of Advisors for cannabis company Clever Leaves Holdings Inc, a multinational cannabis company with cultivation operations in Colombia and Portugal. The former senator knows Clever Leaves CEO and co-founder Kyle Detwiler well. They are both South Dakotans.

“We have a state connection,” Daschle says. “Kyle has a photo with me when he was in high school and I was in Congress.”

In 1978, Daschle was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served eight years. In 1986, he was elected to the U.S. Senate and was chosen as Senate Democratic Leader in 1994. With his political career behind him, Daschle is lending his expertise to the business of cannabis.

“But, over time, science, more information, new approaches to medicine, and really some appreciation of the disjointed history around all of this—it all came to converge,” Daschle adds. “And I became intrigued by the medical and the medicinal advantages, and the opportunities that cannabis provides.”

There are also deals to get done. Daschle, however, downplays the lucrative aspects of the business.

“Frankly, I’m at a stage in my life where I don’t need the money. I’ve been very successful in life. And money isn’t a motivator,” he says. “I’m at a point where I want to do the things I really care about. I want to do the things where I think I can still add some value. I want to do some things that could maybe matter for my children, and grandchildren, and for future generations. So money isn’t a real motivation for me. I’m happy to accept monetary compensation for the things that I do. But I must say there are many things far more important to me than the money.”

The Full Spectrum

Daschle isn’t the only politico to have changed his mind about cannabis in recent years. Former speaker of the House John Boehner was once “unalterably opposed” to cannabis legalization. Today, he sits on the board of New York-based cannabis company Acreage Holdings.

RELATED: Why The Cannabis Industry Needs Friends Like John Boehner

President-elect Joe Biden’s political career was also opposed to cannabis. Yet, during his 2020 campaign, Biden stated that his administration would pursue cannabis decriminalization and expunge cannabis convictions.

For Daschle, his focus is on the medical benefits.

“I’ve done quite a bit of reading. I don’t think there was any one moment where it just clicked, it was an evolution. I recognize that, in healthcare especially, things are changing dramatically,” Daschle says. “We’re in the middle of a transformation in healthcare, COVID-driven in part, but driven by many different factors.”

Among these factors generating change in healthcare is the advent of cannabis as mainstream medicine. As a military veteran himself, Daschle is particularly interested in the use of cannabis for the treatment of PTSD.

“One of the things that I have taken a great interest in over all of my professional life are veterans. And I served on the House and Senate Veterans Affairs committees for 26 years,” he says. “So I took a real interest in PTSD and came to appreciate the potential of cannabis as we look to the medicinal advantages and opportunities that it may provide for not only PTSD patients, but others as well.”

Tom Daschle
Photo by Paul Marotta/Getty Images

In his view, the DEA needs to reschedule the plant so it can be studied.

“Rescheduling is really key to our efforts, and that opens up a plethora of opportunity for more research, more understanding,” he declares.

But, when will we see cannabis rescheduled and legalized? In the former politician’s view, it’s just a matter of time.

“I think the patchwork that we have today is a step in the right direction. But you don’t really know when you go from one state to the next what the laws are; you have to do your own research to find out. And while it’s not that difficult to do, I think it is important for us to have a national, rather than a statewide, framework. And I think that day will come relatively soon.”

This month, a historic vote was made in the U.S. House of Representatives in favor of the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, a bill constructed to remove marijuana from the list of federally controlled substances and abolish criminal penalties connected to cannabis.

The House subsequently passed a bill to reduce barriers and broaden scientific research into medical cannabis. It also enables private manufacturing and distribution of cannabis exclusively for research demands.

“We’ve made great progress in the last election on state ballot issues across the country,” Daschle says. “I think we can continue to do that. In the meantime, we ought to continue to elevate the issue at the federal level and hope that more and more members in Congress understand, as I’ve come to understand, just what potential there is.”

Why Clever Leaves?

There are three reasons for Daschle’s being bullish when it comes to Clever Leaves.

“One, their adherence to law and their determination to stay within the parameters of current law, and to respect that they’ve done that extremely well,” he says. “Secondly, their dedication to medical applications of cannabis; that really is what led me to explore the partnership and the relationship we have. And I think they’re just getting started. There’s some real potential there.”

Third is the company’s international breadth and scope, he explains.

RELATED: How Could Joe Biden’s Administration Legalize Marijuana?

“An amazing success story in a very short period of time, obviously starting in Colombia, Canada and Europe, with Portugal,” Daschle adds. “And that’s just an enormous footprint for a cannabis company as young as it is and has really done extremely well. So I’m impressed with their international scope, their focus on medicine and my personal relationship with people like Kyle.”

Daschle also touts that it’s “so much easier to run a successful cannabis business legally”  in Colombia than it is in the United States.

