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Women With Menopause Now Turning To Cannabis For Treatment

Brendan Bures
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Women With Menopause Now Turning To Cannabis For Treatment

One in three women used cannabis to treat hot flashes and cold sweats associated with menopause, according to a recent survey.

Each year, over 2 million women reach menopause, while 27 million are in the throes of it. Defined as the end of a woman’s menstrual cycle, women with menopause experience a natural decline in their reproductive function with common symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, and mood irregularity.

New data presented at the the North American Menopause Society’s (NAMS) annual meeting shows one in three women with menopause now use cannabis to manage symptoms. Another 10% were interested in trying marijuana in the future as treatment. Most surprising, the survey found women were turning to cannabis more than traditional menopause therapy like hormone treatment.

RELATED: How Marijuana’s CBD Can Help With Menopause Symptoms

“These findings suggest that cannabis use to manage menopause symptoms may be relatively common,” said Carolyn Gibson, the study’s lead author. “However, we do not know whether cannabis use is safe or effective for menopause symptom management or whether women are discussing these decisions with their healthcare providers—particularly in the VA, where cannabis is considered an illegal substance under federal guidelines.”

Researchers associated with the San Francisco VA Medical Center surveyed 232 women (who averaged 56 years in age) living in Northern California and had participated in the Midlife Women Veterans Health Survey. Cannabis use was most commonly reported by women experiencing hot flashes and night sweats, which accounted for more than half of those surveyed.

Women With Menopause Now Turning to Cannabis As Treatment
Photo by Matthew Henry via Burst

About a quarter of women reported insomnia while 69% had frequent genitourinary symptoms.

“While the therapeutic use of cannabis by veterans is not altogether uncommon, this study is among the first to highlight veterans’ use of marijuana for this particular condition,” said NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano. “Given cannabis’ relatively high rate of use among the women in this cohort, scientists and others would be well-advised to further explore its safety, efficacy, and prevalence among women experiencing menopause.”

RELATED: Can You Cure Your Cramps With CBD?

The researchers agreed with the sentiment, concluding that while promising, the results from the short sample size required more investigation.

Said NAMS medical director Dr. Stephanie Faubion, “This study highlights a somewhat alarming trend and the need for more research relative to the potential risks and benefits of cannabis use for the management of bothersome menopause symptoms.”

COVID Is Airborne — What Does That Mean?

Maria Loreto
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COVID Is Airborne — What Does That Mean?

The CDC recently updated their guidelines confirming that COVID-19 is airborne. Here’s what that means for you.

We now know a little more about how the coronavirus is spread, and it’s worse than we thought. On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control released an update  that states   COVID-19 can spread through aerosolized particles. This means that virus particles can linger in the air for minutes to hours and can travel further than 6-feet.

This knowledge challenges our previously held beliefs, which consisted of the transmission of the virus through respiratory droplets. Before we dive into what this new knowledge means for our safety, it’s important to understand the differences between respiratory droplets and aerosol particles.

CNBC reports that aerosol particles are smaller than the droplets released by coughs, sneezing and talking. These particles can travel further distances and can linger in the air, making the virus airborne, able to be inhaled by people who are walking or hanging out in an infected place.

RELATED: Will Boosting Your Immunity Protect You From COVID?

Aerosolized particles can accumulate over time in one place, particularly in a space that’s  poorly ventilated and indoors. If someone with the virus was breathing heavily in one spot, say at the gym, or singing for long periods of time and expelling particles, the virus could then be picked up by others who were to pass through the area. To protect yourself against these scenarios, be sure to limit the amount of time you spend indoors, particularly in places where others can linger.

5 Things Dispensaries Are Doing To Keep You COVID Safe
Photo by engin akyurt via Unsplash

According to experts, the best way to prevent the spread of the virus is to continue to use masks and follow social distancing guidelines, telling NPR that “people should be wearing a mask whenever they are indoors with people outside of their household pod – even if they are standing more than 6-feet apart, or even in a situation where a plexiglass barrier is in place.”

RELATED: New Research Shows How Women Are Coping With The Pandemic

While face masks aren’t able to protect you against aerosolized particles, you should still wear them since they might reduce the viral load you inhale. It’s also important to use your windows and be diligent with who you meet up with. If this news scares you, you can utilize air purifiers in order to get rid of contaminants and stay up to date with the latest news from experts and the CDC.

