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Surprise, Teens Are Vaping More Than Ever

Mary Schumacher
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Surprise, Teens Are Vaping More Than Ever

A new study called “Prevalence of Cannabis Use in Electronic Cigarettes Among US Youth” shows that not only are kids vaping at a high rate, but that quite often it’s cannabis being inhaled.

Published by JAMA Pediatrics, the research letter analyzed the 2016 National Youth Tobacco Survey results using data from over 20,600 students. Of the 6th to 12th graders, approximately one third of them were vaping, with around one third of that population using e-cigs for cannabis. All in all, about 9 percent of all students were vaping cannabis, which equals out to around 1 in 11.

RELATED: No One Knows Why Drinking And Drug Use Is Declining Among Teens

It is noted that these numbers are higher than what was previously thought. In response, the FDA began a new campaign to combat youth vaping. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2017 National Youth Tobacco Survey reports that over 2 million middle school, high school and college students are vaping. Plus, new findings indicate that vaping by high school students could be up by around 75 percent this year alone.

When the above numbers are combined, and when you take into consideration that the results were self reported, which could mean that they’re swayed by how much each student felt comfortable admitting to or bragging about their usage, they are indeed far reaching. But what are the implications?

Much more research needs to be done on vaping, whether tobacco or cannabis, as it is a fairly new way of inhaling vapor into one’s lungs and we don’t know exactly how that vapor may or may not be effecting us outside and inside of what it’s carrying.

Katrina Trivers of the CDC had this to say in an email to The Verge, “The use of marijuana in these products is of particular concern because cannabis use among youth can adversely affect learning and memory and may impair later academic achievement and education.” She was the study’s lead author.

RELATED: No Correlation Between Medical Marijuana And Increased Teen Use

Again, many more studies need to be conducted, not only on the effects of vaping, but on cannabis itself; how it affects youth who use it regularly and when it’s most appropriate (i.e. if the young person has seizure disorder or is suffering from cancer, the risk/benefit factor becomes clear).

One thing’s for certain: vape pen sales are through the roof and vaping is gaining in popularity across all demographics. What that means on many levels, only time will tell.

Kristen Bell Said ‘Weed Rules’ And Everyone Lost Their Damn Minds

Brendan Bures
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Kristen Bell Said ‘Weed Rules’ And Everyone Lost Their Damn Minds

Guess who has added their name to the list of celebrities stepping out of the proverbial cannabis closet? That would be none other than Kristen Bell, who revealed on Marc Maron’s “WTF” podcast, that she is a recreational cannabis user.

“I like my vape pen quite a bit. I smoke around my husband and it doesn’t seem to bother him,” Bell told Maron. “Weed rules. Weed is my drug of choice, for sure.”

Bell added that she’s selective in her cannabis usage, opting to consume marijuana only on occasions.

“I can’t do it around my kids, which is a phenomenal amount of hours each week,” she said. “Once a week, if I’m just exhausted and we’re about to sit down and watch ’60 Minutes’, why not?”

You would probably classify this confession as another benign celebrity statement. If you were cynical, which I’m not, you could even poke fun that Bell was jumping on the bandwagon and was slightly overstating the taboo nature of being a parent who uses cannabis. All in all, Bell’s admission rendered, to this listener, as rather innocuous celebrity fun.

But, wow, did the celebrity press blow this interview out of mammoth proportion. Google “Kristen Bell marijuana” and you get everyone from People to Huffington Post tsk-tsking Bell. Why, you might ask? Well because her husband is Dax Shepard, a former drug addict who has been sober for 14 years.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BnNH_J3lYlM/?utm_source=ig_embed

Bell addressed this expected criticism on the podcast, too, saying that Shepard “doesn’t have a problem with anyone else partaking in anything, provided within reason that they’re not acting like a complete schmuck.”

“He’s fine if people do things. He likes drugs and alcohol,” she added. “He just is aware that he lost his privilege with them because he can’t handle it. His brain does not have the chemistry to handle it.”

Even Yahoo joined the ballyhoo reaction circus, adding expert quotes that explain that smoking marijuana once a week is potentially negative, even through a vape pen, as it will change your brain chemistry. “When we test them as far as memory and learning, they tend to score lower on these tests,” Jamie Allen, an assistant professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University, told Yahoo. Allen also added that marijuana has “anti-inflammatory activities,” but more research need to be done on its benefits.

