In recent years, CBD (cannabidiol) edibles have become quite popular. And out of the different types of edibles, gummies have come up as the favorite of the majority. After all, there is nothing not to love about CBD gummies. They are tasty, portable, convenient, and discreet. Additionally, there is no need to measure anything, which means they are easy to dose. Thus, CBD gummies enjoy equal popularity among first-timers and experienced users. One of the prime reasons why people use CBD is to get relief from pain and stress.

Though CBD is largely safe to use, it still has risks involved. The FDA does not regulate over-the-counter CBD products. Thus, it is vital to research and know if you are choosing the right brand. Thankfully, we have done all the research to bring you a list of the five best CBD gummies to get relief from pain.

1.Joy Organics Premium CBD Gummies

Once you hear the true story about Joy Organics came into being, your trust in the brand will get strengthened. Joy Smith is the CEO and co-founder of Joy Organics. She is a grandmamma who was looking for organic support to cure her health problems. She found CBD in the process and eventually thought about starting her business based on the natural substance she loves so much.

The brand has earned popularity and customer trust by using a step-by-step process for ensuring its quality. The Premium CBD Gummies of Joy Organics are entirely free of gluten, THC, and vegan. These gummies come in the flavors Strawberry Lemonade and Green Apple. You can additionally use CBD oil for anxiety for the best results.

2.Calm by Wellness CBD Gummies

The CBD brand, Calm by Wellness is known for its superior quality hemp-based organic, certified non-GMO, and free of THC. It keeps them earning the love and loyalty of their customers. Also, the brand utilizes broad-spectrum CBD to ensure that their products have all the advantages of using whole hemp plants, minus the THC.

An attempt by Idaho Republican leaders to make it impossible to legalize drugs in the state through a ballot initiative failed on Thursday, missing the supermajority support it needed in the House.

The proposed constitutional amendment would have required two-thirds of the House and Senate to approve the removal of a drug from Schedule I or Schedule II. Despite 26 co-sponsors who signed on to the amendment, House GOP leaders failed to garner the 47 votes needed to advance the measure to the Senate.

House members voted 42-28 in favor of the amendment, just short of the two-thirds required. The legislation divided Republicans, several of whom grew emotional as they spoke on the impact of drugs in their families. Many of them centered their debates around medical cannabis or hemp.

Several lawmakers who supported the measure on Thursday argued that putting the amendment on the 2022 ballot would give the public a voice on drug policy. Had the Legislature approved the measure, it would have been up for a vote in the 2022 general election.

If the amendment had passed in both chambers, voters potentially could have faced both the anti-drug measure and a medical marijuana initiative that groups are trying to get on the ballot.

For the first time that María can remember, half of her marijuana harvest is still in storage on her ranch in Mexico’s Sinaloa state months after it should have been sold.

Sitting in her wooden house tucked into the same mountains that produced some of the world’s most notorious drug traffickers, including Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, the 44-year-old mother of four thinks she knows why: expectations Mexico will soon legalize marijuana.

“It has never happened to us where we harvest and have it (stored) in sacks,” said María, who asked that her full name not be used and her exact location not be revealed because in the mountains surrounding Badiraguato, where organized crime controls everything, misspeaking can be dangerous.

British Columbia’s Ministry of Agriculture recently released a fact sheet describing the symptoms and spread of the most common diseases affecting cannabis plants. The list includes Fusarium, Pythium, Powdery Mildew, Botrytis, and Hop Latent Viroid (HLVd). Many of the pathogens cause stunted growth as well as reduced yield and potency. Others, such as pythium can cause plant death.

Needless to say, cultivators should do everything they can to prevent infections and ensure a fruitful harvest. The fact sheet concludes with several recommendations for preventing disease in cannabis plants, including:

Maintain a clean and sanitary environment

All the plant pathogens described in the fact sheet can be spread through contaminated equipment, tools, and potentially staff and visitors. That is why maintaining clean and sanitary growing facilities can minimize the potential spread of pathogens.

Tools, equipment, dehumidifiers, air filters, and growing and trimming rooms, should be regularly cleaned and sanitized. Visitors and staff should also use footbaths before entering the growing area and wear hairnets, beard nets, gloves, and Tyvek coveralls.

The Mississippi Supreme Court heard arguments this week challenging the state’s overwhelming vote in support of medical cannabis last November but advocates still have their high hopes. 