5 Mistakes To Avoid When Making Marijuana Edibles

Maria Loreto
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5 Mistakes To Avoid When Making Marijuana Edibles

Like most cannabis related activities, the preparation of edibles requires a healthy amount of trial and error.

A big part of making edibles if figuring out dosage. Depending on the potency of your cannabutter or base oil, some batches are going to be more powerful than others. Here are 5 mistakes to avoid when making marijuana edibles.

While there’s no way of protecting yourself against all unexpected factors when making infused treats, there are a few simple mistakes that can be avoided with some foresight. These will prevent your edibles from tasting gross and, most importantly, from not wiping you out with a single bite. Here are five common mistakes to watch out for when preparing edibles.

Use equal amounts of weed and oil

How To Get Edibles To Affect You Faster
Photo by Tree of Life Seeds via Pexels

RELATED: 5 Ways To Figure Out THC Dosage With Cannabutter

“Less is more” might as well be marijuana’s tag line, because it’s preferable to be a little buzzed than to have a full blown freak out because you ate an edible that was too strong. Even if you want to get crazy high, there’s only so much the lipids in oil will bind to your cannabis, so avoid wasting your weed and money.

The ratio you’re looking for is 1:1 — equal parts ground cannabis and oil. If you want to extend the life of your weed, you can also infuse your oil with cannabis stems, trims and vaporized flower.

Remember to decarboxylate

Before adding cannabis into your recipe, you must decarboxylate it. This process occurs when you heat up cannabis on its own and allow it to release its effect.

If you add raw cannabis into a mix, your edibles will taste terrible and no one will get high. Be sure to heat the cannabis beforehand and to add it in once the decarboxylation process has occurred.

Don’t grind your cannabis too much

Photo by ponce_photography via Pixabay.

RELATED: 6 Essential Facts To Know About Marijuana Edibles Before Indulging

Grinding your cannabis into a fine powder will make your recipe taste grassy and bad while giving a green tint to your oil. The fine grind will also make it harder for you to strain the plant out of the oil, leaving you with ugly and bad tasting chunks of weed in your edibles. In order to avoid this, grind the marijuana with your hands, mix it into the oil and then strain it.

Know the proper heating methods

Most amateur cannabis bakers stick to the basics, heating their ovens to 245 degrees and cooking the weed for a period of 30 to 40 minutes. After you’ve done this, you should be all set to follow your edible recipe.

It’s better to be safe than sorry

Due To Coronavirus, Edibles Are A Better Option Than Smoking Marijuana
Photo by Katerina Smirnova via Unsplash

Preparing edibles is a taxing process, so it’s logical if you’re feeling tired and just want to get to cooking without having to take any extra steps. Nevertheless, if you want your edibles to have some sort of uniformity, make sure to use the same amounts of infused oil per serving. If you prepared the oil yourself and want to know how strong it is, have a teaspoon, wait for an hour and see how you feel.

5 Things To Do If The Debates Make You Anxious

Maria Loreto
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5 Things To Do If The Debates Make You Anxious

Presidential debates can be stressful. Here are some things you can do to manage your emotions.

With tonight’s VP face-off on the docket and two more presidential debates in the wings, one thing has already been decided: 2020 has been a banner year for anxiety and stress. Many of us have felt stymied by these emotions, which have been triggered by the pandemic, the election, global warming, and many other events that seem out of our control.

For the sake of our mental health, it’s important to learn how to cope with these emotions and to find effective ways of managing our states of mind. And while the myriad global situations we find ourselves in seem boundless, there are a few things we can do to make ourselves feel better. Take the debates for instance. Here are 5 things you can do to reign in your anxiety while watching.

Acknowledge and accept your feelings

While watching a presidential debate you can expect a variety of feelings to surface, from anger and anxiety, to total numbness. No matter what they are, be sure to accept them and embrace them, which will  hopefully allow you to move on and not get stuck with your bad mood for days on end. As an exercise, monitor your emotions and try to name them, preventing them from building up inside of you. Don’t let them ruin your night or the following day.

Reach out to the right people

threesome apps are real but do they work
Photo by rawpixel.com

RELATED: Who Won That Messy Presidential Debate? Certainly Not Americans

It’s common for people to want to watch these events together, either to discuss all of the crazy that’s on full display or to at least have someone nearby for emotional support. Lean on these impulses, reaching out to people who hold similar views. Don’t reach out to someone you disagree with politically since that might just result in a big and heated fight. And please, please, stay off Facebook.