“That will change and, as it does, I’m sure Clever Leaves’ footprint in the United States will grow dramatically,” he says. “But also I think Colombia has a great economy. I’ve been there on a number of occasions and have a great affection and fondness for the country. I’ve traveled the country quite a bit, so I’ve had the opportunity to better understand Colombia. And obviously, because of its remarkable growing environment, it’s perfect for the cannabis production aspects of our lives.”

Whether Daschle will partake in using cannabis himself remains to be seen.

“You know, I like a good glass of wine. I like a good brandy or a good gin,” he says. “I have to admit, I’m not a user of cannabis, but I think people find it to be recreationally equivalent to moderate use of alcohol. And everything in moderation sounds to me like the best approach going forward.”

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and has been reposted with permission.

How To Stop A Hangover Before It Happens

Maria Loreto
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How To Stop A Hangover Before It Happens

If you love to drink, hangovers may be hard to avoid, but there are a few preemptive things you can do to keep them from ruining you.

The holidays are associated with a lot of things, among them, drinking. A lot of drinking. As we get older and our hangovers begin to get stronger and more debilitating, getting through this time of year is a lot, especially if you wish to continue drinking with other people. Is there a way to stop hangovers before they happen? It’s a complicated answer.

While there are no direct ways of preventing a hangover, there are ways of lowering your odds if you pace yourself and hydrated. Cosmopolitan spoke to some health experts who shared some more obscure tips. Here are some of our favorites:

Do some prep before you drink

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Photo by Ismael Trevino via Unsplash

Before you go out, make sure to be ready. Work out during the day, burning off extra energy and the need to de-stress. Before you head out, have a filling meal; this will delay your body’s speed when absorbing alcohol (Can You Prevent A Hangover By Eating A Big Meal?). Another less pivotal yet still important factor is who you hang out with. If you want to pace yourself with your drinking, go out with friends who won’t push you to drink more.

Drink slowly

Why Cannabis-Infused Drinks Are Hit Or Miss
Photo by Robert Mathews via Unsplash

RELATED: How To Stay Sober Through The Holidays

Once you’re out, try your best to drink slowly. This is difficult but it’s the most reliable way of staving off a hangover, giving your body enough time to process alcohol. According to medical experts, your liver takes up to one hour to digest each drink. An easy way to keep track of how much you’ve consumed is to add a cocktail emoji to your notes app.

Have a glass of water per drink

This Magical Marijuana Product Will Turn Anything Into An Instant Edible
Photo by 95839 via Pixabay

Drinking water is pivotal when preventing hangovers, hydrating your body as the alcohol does its best to dehydrate it. While it’s difficult to limit yourself to having one drink per hour, drinking a glass of water per drink is more reasonable. It also keeps you busy and gives you more time to pace yourself.

Steer clear of shots

Photo by Flickr user SBSTNC

RELATED: Cannabis For The Holiday Hangovers

Experts recommend sticking to alcoholic drinks with low ABV percentage (alcohol by volume). These drinks include beers, wine or mixed drinks, especially if these are sipped leisurely and not chugged. Shots tend to contain higher volumes of alcohol, resulting in worse symptoms of hangovers for a lot of people.

Stay active

How To Sniff Out Free Weed At A Party
Photo courtesy of Cannaclusive/Flickr

RELATED: Here’s The Only Hangover Cure That Actually Works

When it comes to preventing a hangover, the key is to slow down the process as much as you can. By keeping yourself active and doing stuff like dancing, playing a board game or doing something else, you’ll cut the time you spend sitting down and drinking without breaks.

American Hemp Farmers Will Continue To Struggle In 2021

Mike Adams
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American Hemp Farmers Will Continue To Struggle In 2021

While there were high hopes that hemp would become a mega cash crop for the American farming community, the oversupply issue has made it a bust for most participants.

Decades before industrial hemp was legalized again in the United States, advocates claimed the crop would be a salvation’s wing for the environment, economy, and especially the struggling American farmer. But so far, that hasn’t been the case. All the newly legal industrial hemp market has done since it was rolled out two years ago is prove to be another way for the agricultural community to bottom out financially and abandon hope. 

That’s not about to change soon. 

According to a new study from business consultants Whitney Economics, most of the doom and despair surrounding the industrial hemp sector is caused by oversupply issues and muddled regulations.  

Their report, entitled “Déjà vu: An Economics Analysis of the US Hemp Cultivation Industry,” shows that hemp prices have continued to take it on the chin — big time. Crops selling between $40 to $45 per pound in 2018 are now only worth $2.50 per pound. A 135 million pound surplus still left over from 2019 has essentially made it a worthless crop. And while hemp can be used to make things like paper, clothing, insulation and biofuel, not many companies are using it yet.  

Therefore, there aren’t any new markets. 

