WeedLife News Network

Marijuana often demonstrates the ability to win over even the most conservative of individuals. That said, winning over the hearts and minds of America’s vast regions isn’t complete until cannabis endears itself to the nation’s most conservative citizens and lawmakers in the southeast. 

Recent activity indicates that it may just be happening.

Commonly known as the Deep South, the region is the Bible Belt’s shiny, conservative buckle. It’s where conservative viewpoints almost always win out. There, progressive agendas like cannabis reform often face an uphill battle that rivals that of Sisyphus. 

The states that make up the region—Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina—are home to some of the most self-identified conservatives in the nation. A 2014 Pew political poll found Alabama and Louisiana identifying as the most politically conservative in the country. All of the Deep South finds itself in the upper portion of self-identifying as religious states as well, according to Pew. This includes Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi identifying at 86%, 84% and 83% Christian respectively. 

Reform, State By State

Shifting sentiments are underway in areas. The region has made marijuana reform, but not without its hurdles. In Louisiana, its long-anticipated medical market opened in August 2019 after being signed into law in 2015. Despite being slow to open, the medical market could be the first significant legislative domino to fall across the Deep South. 

Customs officials seized nearly five tons of cannabis last week from a truck that was attempting to cross into the U.S. at the Peace Bridge Port of Entry on New York’s border with Canada, federal law enforcement officers announced on Monday. The seizure is the third large pot bust this month at the border crossing that has seen an uptick in smuggling via commercial vehicles since travel restrictions called in response to the COVID-19 pandemic were put in place this spring.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Misha A. Coulson said in a press release from the Department of Justice that the truck attempted to enter the United States not long before midnight on June 25. The commercial truck with Ontario license plates was carrying a load of 55 storage containers, according to an electronic manifest for the cargo.

When Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers conducted an x-ray scan of the truck, it revealed inconsistencies with the cargo in the trailer. The vehicle was then directed to a CBP warehouse loading dock for further examination of the shipment. During a physical inspection of the truck, officers “recovered multiple packages of vacuum sealed bags containing a green leafy substance, which field tested positive for the presence of marijuana.”

Truck Driver Faces Life In Prison

Customs officers recovered approximately 8,320 sealed bags from the shipping containers in the truck. A total of 9,472 pounds of marijuana, which officials valued at approximately $20 million, was confiscated by customs officers. The driver of the truck, a 26-year-old Indian national, has been charged with possessing 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana and importation of marijuana into the United States with the intent to distribute. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life behind bars. The defendant has been arraigned before a federal magistrate and is being held pending a detention hearing scheduled for Wednesday.

Port Director Jennifer De La O praised the seizure, characterizing it as “an excellent job by our officers from start to finish.”

Cannabis stocks have lost about a quarter of their value in the first half of 2020, compounding a 50 per cent drop in 2019.

The upside for investors? There’s never been a better time to do distressed deals, according to Codie Sanchez, managing director at private equity firm Entourage Effect Capital LLC.

Liquidity in the sector has been diminishing since the first quarter of 2019 but now that trend is “on steroids,” with private companies’ access to capital almost completely dried up, Sanchez said at a virtual conference hosted by Prohibition Partners last week.

A lot of athletes take weed. Far more than you know. But when you read that an athlete was suspended for failing a drug test on the news, it is easy to assume that all drugs are bad. To clear the air, two major drugs used by athletes are opioids and cannabis. 

While there are tons of studies that loudly proclaim the negative effects of these drugs, there are just as many that talk about the benefits of cannabis. Pot not only has recreational benefits, but it also has medicinal benefits. 

As a matter of fact, the marijuana industry has grown so much that companies that are involved in marijuana and its derivatives are popping up all around. These companies even have public stocks with tradable shares.

The ban on cannabis for recreational and medicinal use has been lifted in about 8 states in the United States, while some have lifted the ban on medicinal uses of the drug alone. 

In Canada, you can take your weed without fear of getting caught because it is completely legal. But the use of cannabis by athletes has been under a heavy cloud of debate for a long time. 

In less than three months, New Zealanders will vote in the world’s first national referendum on a comprehensive proposal to legalise the recreational use of cannabis.

Unlike cannabis ballots in several US states in which the public only voted on the general proposition of whether cannabis should be legalised or not, New Zealanders have access to the detailed Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill. It outlines how the government proposes to establish a “controlled and tightly regulated” legal cannabis market.

The approach is not like the Brexit referendum, which had no detailed plan of action for a yes vote. Neither is it like New Zealand’s much maligned 2016 flag referendum, in which people knew exactly what they were voting for. In this case, New Zealanders are voting on a proposed law reform, but even following a yes vote, the cannabis regime will have to go through select committees and public consultation. And a legal cannabis market will require monitoring and enforcement.