The Mississippi Cannabis Trade Association released a statement following Thursday’s oral arguments that would determine the industry’s fate. If the challenge is successful it would essentially nullify the election night win for compassion in Mississippi. 

The idea behind the challenge is an old law that says you need 20% of your signatures to come from each of the state’s congressional districts. The problem? Mississippi lost a congressional district in 2003 and officials never updated the law. Now the opposition is attempting to use it as a de facto ban on ballot initiatives. 

“The Mississippi Cannabis Trade Association (MSCTA) looks forward to reviewing the Mississippi Supreme Court’s imminent ruling on the recent legal challenge to Initiative 65. At its very core, this is a matter of upholding the will of the citizens of Mississippi and their constitutional right to propose and enact amendments through the ballot initiative process,” the statement reads. “The state constitution expressly prescribes certain enumerated rights to the people of Mississippi, and therefore, its provisions should be interpreted in a manner that preserves these rights, not destroys them.”

The wildly high number of 75% of Mississippians voted in favor of medical cannabis for a list of 22 qualifying debilitating medical conditions last fall. To put it in perspective, that’s a 20-point larger victory margin compared to when California passed Proposition 215 in 1996. 

Cannabis is now legal in Michigan, but there are some hazy aspects of the new law. Let's clear the air and define what has become legal in the state and what was outlawed in 2020.

Both recreational and medical cannabis are legal in Michigan. The products for therapeutic purposes were legalized in 2008, making Michigan the 13th state that allows it for medical treatment. Cannabis for recreational use was passed in 2018. Its licensed sales started in 2019, and they're expected to grow this year.

Each municipality has the right to allow or restrict recreational cannabis sales. Keep this in mind while traveling across the state because many cities put a veto on these sales.

Consumption

Despite marijuana legalization, it cannot be consumed anywhere you want. It should be done in your own residence away from the public. If you smoke it at your friend's house, ask for the host's approval. People who live in a rented apartment should gain permission from their landlord.

Marijuana consumption on public property or public places (e.g., schools, hospitals, parks, cars, and bars) is banned and considered a civil infraction.

Medical cannabis products are not always what they seem, according to a new study led by researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).

In fact, the contents of these products can vary considerably from distributors’ claims, according to the study, published in JAMA Network Open. This is particularly important when THC, the metabolite responsible for the “high” cannabis provides, is present in medical cannabis products labeled to be CBD only.

As more states legalize cannabis sales, demand has increased. However, there is little consistency in product regulation or labeling, unlike the strict regulation of medicines purchased through a pharmacy. As a result, labeling is often not accurately informing patients of the content of the cannabis-derived products they buy.

The psychoactive metabolite in cannabis is Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Cannabis products containing THC are federally banned, but states have been passing laws legalizing these products. This has in turn led to a patchwork of laws that have varied impacts on guaranteeing that consumers get what they expect. Cannabidiol (CBD) does not come under FDA regulation.

In this study, researchers analyzed urine samples from nearly 100 patients enrolled in a clinical trial of the effect of medical cannabis for anxiety, depression, pain or insomnia. The purpose of the study was to see if these products were delivering the ingredients patients expected.

The big news in the cannabis industry this year is that New York has legalized marijuana for recreational use, making it the 15th state to do so. It likely won't be until sometime next year that recreational sales commence, but for investors, it's not too early to start thinking about which companies will capitalize on what's sure to be the next hot market for the industry. 

According to a new report, sales will be higher among males than females, while customers between the age of 30 to 40-years-old will be the most interested in purchasing cannabis products.

Cannabis software firm Akerna Corp (NASDAQ:KERN) expects national cannabis retail sales to reach $95 million on 4/20, the unofficial marijuana holiday. That’s according to a new Flash Report out of the Denver-based company.

Flower Power

Akerna says the top-selling product category on Tuesday, April 20, will be flower, accounting for 49% of all legal sales. To put this into perspective: flower has claimed 45% of all legal cannabis sales daily in 2021.

Photo by Jp Valery via Unsplash

Vape pens and cartridges will be the second most popular product among the customers on 4/20, the firm anticipates.

Many doctors also believe that cannabis is best used together with other forms of medicine, so don’t use this as an excuse to no longer see your oncologist.

Data from the journal Gynecologic Oncology Reportsreveals that most gynecologic oncology patients find cannabis products to be either just as effective or even more effective compared to prescription meds that are aimed at reducing cancer symptoms.