Farmers who were quick to get into the industrial hemp game learned the crop was difficult to manage. On top of challenges with finding quality seed, high labor costs, pest management, and complying with the DEA’s 0.3% THC cap, they also had to contend with a weak infrastructure. Many found the crop wasn’t even close to profitable without the ability to sell to CBD companies. And a lot of those operations were already in business with other, more experienced suppliers.

Unfortunately, while there were high hopes that hemp would become a mega cash crop for the American farming community, the oversupply issue has made it a bust for most participants.

“Hemp farmers developed a false sense of security, given the high pre-[Farm Bill] wholesale prices, the report reads.

For now, prices continue to drop.

Meanwhile, farmers have made expensive equipment upgrades, built new facilities, added security systems, and coughed up other expenses to get involved. It’s an investment that outweighs the return. The highly touted salvation’s wing brought to life by Senator Mitch McConnell and the 2018 Farm Bill could become the nail on the coffin for some before the market can recover.

RELATED: Hemp Farmers Really Need A Break In 2020

What would aid in that recovery is hashing out all of the regulatory uncertainty. States have different ideas about what industrial hemp should look like, while the federal government continues to block progress. This aspect alone has and will likely continue to present challenges for the hemp sector at every turn, said Beau Whitney, founder & chief economist of Whitney Economics.

The Hemp Standard Is 0.3% THC — And That Should Be Changed
Photo by Bloomberg Creative Photos/Getty Images

“The hemp industry is going to continue to be mired with difficulties until regulators can determine if it’s an illicit drug or if it was legalized by the 2018 Farm Bill. Confusion across jurisdictions is causing a regulatory quagmire, slowing down growth and suppressing investment, which is critical to building out a proper infrastructure that can support the rapidly growing industry,” he said.

RELATED:  First Year Hemp Growers Struggle To Reach Profitability

The good news is the industry will find its way out of the funk, and become a crop that rivals corn, soy and wheat, the report finds. But not until there is a solution for all of the regulatory restrictions. 

Federal lawmakers are working on that solution in 2021. U.S. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky recently introduced legislation to increase the THC threshold from 0.3 to 1 percent. Farmers have been struggling to produce hemp crops that fall in line with the DEA’s guidelines on hemp and have been forced to destroy those crops that do not pass inspections. Hemp advocates argue that increasing the THC threshold would be a great benefit to the farming community.

RELATED: Hemp Farmers Still Searching For Companies To Buy Crop

“We believe that loosening up some important interstate business requirements are a much-needed step toward more prosperous times in the hemp economy,” Kentucky Hemp Association President Tate Hall and Vice President Jana Groda said in a press statement released by Paul.    

Whitney Economics predicts the $2 billion hemp market in 2020 will be worth $5 billion in the next ten years. It’s just a matter of which farmers have the strength to cultivate this crop for the long haul.

Cannabis And Coffee Has Become Trendy

Laura Lagano
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Cannabis And Coffee Has Become Trendy

Is coffee just a familiar vehicle for cannabis consumption or is there something more to it? 

From its reputation as a taboo herb that the hippie crowd smoked in college to a socially–acceptable add-on to your favorite barista drink, cannabis has completely rebranded itself. As “cannaphobia” is diminishing, people are becoming more comfortable with the idea of using cannabis products in everyday life.

What better place to start than coffee, the sacred bean juice that America runs on!  After all, caffeine is the most widely consumed psychotropic compound around the globe. And, cannabis — though not available in cafes worldwide, yet — ranks fourth.

Why not combine two plant products, coffee and cannabis, that boast mind-altering substances, caffeine and cannabinoids, respectively? Is coffee just a familiar vehicle for cannabis consumption or is there something more to it? Do the seemingly opposite effects of each cancel one another out? Well, not exactly. Science is always a bit more complicated.  

Let’s examine how caffeine works its magic to rev us up. Essentially, it’s all about adenosine, a neuromodulator, whose primary purpose is to promote sleep. Caffeine functions as an antagonist to the adenosine receptors. That means that it gets in the way by blocking adenosine receptors. The end result is a delay of drowsiness signals to the brain. On the other hand, cannabidiol (CBD), a cannabinoid in cannabis, interferes with the reuptake of adenosine, increasing adenosine levels.  

Should You Mix CBD With Your Morning Coffee?
Photo by Nathan Dumlao via Unsplash

For some people, caffeine can trigger anxiety and an over-alertness and jittery sensation. CBD is a well-known anxiolytic, or anti-anxiety compound. Perhaps, this is the reason why coffee and CBD have been together, effectively working to take the smooth the edges, so to speak.  

RELATED: A Look At The Mental Effects Of Coffee, Wine and Cannabis

While coffee is consumed to rev up the body and help individuals focus, cannabis is typically used to chill and relax. THC, the most potent psychotropic in cannabis, can impair short-term memory. As one of its fundamental properties, forgetting is why cannabis can be useful for individuals with PTSD. Memory loss is not always a bad thing. Interestingly, caffeine can ramp up the memory impairment brought on by THC. 