The cannabis legislation bill sets out how the government would control and regulate a legal cannabis market, including the following measures:

licensing of cannabis industry operators

A little-known cannabinoid called THCV can trigger your brain to eat less and avoid greasy, fatty foods.

Marijuana’s capability as an appetite stimulant is well-documented. And, no, we’re not talking about the “munchies.” We’re referring to its ability to kick-start appetite in potentially life-threatening situations.

Cancer, for instance, can induce adverse metabolic changes in patients, causing them to lose their appetites and tissue in the process, which results in a condition called “cachexia.” Chemotherapy treatment and anti-cancer drugs often exacerbate these effects, but research shows medical cannabis can boost appetite, mood, and caloric intake in cancer patients, while simultaneously battling cancer cells.

AIDS patients similarly suffer from wasting syndrome, in which someone loses more than 10% of their body weight. Multiple studies have reported increased appetite and lowered nausea symptoms for HIV-positive subjects who consumed marijuana when compared to those who took a placebo.

This positive effect on appetite is predominantly associated with THC, the psychoactive cannabinoid in the cannabis plant. Marijuana contains at least 113 cannabinoids and one of them has received newfound attention for its opposite effect — suppressing appetite and potentially improving energy levels.

Dr. Lester Grinspoon, one of the most vocal champions of marijuana legalization in the United States who promoted his advocacy in both best-selling books and Congressional testimony, died on Thursday. He was 92. 

A native of Massachusetts, Grinspoon studied at Harvard Medical School, and later joined the faculty there as a professor. His interest in cannabis began in the 1960s, when he said its use in the U.S. “increased explosively.”

“At that time I had no doubt that it was a very harmful drug that was unfortunately being used by more and more foolish young people who would not listen to or could not believe or understand the warnings about its dangers,” he later wrote.

Grinspoon said his “aim was to define scientifically the nature and degree of those dangers,” but he ultimately discovered that his perception of marijuana had long been off the mark.

“I came to understand that I, like so many other people in this country, had been misinformed and misled,” Grinspoon said. “There was little empirical evidence to support my beliefs about the dangers of marihuana.”

“As these products become increasingly used across the country, getting clearer, scientifically rigorous data is going to be important as we try to understand the overall health effects of cannabis,” notes Robert Harrington, M.D., president of the American Heart Association (AHA).

In late 2019, a report was published in the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) that found, “frequent cannabis (marijuana) use among young people was linked to an increased risk of stroke” as well as an increase in heart rhythm disturbances, or arrhythmias.

Published by the AHA, the study did not look into the direct connection between stroke and cannabis use, rather it discovered it as a potential link.

The study found that younger cannabis users had a heightened risk of stroke, compared to individuals who didn’t use cannabis. Interestingly, the study also cited that, “the cannabis users were also more likely to be heavy drinkers, current cigarette users and e-cigarette users, which may have also influenced their risk, even though the researchers adjusted for those factors in their analysis.”

Study author Tarang Parekh, a health policy researcher at George Mason University in Fairfax, Vir., had this to say: “Young cannabis users, especially those who use tobacco and have other risk factors for strokes, such as high blood pressure, should understand that they may be raising their risk of having a stroke at a young age.”

Dr Franjo Grotenhermen tells MCN about medical cannabis policy and practice in Germany.

Doctor, author and cannabis advocate Dr Franjo Grotenhermen is founder and Executive Director of the International Association for Cannabinoid Medicines (IACM) founder and co-chair of the German Association for Cannabis as Medicine (ACM); and chairman of the Medical Cannabis Declaration (MCD), a charity dedicated to promoting safe access to medical cannabis and evidence-based clinical practice. He tells MCN about the current cannabis landscape in Germany, taking a look at both policy and practice.

What sets Germany’s legislative approach to medical cannabis apart from other EU countries?

Since 2017, under German law every doctor is permitted to prescribe cannabis-based drugs, including cannabis flowers, extracts and individual cannabinoids. Under certain conditions, health insurance companies must cover the costs of therapy. According to the law, health insurance companies may only be allowed to refuse a request for reimbursement in exceptional cases.

What are the main challenges currently facing patients hoping to access cannabis in Germany?