Hmm. Why is this necessary? I’d like to remind everyone that Yahoo published a litany of pro-marijuana content around “Weed & The American Family,” which included poll results that found 74 percent of Americans don’t care if celebrities smoke weed or not. The number was even higher among millennials (aged 18-34) at 81 percent.

So, why do all these media organizations care? Yeah, we’re not sure either. Enjoy your vape pen in peace, Kristen Bell.

https://twitter.com/daxshepard/status/1042494423349702656

Is Apple Cider Vinegar Good For You? A Doctor Weighs In

Gabriel Neal
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Is Apple Cider Vinegar Good For You? A Doctor Weighs In

When my brother and I were kids back in the ‘80s, we loved going to Long John Silver’s.

But it wasn’t just for the fish.

It was for the vinegar – malt vinegar. We would uncap a bottle at the table and swig that tangy, delicious nectar of the gods straight.

Are most of you repulsed? Probably. Were we way ahead of our time? Apparently.

Some social media and online searches would have us believe that drinking vinegar is a cure-all. Our friends and colleagues will regale us with stories of the healing power of apple cider vinegar for whatever problem we may have just mentioned. “Oh, that backache from mowing? Vinegar.” “That last 10 pounds? Vinegar will melt that right off.” “Syphilis, again? You know it – vinegar.”

As a practicing physician and professor of medicine, people ask me about the benefits of drinking apple cider vinegar all the time. I enjoy those moments, because we can talk about the (extensive) history of vinegar, and then distill the conversations to how it could, maybe, benefit them.

A cure for colds, the plague and obesity?

Historically, vinegar has been used for many ailments. A few examples are that of the famous Greek physician Hippocrates, who recommended vinegar for the treatment of cough and colds, and that of the Italian physician Tommaso Del Garbo, who, during an outbreak of plague in 1348, washed his hands, face and mouth with vinegar in the hopes of preventing infection.

Vinegar and water has been a refreshing drink from the time of Roman soldiers to modern athletes who drink it to slake their thirst. Ancient and modern cultures the world over have found good uses for “sour wine.”

While there is plenty of historical and anecdotal testimony to the virtues of vinegar, what does medical research have to say on the subject of vinegar and health?

Some people love apple cider vinegar and believe it to be an aid to weight loss. Madeleine Steinbach/Shutterstock.com

The most reliable evidence for the health benefits of vinegar come from a few humans studies involving apple cider vinegar. One study demonstrated that apple cider vinegar can improve after-meal blood glucose levels in insulin-resistant subjects. In 11 people who were “pre-diabetic,” drinking 20 milliliters, a little more than one tablespoon, of apple cider vinegar lowered their blood sugar levels 30-60 minutes after eating more than a placebo did. That’s good – but it was only demonstrated in 11 pre-diabetic people.

Another study on obese adults demonstrated a significant reduction in weight, fat mass and triglycerides. Researchers selected 155 obese Japanese adults to ingest either 15 ml, about one tablespoon, or 30 ml, a little more than two tablespoons, of vinegar daily, or a placebo drink, and followed their weight, fat mass and triglycerides. In both the 15 ml and 30 ml group, researchers saw a reduction in all three markers. While these studies need confirmation by larger studies, they are encouraging.

Studies in animals, mostly rats, show that vinegar can potentially reduce blood pressure and abdominal fat cells. These help build the case for followup studies in humans, but any benefit claims based only on animal studies is premature.

In all, the health benefits we suspect vinegar has need to be confirmed by larger human studies, and this will certainly happen as researchers build on what has been studied in humans and animals to date.

Is there any harm in it?

Is there any evidence that vinegar is bad for you? Not really. Unless you are drinking excessive amounts of it (duh), or drinking a high acetic acid concentration vinegar such as distilled white vinegar used for cleaning (consumable vinegar’s acetic acid content is only 4 to 8 percent), or rubbing it in your eyes (ouch!), or heating it in a lead vat as the Romans did to make it sweet. Then, yeah, that’s unhealthy.

Also, don’t heat any kind of food in lead vats. That’s always bad.