RELATED: Should You Mix CBD With Your Morning Coffee?

At the end of the day, it’s all about biochemistry and biochemical individuality. What about the differences that can be attributed to genetics in caffeine clearance from the body? Are you a fast or slow caffeine metabolizer? Though a genetic test can reveal this difference, most of us already know. Can you fall asleep before your head hits the pillow immediately after a cup of joe late at night? Or, do you need to stop your caffeine consumption in the morning to avoid insomnia? Maybe a study comparing the impact of cannabinoids on fast and slow caffeine metabolizers is in the works. 

Young Adults Who Vape Are More Likely To Have This Infection

Maria Loreto
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Young Adults Who Vape Are More Likely To Have This Infection

Now that COVID-19 is in the picture, people with compromised lungs or an underlying health condition should be extra careful when vaping.

A new study found links between vaping and symptoms of bronchitis in young adults, including coughing, wheezing and chest whistles. While avid smokers experienced more pronounced symptoms, these symptoms specific existed no matter the regularity of vaping.

The study, published in JAMA Network Open, provides some supporting data for the mysterious vaping condition that appeared in 2019, which made a lot of people very ill for no known reason. The disease, known as EVALI, affected more than 2,800 people from all over the US, resulting in deaths and hospitalizations that preceded COVID-19.

Researchers examined more than 2,000 young adults who answered questions in regard to their history of vaping and smoking, and their respiratory health. Study results showed that participants who had vaped cannabis had stronger links to symptoms of bronchitis, like coughs, congestion and phlegm, when compared to participants who had never vaped.

Top 10 Benefits Of Vaping Over Smoking
Photo by Itay Kabalo via Unsplash

The more times that participants had smoked over the previous 30 days, the higher the odds were of developing these kinds of symptoms. When vaping cannabis three or more times within the past month, researchers noted twice the risk for wheezing and in some cases there were instances of chest whistling. These results weren’t associated with people who vaped nicotine.

RELATED: How Safe Do Consumers Really Feel After Recent Vaping Illness?

“More research is needed to determine if these relatively short term observations are harbingers of chronic changes and the development of chronic lung diseases,” Dr. Albert Rizzo told CNN.

Cases of EVALI have decreased throughout this year, with people steering clear of unknown brands of e-vapes and black markets cannabis cartridges. Still, a lot remains unknown, including the differences between vaping nicotine and cannabis and the effects of some of the chemicals that are present in these cartridges.

RELATED: Top 10 Benefits Of Vaping Over Smoking

Now that COVID-19 is in the picture, people with compromised lungs or an underlying health condition should be extra careful when vaping, steering clear of black market products and perhaps looking for other sources of cannabis. It’s 2020, and methods of getting high abound.

DEA Could Issue Additional Cannabis Cultivation Licenses In 2021

Benzinga Staff Writer
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DEA Could Issue Additional Cannabis Cultivation Licenses In 2021

The DEA is not inclined to grant licenses to state-legal marijuana company applicants, as their status violates federal cannabis prohibitions.

By Jelena Martinovic

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is poised to issue licenses for the cultivation of cannabis for research purposes in the first half of the next year.

The agency is expanding the number of licensed cannabis cultivators for research up from the country’s sole producer of marijuana for research.

“DEA believes a range of three to 15 growers is a reasonable estimate for purposes of this economic analyses, with the understanding that the actual number could vary considerably,” the newly published rule says.

The University of Mississippi is the only entity with the right to grow marijuana for experts studying the plant, Marijuana Business Daily writes.

“I expect them to start issuing licenses no later than the first half of 2021,” Maridose’s president Richard Shain said.

Photo by CasarsaGuru/Getty Images

The Boca Raton, Florida-based cannabis cultivation and research center is one of approximately 30 businesses and institutions that opted to apply for the federal cannabis cultivation permits, according to Marijuana Business Daily.

RELATED: ICYMI: DEA And Cannabis Research Still Lousy Bedfellows

Other state-legal cannabis businesses that could receive approval to grow cannabis for research purposes include New York-based Columbia Care, G.B. Sciences in Nevada, Green Leaf in Alaska, NuVue Pharma in Colorado, and Illinois-based PharmaCann.

In addition, The University of Massachusetts, The University of California, Davis, and Fraunhofer USA in Delaware also applied for permits.

RELATED: House Approves Bill To Enhance Medical Marijuana Research

Shain said the DEA is not inclined to grant licenses to state-legal marijuana company applicants, as their status violates federal cannabis prohibitions.

“Not viewed favorably’ is code for ‘not going to happen,’” he said.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and has been reposted with permission.

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