Yale New Haven Hospital investigators polled 31 patients of gynecologic oncology about their medical cannabis consumption. A total of 74% of respondents were either undergoing immunotherapy or chemotherapy during the time of study. A staggering 83% of them reported that marijuana was effective for managing symptoms especially in the areas of insomnia, neuropathy, appetite, and anxiety while most of them also believed that its efficacy and safety was just the same or even better than conventional prescription medications.

Photo by Esther Kelleter/EyeEm/Getty Images

“The majority of patients in our study felt that medical cannabis was equivalent or superior in efficacy to other medications (e.g. opioids, antiemetics, anxiolytics, and sleep aids) in relieving their symptoms… Of the subset of patients using medical cannabis for pain, 63 percent reported a reduction in opioid use… These data suggest medical cannabis may be a reasonable alternative or adjunct to medications frequently used for cancer or treatment-related symptoms,” concluded the authors.

On Monday, New Mexico became the latest state to legalize adult-use cannabis, after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Cannabis Regulation Act. Sales are expected to begin before April 2022.

Following a legalization wave led by New York and Virginia, this approval now puts more than 43 percent of Americans living in legal cannabis jurisdictions, according to The Marijuana Policy Project.

“The successful bill signing today of adult-use cannabis legislation in New Mexico would not have been possible without the leadership of Governor Lujan Grisham and the tireless support of the State Legislature,” said David Culver, vice president of global government relations at Canopy Growth.

The Bills

Signed bill HB2 allows New Mexicans 21 and over to possess up to two ounces of cannabis, and cultivate six mature and six immature plants at home. The bill also regulates the production and sale of recreational cannabis while including measures to incentivize populations disproportionately impacted by prohibition to enter the industry.

“We are going to increase consumer safety by creating a bona fide industry. We’re going to start righting past wrongs of this country’s failed war on drugs. And we’re going to break new ground in an industry that may well transform New Mexico’s economic future for the better,” said Gov. Grisham, a strong proponent of cannabis reform.

Real estate is one of the more difficult aspects of the cannabis industry. Securing a license is tough but getting your location is even tougher. Each state has different regulations and restrictions, which combined with unique real estate markets makes finding and securing property essential. It’s an expensive endeavor and one in which traditional mortgages aren’t typically an option. 

This presentation will focus on the New England and New York area cannabis real estate markets. It will cover the following states: Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. 

A new survey conducted in Texas reveals that 61 per cent of respondents who are part of the state’s medical cannabis program turn to the herb as replacement for prescription drugs.

Almost 2,900 people participated in the survey by Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy along with the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) regarding their medical cannabis use.

“Our recent survey of 2,866 Texas residents who use medical cannabis sought to gain insight into the needs and experiences of this population,” notes the survey, which was conducted online between Aug. 11, 2020, and Oct. 6, 2020. The participants were recruited through medical cannabis patient networks and about 22 per cent of them were military veterans.

The majority of medical marijuana patients in Texas reported that they used cannabis to cope with pain management. Closely behind stood veterans, who used the drug to treat symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Notable results include the fact that 39 per cent of respondents believed cannabis has improved their way of life and 84 per cent had considered leaving Texas in order to live in a state with more inclusive medical marijuana policies.

More than 40,000 pounds of medical marijuana have been sold in Arkansas since the first dispensary opened in May 2019, according to the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission (AMMC). A dispensary in Bentonville has sold the most medical marijuana.

The 42,769 pounds sold is valued at $285 million, according to a press release from Scott Hardin, a spokesman for the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, the parent agency of the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission. State taxes on the dispensary sales since May 2019 total just under $30 million. Most of the tax revenue is placed in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences National Cancer Designation Trust Fund.

The AMMC has issued licenses for 38 dispensaries, with 32 dispensaries in operation and six working toward opening. There are 12 dispensaries that have reached at least 2,000 pounds in sales. The Arkansas Department of Health reports 74,779 active patient cards. Over the last 30 days, patients across the state spent an average of $880,000 each day on medical marijuana purchases, according to the AMMC.

The constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana for 17 qualifying conditions and creating a state medical marijuana commission, was approved by Arkansas voters 53% (585,030) to 47% (516,525) in November 2016. There are only six U.S. states – Alabama, Idaho, Kansas, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Wyoming – in which marijuana is illegal to sell in any form for any purpose.

State marijuana regulators are reconsidering how they will now run a lottery to decide who wins licenses to operate six additional medical marijuana dispensaries after no business answered a bid solicitation to develop the process. 