So have your fish and chips and vinegar. It’s not hurting you. It may not be doing you all the good that you’re hoping that it will; and it certainly is not a cure-all. But it is something that people all over the world will be enjoying with you. Now raise high that bottle of malt vinegar with me, and let’s drink to our health.The Conversation

Gabriel Neal, Clinical Assistant Professor of Family Medicine, Texas A&M University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Giant Bags Of Marijuana Wash Up On Florida Shores

Maria Loreto
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Giant Bags Of Marijuana Wash Up On Florida Shores

Since Hurricane Florence hit last week, giant bags of marijuana have been washing up on different parts of the Floridian shore. Each bag is unmarked and contains individually wrapped five-kilo bricks of weed that authorities assume belong to an airplane drop that went awry or a boat that lost its cargo amidst the storm.

The Washington Post reports that residents of Daytona Beach have been facing a conundrum. While some want to take the miraculous and untraceable marijuana packets for themselves, others are concerned about the authorities. As documented in one 911 call, a woman told the operator that, “We’re at Jungle Hut (Park) and a huge bundle of drugs or something just washed up on the beach and there are people like fighting over it. There’s like seven or eight people out here. And they’re all like huddling up against it, and my dad’s trying to take it so that you guys can have it all.”

While medical marijuana is legal in Florida its recreational use is still illegal, meaning that people who took marijuana from the spot would be charged with possession.

According to Flagler County officials, the police have managed to recover over 100 pounds of marijuana in the last couple of days. They all probably belong to the same shipment but there’s no way of knowing why they ended up floating in the sea. “There’s a plethora of possibilities,” says St. Johns Commander Chuck Mulligan.

To all the residents of Florida who thought that luck was on their side for once and decided to take a brick of weed home, authorities warn that the missing marijuana packets are all being looked for and ask that you strongly consider if free weed is worth a trip to the “Green Roof Inn.” We assume that means prison.

New Jersey’s New Adult-Use Cannabis Bill Just Might Pass

Mary Schumacher
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New Jersey’s New Adult-Use Cannabis Bill Just Might Pass

In January of this year, Phil Murphy became governor of New Jersey for a slew of reasons, not the least of which was his promise to legalize weed in the Garden State within his first 100 days in office. That benchmark has come and gone, but lawmakers continue to work on it and now a new legalization bill is finished, polished and ready for possible implementation.

The new bill calls for the lowest proposed cannabis taxes in the U.S., marijuana delivery services and locations for imbibers to toke, other than in the privacy of their own homes. The law will be for adults 21 and over and will tax and regulate the plant. That low tax is big news, though, written in at a mere 10 percent.

Marijuana retailers would be able to apply for commercial “consumption” spaces as well, so social lounges, cannabis themed coffee shops, spas and maybe even restaurants could be coming soon to New Jersey. With provisions as liberal as these, Jersey could be raking in the bucks, even with the lower taxes. Atlantic City and the infamous Jersey Shore still draw, but cannabis can be a louder tourism boost in today’s age. 

Though the bill doesn’t yet outline how many cannabis licenses can be issued, it does say that 25 percent of said licenses will go to minorities, women and veterans. This is in keeping with the focus on social justice that is so important to Gov. Murphy. Getting rid of arrest disparities in the minority population, lifting up gender equality and a having a deep appreciation for those who served also helped him to win his gubernatorial bid.

Another standout in this newest bill will be the concocting of a five-person Cannabis Regulatory Commission, which would basically be making the rules as they go along. The five members would be governor appointed; three with consent from the Senate, one with consent from the Senate president, and one with consent from the Assembly speaker.

Though Senate President Stephen Sweeney told NJ Advance Media that the bill is unlikely to pass before October, that’s still an encouraging statement for cannabis pioneers across the state and nation. Having Jersey turn a deeper shade of green will put even more pressure on New York to do the same. Plus, many New Jersey residents would have a shot at benefiting fiscally. Ten percent of licenses issued will be “micro-licenses,” meaning small businesses can get in the game, too.

Brad And Angelina Met To Discuss Their Bitter Split; Demi Lovato Is Getting Tons Of Support From Ex Wilmer Valderrama.

Naughty Gossip
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Brad And Angelina Met To Discuss Their Bitter Split; Demi Lovato Is Getting Tons Of Support From Ex Wilmer Valderrama.

POSITIVE STEPS: BRAD AND ANGELINA MET IN PERSON TO DISCUSS THEIR BITTER SPLIT

“Brad and Angelina actually set up a secret meeting at her house,” says a source. “It’s the first time they have truly gotten together to make things work since their group therapy with the children. Brad and Angie’s meeting was a success. They are going to stay with the plan set forth through the courts.”