Cannabis and cannabinoids are comparatively expensive in Germany: on average, cannabis flowers cost about €23 per gram. Since health insurance companies very often refuse to cover the costs, many patients cannot afford the appropriate therapy and are forced continue to receive care illicitly even though their doctor supports cannabis-based therapy in principle. The high price also makes cannabis-based treatment unattractive to doctors; as doctors have a limited drug budget which, if exceeded, can lead to a so-called recourse – a penalty payment. This leads to the fact that many patients cannot find a doctor who is willing to prescribe cannabis.

Could patients benefit from being granted the right to grow their own for medical purposes?

This would solve the problems mentioned above for many patients and doctors. We have been demanding it for a long time. We had hoped that the 2017 law would better solve the problems; however, after three years, it turns out that most patients do not benefit from the law.

Stephen J Wyatt, founder and CEO of Hemp Futures, based in Estonia, tells MCN about the importance of customer engagement and accountability.

Estonia-based CBD producer Hemp Futures was founded in 2019 with the goal of creating ‘clean, green and organic’ products; and operates across more than 68 hectares of certified organic land.

“Estonia is a hidden jewel,” explains Hemp Futures founder and CEO Stephen J Wyatt, a former US Marine. “The environment is very pristine; the water is good; the soil is organic. We’re lucky in that we don’t have a lot of native pest insects, which means we don’t use pesticides at all for growing hemp.”

Finola, the variety of auto-flowering organic hemp which Hemp Futures cultivates was bred specifically for climates like Estonia’s.

Hemp Futures, which prides itself on the quality of its CBD products, plans to take advantage of a niche in the wider medical cannabis market, Wyatt adds: “We know, both through research and through our own experience, that there are a lot of companies representing their products CBD; and they’re not what they claim to be. Our focus is to grow our own product and produce CBD oil using CO2 extraction technology; manage the entire process in-house from seed to consumer to guarantee a superior product.

SovereignPort CEO Sarah Roberts Yetman speaks to MCN about the future of the global CBD market and fears over the long term impact of COVID-19.

Despite the fact that we have made dozens of medical advancements in the last few hundred years and we can solve so many of our health issues and cure so many of the illnesses that used to mean unavoidable death for humans, we still haven’t cracked hair loss.

And it’s not for lack of trying. There are many ways to give the illusion that you’re not suffering from hair loss and, as we’ll be discussing below, there are of course some methods of slowing it down and some which seem to stop it entirely in select cases, but there is no bonafide cure.

If you start losing your hair, you are more than likely just going to have to accept that fact, like so many others have done before. Because the truth is, it’s really not something that will inhibit your life all that much.

Yes it is a bit of a blow to self-esteem. For men, most of whom will probably go bald at some point in their lives, losing your hair is considered a sign that you are getting old, despite the fact that it can happen at any age.

Some men start to go bald as early as in their 20s and there are even some unfortunate few out there who will lose their hair even earlier than that, as teenagers. It’s rare but it has been known to happen. 

Though the idea of the dumb, unproductive stoner is still steadily phasing itself out of the cannabis conversation, unfortunately, there is still a lot of conflicting information when it comes to cannabis and memory.

The average person with a working knowledge of how weed works is often led to believe that consuming it can lower your IQ and deplete your memory, regardless of how much or how often you partake. But there is evidence that shows that there is much more to consider, including the strain of weed you’re smoking, whether or not it’s THC– or CBD-dominant and the amount of time you have been consistently smoking — and that’s just for starters.

It’s also important to consider that there are different kinds of memory. For the purpose of research, most studies focus on short-term memory (also known as working memory) and long-term memory, which includes implicit (unconscious) and explicit (conscious) memory. THC, the most well-known cannabinoid in cannabis, is what can have an impact on both long-term and short-term memory.

THC vs. CBD

Most studies, like this one from JAMA Internal Medicine, offer research confirming that “long-term heavy cannabis users show impairments in memory and attention that endure beyond the period of intoxication and worsen with increasing years of regular cannabis use.” But there are others, like this one from a medical journal called the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, that suggest that “acute exposure” to cannabis can actually help enhance working memory performance.

In another study published in a journal called Addict Biology, researchers examined the relationship between memory function and cannabis consumption and found that “that sustained moderate to heavy levels of cannabis… do not change working-memory network functionality.”

In addition to surveying public perception of alcohol and marijuana use, this research also aimed to find out why people turn to each substance.

Times are changing and as more states legalize both recreational and medical marijuana, it is obvious that public opinion about the two is changing, too. At face value, it appears that more people are accepting of marijuana, both as a recreational substance and plant-based medicinal product.

What if we take a closer look? A recent survey performed by the American Addiction Center aimed to do just that and shed some light on the public opinion on weed and booze. Their results confirm what we suspected from the start — the way Americans feel about weed and booze is pretty complicated.