"Unfortunately, the state did not receive any responses," Brian Hodge, a spokesman for the Department of Business Regulation, said Wednesday. "We are currently exploring alternative options and still expect to conduct the lottery by later this spring." 

In February the state sought a company to “design and develop the methodology for the random selection process,” that would be held, in public, around May 14. 

The bid proposal said the company would be "primarily responsible for securing all equipment, technology, or other necessary mediums to run the process.” 

It wasn’t immediately clear what alternative options regulators were now discussing. 

The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) has extended the licensure deadline for hemp farms from April 9 to May 28.

The department received multiple requests from hemp farmers over the last few weeks to extend the deadline. Many existing and prospective hemp farmers expressed that they are still experiencing delays in obtaining the necessary land and seeds to plant this spring, ODA told Hemp Grower in an email.

After considering farmers' concerns, the ODA decided to extend the deadline.

Any prospective licensee can download a guide to submit a new application here.

The change in the presidential administration has focused cannabis businesses on the potential for legalization nationwide.

Running parallel to full federal legalization will be a corresponding regulatory and taxation scheme replacing the current regime of IRC §280E which prohibits anything but the cost of goods sold being deducted from a state licensed cannabis operation’s income statement. 

The evolution of the federal taxation of cannabis started with the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, which applied tax to marijuana used for medicine.

Historians and critics alike maligned this legislation as an attempt to stop the use of cannabis rather than tax it.

The fines were greatly out of line with any failure in tax compliance — violators were fined up to $2,000 and a potential prison sentence of up to five years, while the actual tax was merely $1 per ounce or $24 per year. 

A 2015 study found that obese mice actually lost weight from ingesting cannabis because THC caused changes in the gut microbiome that regulates weight loss and digestion.

Cannabis consumers have known for years about the effects of cannabis on appetite.

In fact, one of the more enduring stereotypes of the side effects of cannabis usage is the consumer getting the “munchies” after consumption, which is often a highlighted feature of modern U.S. television situational comedies, such as anepisode of “The Big Bang Theory” and others.

But there is a more serious side to the munchies mania. This side-effect of cannabis consumption is now the focus of studies by researchers in clinical trials using cannabis in cancer patients who typically lose their appetites and, thus, lose weight.

Photo by Melissa Ross/Getty Images

The popular TV show "Chopped," as every foodie knows, involves four chefs who face off against one another in a timed cooking contest. The goal is to prepare a three-course meal using four secret ingredients. The one who gets the best score from a panel of judges wins.

A new spinoff of that show is designed to appeal to a cannabis-loving audience. It's one of the surest signs yet of the mainstreaming of cannabis in American culture.

The new show, called "Chopped 420," will debut on Discovery+ on - you guessed it - April 20. That's because 420 is considered a holiday for cannabis users or at least a time to reflect upon how the code for cannabis by California high schoolers became a global phenomenon. 

The goal of both "Chopped 420" and another spinoff on Discovery+ called "Chopped Next Gen" is to draw in younger viewers to "Chopped"-related shows and other content, according to Variety.

The new show will run for five weeks on Discovery+.

For the initial run of the show, five episodes will stream on Discovery+. Comedian Ron Funches will host, and the judges' panel includes chefs Esther Choi, Luke Reyes and Sam Talbot. Other judges will consist of drag performer and cannabis activist Laganja Estranja and comedian Tacarra Williams.

California’s licensed marijuana shops are doing an excellent job at preventing sales to minors, according to a first-of-its-kind study commissioned by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

That means the industry is living up to a key promise advocates made when voters legalized cannabis for adults 21 and older nearly five years ago.

“Licensed marijuana retailers are clearly keen to follow the rules,” said Angela Eichelberger, a research scientist with the Insurance Institute who authored the report with University of Chicago and University of Minnesota experts. “They’re aware that the industry hasn’t won everybody over yet, and they don’t want to get shut down.”

The study did find isolated violations of state law at some legal shops, such as workers giving out free samples of edibles. And researchers offered suggestions to further boost protections for minors.

But the study’s authors said the California’s still vibrant world of unlicensed retailers is the biggest problem when it comes to selling cannabis to underage consumers. Statewide, the illicit market remains three times larger than the legal market, since the lack of taxes and regulations allows unlicensed shops to sell cheaper products to anyone who comes shopping — including minors.