Focus on controllable tasks

If the future of the country is a big source of anxiety for you, and looking to our country’s leaders isn’t reassuring, focus on the present and on the circumstances you can control. Organize your house or do laundry as you watch or listen to the debate, keeping your mind and hands occupied while staying mindful of what’s going on.

Watch clips of the debate

Poll: Readers believe Trump and Biden equally possible to legalize marijuana
Photos by: Win McNamee/Staff/Getty Images; Drew

RELATED: What Does ‘Inshallah’ Mean And Why Did Biden Say It To Trump?

If sitting through almost two hours of political rants and name-calling is too much for you, watch recaps the next days. If you need to stay informed, watch the debate through social media. These options might prove more effective than watching the whole debate in one sitting.

Turn off the TV 

If watching politics stresses you out, watching an evening debate might not be the best thing for your sleep. Despite the anger and stress that these events produce, we still have to continue on with our lives the next day. Limit your exposure to them if they affect you too heavily and, while you’re at it, limit the amount of news you consume. Checking in twice a day with politics is more than enough to get you caught up and to keep some semblance of sanity and mental health.

Will Boosting Your Immunity Protect You From COVID?

Maria Loreto
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Will Boosting Your Immunity Protect You From COVID?

Many products claim to “boost” your immune system. Is there any truth to these statements, specifically when it comes to protecting yourself against COVID?

Our immune systems have been a much discussed topic throughout the pandemic. Vitamin C supplements have been sold out almost as much as hand sanitizers and cleaning supplies, indicating that we’re all very concerned with staying healthy and strong in the face of the coronavirus.

Now that we know a little bit more about COVID-19, is there an efficient way of building up our immune systems? It’s a complicated topic with a complicated answer.

Despite what some wellness companies would have you believe, it’s scientifically impossible to boost your immune system. “Medically, it doesn’t really make sense – the immune system isn’t a switch that you turn on and turn up high,” immunologist Jenna Macciochi told the Huffington Post.

RELATED: 5 COVID Myths Debunked By WHO

Immune systems work by building up a basic defense against a virus or pathogen. After a week or so of exposure, say, to coronavirus, our bodies begin to produce antibodies, which allow us to give a more tailored response to the virus and get rid of it, building up our immunity towards it and helping us get cured.

healthy
Photo by William Stitt via Unsplash

This whole system is made more complex by the variances in our DNA, with every person having their own strengths and weaknesses that make them ill suited and resistant to different diseases.

RELATED: Can CBD Boost Your Immune System?

In order to have a well functioning immune system, the one thing we can do, and that will actually provide some positive results, is to work on our overall health. Keep your drinking under control and avoid smoking. Work out regularly and eat the right kinds of foods, focusing on vegetables that are high in vitamins and fiber. Getting enough sleep and healthy doses of distraction can help you battle stress, which has been linked with weak immune systems.

While it’d be amazing to consume or do something that keeps your immune system in top shape, the topic is much more complicated than that. In order to keep yourself healthy you’re going to have to do the mundane work.

Cops Not Bothered By Dave Chappelle’s Illegal Weed Parties

Brendan Bures
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Cops Not Bothered By Dave Chappelle’s Illegal Weed Parties

Chappelle has a chef in Ohio that prepares amazing meals with marijuana and psychedelics for fellow comedians, according to Chris Rock.

If you build it, they will come…and trip. In response to the pandemic shutting down live comedy venues across the country, Dave Chappelle built his own stage on land he owns in Ohio. He invites famous comedians to fly in, tests them for COVID, and performs for a socially distanced audience. Not it seems, the cops not bothered by Dave Chappelle’s illegal weed parties.

It’s called “Chappelle Summer Camp.” But backstage, comedians like Chris Rock, Kevin Hart, and Michelle Wolf indulge in substances usually hidden from camp counselors.

RELATED: Dave Chappelle Will Share His Magic Mushrooms, But Not His Weed

“I was trying to be nice because your show’s on in the daytime,” Rock said during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, “but we do lots of drugs. But not the hard stuff.”

“There’s lots of weed. There’s way more weed than anyone should ever,” Rock continued. “And there’s a lot of mushrooms. Dave’s got a weed/mushroom chef that prepares amazing meals with weed and mushrooms.”

Rock joked that visiting the farm and sipping some mushroom tea caused Tiffany Haddish to shave her head. “I know she likes to act like, ‘Oh, Common told me he loved me with no hair.’ No, it was the mushroom tea talking,” Rock said.

Dave Chappelle's Illegal Weed Parties
Photo by eskymaks/Getty Images

Haddish appeared on The Tonight Show and shared her side of what happened after consuming the mushroom tea.