DEMI LOVATO, WHO HAS BEEN IN REHAB FOR 2 MONTHS IS GETTING A TON OF SUPPORT FROM HER EX, WILMER VALDERRAMA

TMZ has learned Demi quietly transferred from a rehab center on the East Coast to another facility that is world-renowned for its addiction programs. She’s been at that facility for more than a month, and Wilmer has flown there several times during visiting days to be with her. Several people in a nearby town tell TMZ, they’ve seen Demi and Wilmer at a local Starbucks several times, and it appeared to people in the shop they were boyfriend/girlfriend.

MARIAH CAREY IS TRYING FOR A COMEBACK WITH A NEW SINGLE CALLED GTFO

FLOP …Just weeks after reports that sales for her Vegas residency were disastrous, Mariah Carey is trying for a comeback with a new single called GTFO.

Unfortunately, after less than a week it was dropped OUT of the Top 100 songs on iTunes

Trump Wants To Ramp Up The International Drug War

Mike Adams
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Trump Wants To Ramp Up The International Drug War

President Trump is planning a series of meetings next week at the United Nations General Assembly in New York in an effort to push his agenda in the international drug war.

The event, which is being sponsored by the U.S., has been deemed the “Global Call to Action on the World Drug Problem” and it is seemingly designed to get member states to reaffirm their commitment to battling the illegal drug trade. Yet, according to a report from the Intercept, drug policy advocates are concerned about the implications of the meeting and the document members are being asked to sign.

“It’s not an official document, it doesn’t go through any of the official channels, it’s not negotiated, and it is linked to the event that’s being put on by Trump that will include the secretary general,” said Hannah Hetzer, the senior international policy manager at the Drug Policy Alliance.

“It seems to be a way to get countries to fall in line behind Trump and his administration,” she added. “I think countries that sign this and then show up to this photo op should be very careful — they don’t really know what they are signing up to.”

The Trump Administration sent out a letter last month stating that all countries that sign this document will “receive an invitation to attend this High-Level event” with President Trump.

“The purpose of this event is to demonstrate international political will to enhance efforts to effectively address and counter the serious threats posed by the world drug problem,” the letter reads.

It goes on to say that the U.S. is already working with over two-dozen countries (some of which are controversial for their willingness to execute drug offenders). But the note, which promises a group photo with Trump for all who sign on, appears to be more of a push for Trump’s ant-drug views rather than a plan drafted by the United Nations.

It was just two years ago that the General Assembly held a special session on drugs that produced an outcome document that shied away from imposing cruel and unusual punishment on drug offenders. The Obama Administration played a bug part in this shift. But as the Intercept points out, Trump could officially change that position by forcing more conservative views.

After all, Trump seems to have an affinity for national leaders like Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has carried on one of the most violent and deadly drug wars in history. And the president has also supported policies aimed at executing drug offenders. At a rally in Pennsylvania back in March, Trump said: “When I was in China and other places, by the way, I said, Mr. President, do you have a drug problem? ‘No, no, no, we do not.’ I said, ‘Huh. Big country, 1.4 billion people, right. Not much of a drug problem. I said what do you attribute that to?’ ‘Well, the death penalty.’”

In March, U.S Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a memo recommending that federal prosecutors “include the pursuit of capital punishment in appropriate [drug] cases.”

The Trump document asks member states to provide updates at the Commission on Narcotic Drugs in March 2019.

How Does Cannabis Affect Your Sex Life?

Allison Tierney
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How Does Cannabis Affect Your Sex Life?

A scientific study has recently put a spotlight on the elusive relationship between cannabis and sex.

Published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, a population-based study about the relationship between cannabis use and sex showed that there indeed seems to be a connection.

In the study, which was highlighted earlier this month by Forbes, cannabis use was associated with “increased sexual frequency” in men and women. Those who reported using cannabis daily in the study had a lot more sex—20 percent more—than those who hadn’t ever used cannabis.

Its results also appeared to debunk that cannabis use impairs sexual function, which has long been the subject of debate.

Both of the study’s researchers, Dr. Andrew J. Sun and Dr. Michael L. Eisenberg, are affiliated with the Department of Urology at Stanford University. Their aim was to look into this mysterious connection between substance and sex because the “effects of [cannabis] use on sexual function are unclear, with contradictory reports of enhancement and detriment existing.”

The study’s analysis used data obtained from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) from over 51,000 Americans—both men and women of reproductive age—and relied on self-reporting. Responses from the study were only collected during a set period of time in participants’ lives, providing limitations.

Participants in the study were asked about their sex lives—specifically how often they had sex—within the four weeks before taking the survey. For cannabis, they were asked about their frequency of use within the last year. Survey respondents who didn’t answer questions about their sex lives were left out.

Though authors called the relationship they saw in their analysis “reassuring,” they said that the connection between cannabis use and sexual function should “warrant further study.”

“A positive association between marijuana use and sexual frequency is seen in men and women across all demographic groups,” the study stated in its conclusion.

This certainly isn’t the first time the coitus-cannabis relationship has been put under a scientific lens. Another study in The Journal of Sexual Medicine in January 2017 looked at sexual function in women who used cannabis. “The internet is rife with claims regarding the ability of marijuana to improve the sexual experience; however, scientific data is lacking,” the researchers cited in their objective.

The conclusion of that study found that “The majority of respondents who used [cannabis] prior to sex reported a better overall sexual experience, an increase in sex drive and a more pleasurable orgasm with minimal effect on lubrication.”

Well, that certainly explains all the cannabis-related sex products out there.

Kylie Jenner Just Tried Cereal With Milk For The First Time And The Internet Has A Lot Of Feelings

Maria Loreto
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Kylie Jenner Just Tried Cereal With Milk For The First Time And The Internet Has A Lot Of Feelings

Kylie Jenner is known for her random and sometimes oblivious comments. The sort of comments that you’d read on an anonymous board and instantly recognize the author. “That’s so Kylie,” you’d say.

On September 18th she tweeted that for the first time in her life she’d tried cereal with milk. That’s right, Jenner, a 21-year-old mother, had never tried cereal with milk in her life. Okay. We’ll believe her. Stranger things have happened even though I can’t think of a single one.

The minute she made the announcement Twitter had to make a thing out of it, with users asking her hundreds of questions such as the type of milk, the type of cereal, and most importantly, why?!

Kylie Jenner had answers for all.

While Kylie’s attitude was nothing but positive, all sorts of users had to jump in and roast her. Some made comments on how Kylie’s supposed to bring awareness to important things, and how she has a large following of fans that will listen to her. Others gave her food recommendations, and others were disbelieving. A mix of all of the above is appropriate, even if Kylie has the right to try all sorts of basic foods at whatever point in her life.

Are Cannabis Restaurants On The Horizon?

Mary Schumacher
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Are Cannabis Restaurants On The Horizon?

As state after state legalizes weed, the number of cannabis users coming out of the proverbial closet  also continues to grow. As it does, so do the ways that food and cannabis can be incorporated, from imbibing and then enjoying a good meal to having said meal infused with cannabis in every morsel.

It sounds like a dream come true for lovers of edibles and good food, but it’s a legal gray area that no one has really delved into as of yet. There are private chefs who will whip up the best five-star cannabis-laced meal you could dream of in legal states, but the brick and mortar restaurants have yet to emerge. Their eventual existence seems inevitable, though, especially with the nation’s green wave happening.

At the National Restaurant Association Show earlier this year, speakers went into how the legal landscape hasn’t been thoroughly explored as of yet, and that where cannabis is consumed in public settings still had to be worked out. This could mean that cannarestaurants are still a little while away, but it also means that people are already thinking in that direction.

In Colorado, local jurisdictions decide whether a person can toke in public or enjoy an edible outside their homes. Because of this, the first cannabis cafe has sprung up in Denver called The Coffee Joint. Even at this concept cafe, they provide non-laced snacks and beverages and offer papers, water pipes and vaporizers, but it’s still BYOC.

Once regulations are set in place and marijuana is more and more normalized, cannabis restaurants seem like the obvious next big thing. It’s a targeted audience for sure, but one that makes up over half the nation. It doesn’t hurt that it’s unquestionably a very cool concept. French food with creamy, infused butter, all American diners with cannashakes and sandwiches. The innovations are endless…

One thing that’s going to certainly be discussed first is how people are to get to and from these high minded restaurants. It’s all well and good to have an easily accessible downtown location, but then what about those on the fringes of town? Will car services and food delivery services get a boost in the process? Will there be an increase in designated drivers for weed consumption? We can only wait with mouths watering as legislation is passed and chefs get ready to cook up cannabis for the masses.

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