“As Jon Hamm is talking, he started to look like Phylicia Rashād,” she told host Jimmy Fallon. “As I looked around, everybody started looking like Phylicia Rashād. I had to go to therapy… I think it’s because I really want Phylicia Rashād to be my momma. I’m going to have to write a movie and cast her in it to be my mom, that’s what I gather from that.”

With all these comedians talking publicly about these mushroom and weed parties, you might wonder where are the cops? Both substances are illegal in the state of Ohio. But local sheriff Gene Fischer didn’t make much of Rock’s comments.

RELATED: That Time Dave Chappelle Discovered His Son Smoked Marijuana

“Chris Rock’s a comedian. Chris Rock is probably looking for jokes,” Fischer told a local news station. “People have been making jokes about marijuana and drugs for years. Hopefully that’s what he’s talking about.”

“It’s not raised to the level that we would go out in mass and try to make arrests,” he added. “To me these are just comments right now, until we prove otherwise.”

Cannabis And Coconut Oil: The Wellness Power Couple

Mary Schumacher
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Cannabis And Coconut Oil: The Wellness Power Couple

Before we go into the benefits of coconut oil, let’s not forget that THC is fat soluble. That means that the more fat, the more potent and sure the concoction. Coconut oil is loaded with fat to carry the weed into your system, but on top of it all, it turns out to be a good fat, also with benefits. Research shows that this saturated fat can actually help prevent heart attacks and strokes.

RELATED: Treat Your Pain With Homemade Cannabis-Infused Topicals

That’s right, the fats in coconut oil actually go forth and attack bad cholesterol, thus lowering it in the body. As THC is shown to bring blood pressure levels down, this becomes a winning combo for your heart and entire cardiovascular system.

Coconut Oil
Photo by melati411 via Pixabay

Another exciting place where cannabis and coconut oil team up is in the anti inflammatory realm. Cannabis has been used against inflammation for millennia, with arthritis being an important example. Coconut oil, unsurprisingly, also has anti inflammatory properties. Plus, when used topically it can reduce the slight swelling and irritation of minor injuries.

The antioxidant properties of coconut oil create a synergy with cannabis when it comes to boosting cognition. Cannabis is known for elevating cognition and is even known to combat Alzheimer’s Disease. So the combination of the two is very brain healthy. People are able to make connections they were missing before and with continued use, the combo can bring much hope.

RELATED: Why Marijuana Lovers Are Freaking Out Over Coconut Oil News

Remember that coconut oil’s surplus of fat is one of the reasons that it works so well in conjunction with cannabis, and that’s another reason why the two paired make for a powerful pain reliever. Whether topical or imbibed, you’re going to get more relief with the combo than with one or the other on its own.

There are even more benefits, from an improved metabolism to reduced anxiety, so do your research on whatever it is that’s ailing you and see if this powerful combo is the right one for you and your cannabis journey.

Study: Marijuana Use Increases Pain After Surgery

Maria Loreto
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Study: Marijuana Use Increases Pain After Surgery

Data shows that while cannabis is beneficial for chronic pain, that might not be the case when it comes to surgery-induced pain.

New research indicates that the use of marijuana before surgery may impact patients’ recovery process, causing their pain level to significantly worse. The data goes against most of what we know about medicinal cannabis, a compound that’s been hailed as a pain reliever of all sorts.

“There is some evidence that cannabis may be beneficial for chronic and nerve pain. However, early research suggests that this is not the case for acute pain such as for surgery of a broken leg,” said lead study author Dr. Ian Holmen.

Data shows that people who used marijuana before going into surgery reported more pain while recovering, requiring the need for more opioids. They also needed more anesthesia during surgery. Cases like this highlight how important patients’ honesty is when it comes to answering pre-op questions; these details can inform doctors on their patients’ drug use and  influence the patient’s surgery and recovery plan.

RELATED: Disclosing Marijuana Use Before Surgery: What You Need To Know

Researchers compared patients who had consumed cannabis before recovering from a broken leg, and patients who had not. The study has some caveats since there’s no clarity on the type of cannabis that was used, the form in which it was ingested, or how often.

Should Chronic Pain Patients Use Metered Doses For Most Effective Treatment?
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio via Pexels

 

A closer look at the study’s results show that patients who used marijuana before surgery required 12.4 extra millimeters of anesthesia and received 58% more opioids per day while in the hospital. They also reported higher levels of pain when asked about it on a scale from 1 to 10.

RELATED: Why Isn’t Cannabis Being Prescribed For COVID Survivors? 

While more research is needed to draw more accurate conclusions, this study shows that cannabis use before surgery has some influence over patients’ recovery and pain levels. A similar situation occurs in patients who regularly use opioids before surgery, who experience exaggerated pain responses and require more medicine to cope with the pain.

The research was presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists Monday.

Survey: Millennials Might Stop Using This Post-Pandemic

Maria Loreto
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0
Survey: Millennials Might Stop Using This Post-Pandemic

A new survey finds that young adults prefer to handle their money a little differently now that there’s COVID to contend with.

Cash is a necessity, or so say our grandparents. In reality, cash is used when shopping at small independent stores, cash-only restaurants and for that time once every couple of months when you need to pump your tires and find yourself in need of some loose change. Now that there’s credit cards and apps like Venmo and Zelle, there’s never been less of a need for cash, especially for young people. The spread of COVID is also a factor that’s making people reconsider their use of cash.

According to result of a new survey conducted on cash, credit and debit card use, respondents were twice more likely to use debit or credit than they were to use cash. Among the most interesting bits of data that the survey collected is the fact that the younger the person is, the less likely they are to carry cash.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, millennials are least likely to have bills in their wallet at any given time: 40% said they carry it most or all of the time, compared to 45% of Generation X and 59% of baby boomers. But while boomers are most likely to carry cash, they’re also carrying the least, with just $42 in their wallets, on average.

On average, Americans carry an estimated $46 in cash.

RELATED: This Is How Millennials Prefer To Consume Their Cannabis

Photo by Flickr user CafeCredit.com

The survey, conducted by Travis Credit Union, found that even when people have cash on themselves, they’ll most likely use credit or debit cards. Those who preferred to use cash said that they did so because of the “privacy and security that cash offers.”

RELATED: 3 Things To Know About A Second Stimulus Check

Among the reasons listed as to why people prefer cards over cash is the ease and convenience of cards, concerns over hygiene, and the ability to instantly see the state of finances through an app.

Now that the pandemic is on everyone’s minds, people are using less cash than before, with half of respondents admitting to using less cash than they were using before the start of the pandemic. Three in 5 people say they won’t go back to cash once the pandemic is over. We can assume that this change is due to a mix of health concerns, the natural progression of technology and plain convenience.

Zuckerberg Donates $500K To Decriminalize Drugs

Brendan Bures
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0
Zuckerberg Donates $500K To Decriminalize Drugs

Measure 110 would reduce all drug possession arrests to misdemeanors and cause all drug convictions to drop by 91%.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have put their weight behind a measure to decriminalize all drugs in Oregon. Zuckerberg donates $500K to decriminalize drugs. which would also earmark a significant amount of state cannabis tax revenue toward substance abuse treatment.

Measure 110, the ballot item in question, aims to change the narrative around drug use in the state. Instead of treating drug users as criminals, campaign organizers believe substance abuse should be treated as a public health issue.

RELATED: Pandemic Boosts Marijuana Legalization Support In New Jersey

“The war on drugs has created stereotypes and misinformation about people who are addicted to drugs and people who use drugs and made it easy to make it afraid of people who use drugs,” Yes on 110 campaign manager Peter Zuckerman told The Willamette Week. “Our biggest obstacle is the stigma.”

Mark Zuckerberg Donates $500K To Decriminalize All Drugs in Oregon
Photo by rawpixel.com

The Facebook couple became the second biggest financial backers of Measure 110 with their donation, made through their Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Advocacy. Drug Policy Action, an advocacy organization under the Drug Policy Alliance, contributed around $2.5 million when the campaign was gathering signatures to qualify for the polls, The Oregonian reports. Since making it on the ballot, Drug Policy Action made a $862,000 to raise voter awareness about the measure.

RELATED: GOP Voters Support Weed Decriminalization More Than Democratic Lawmakers

Those caught with any drugs in their possession would no longer receive criminal penalties, under Measure 110. That includes substances like heroin, cocaine, and more. Misdemeanors would be handed out to offenders, who would enter a drug treatment and recovery program.

According to the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission, the decriminalization initiative would reduce felony and misdemeanor convictions for drug possession by 91%. The measure would impact Asian, Native American, and Black Oregonians significantly. Racial disparities for possession arrests would drop 95% if the measure passed this November.

Big thanks to Zuckerberg donates $500K to decriminalize drugs.

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