More People Believe Marijuana Should Be Illegal

In the survey of 1,000 people, the American Addiction Center found that 17% of those surveyed believed marijuana should be an illegal substance. This is compared to only 10% of respondents stating that they would prefer alcohol be illegal.

Interestingly enough, when the results of the survey were adjusted based on the respondents’ own use of these two substances, the overall opinion was different. Among those who don’t drink alcohol at all, 38% want it to be illegal. When the same questioned was asked about marijuana among those who don’t use it, only 30% said they would like it to be illegal.

Fireworks can trigger a dog’s nervous system, quickly overwhelming their senses. Here’s what we know about CBD and your furry BFF.

People have been noticing a lot of fireworks lately. Maybe it’s due to the fact that we spend most of our time bored indoors, that cities are quieter than usual, or that people just don’t care anymore.

According to the New York Times, there are lots of conspiracy theories floating around regarding the origins of these nightly airshows: “The flood of illegal fireworks, heard in nightly booms, bangs and fizzles across the city and the country, has intensified to such a degree that some people are desperately seeking explanations for the chaos, with many suggesting government complicity.”

One thing is certain: Dogs don’t care about your junk theories.

Fourth of July is fast approaching, so we have to be prepared. Here’s where CBD might come in handy.

The sharp rise in the munchies — seriously, it’s a thing — is being blamed on the legalization of recreational pot.

But a study published in the International Journal of Epidemiology in March 2019 by Michigan State University highlights an interesting finding. “Contrary to the belief — that marijuana users who have a serious case of the munchies will ultimately gain more weight — those who smoke cannabis, or marijuana, weigh less compared to adults who don’t,” Michigan State University notes.

While marijuana does increase appetite, it could also help with losing weight; the trick is figuring out which weed strain will end up becoming a fitness buddy.

Are long-term marijuana users less likely to be obese?

It seems as though that’s true. A study published in 2011 evaluated the presence of obesity among adults over the age of 18. The results showed that “of the 50,736 eligible respondents from the U.S., the prevalence of obesity was significantly lower in cannabis users than in non-users.” Another study, published in 2010, collected data from 2,566 adults over the age of 21. Once again, findings highlighted lower overweightedness and obesity among adult cannabis users. Still, “further research is needed to examine the mechanism of this association,” researchers added.

“The effects can be varied on individuals,” says Dr. Murdoc Khaleghi, senior medical advisor for Elevate Hemp, a U.S.-based manufacturer of CBD products. “Some people admit that cannabis makes them more alert, while others find the effects calming. The big difference lies in the cannabis strains,” Dr. Khaleghi notes.

The past year has seen a surge of interest in marijuana’s CBD, a non-intoxicating cannabis compound with significant therapeutic properties.

Numerous commercial start-ups and internet retailers have jumped on the CBD bandwagon, touting CBD derived from industrial hemp as the next big thing, a miracle oil that can shrink tumors, quell seizures, and ease chronic pain — without making people feel “stoned.” But along with a growing awareness of cannabidiol as a potential health aid, there has been a proliferation of misconceptions about CBD.

CBD is medical. THC is recreational

Project CBD receives many inquiries from around the world and oftentimes people say they are seeking “CBD, the medical part” of the plant, “not THC, the recreational part” that gets you high. Actually, THC, “The High Causer,” has awesome therapeutic properties. Scientists at the Scripps Research Center in San Diego reported that THC inhibits an enzyme implicated in the formation of beta-amyloid plaque, the hallmark of Alzheimer’s-related dementia.

The federal government recognizes single-molecule THC (Marinol) as an anti-nausea compound and appetite booster, deeming it a Schedule III drug, a category reserved for medicinal substances with little abuse potential. But whole plant marijuana, the only natural source of THC, continues to be classified as a dangerous Schedule I drug with no medical value.

THC is the bad cannabinoid. CBD is the good cannabinoid

The drug warrior’s strategic retreat: Give ground on CBD while continuing to demonize THC. Diehard marijuana prohibitionists are exploiting the good news about CBD to further stigmatize high-THC cannabis, casting tetrahydrocannabinol as the bad cannabinoid, whereas CBD is framed as the good cannabinoid. Why? Because CBD doesn’t make you high like THC does.

Believe it or not, we're nearly halfway through 2020. It's been a rough year so far for many marijuana stocks, although a few have fared much better than others.

I expect that the overall cannabis industry will gain some momentum over the next six months. If I'm right, that should be good news for the stocks of leading cannabis companies. But what's the top marijuana stock to buy for the second half of 2020? My view is that there's a really strong argument for Innovative Industrial Properties (NYSE:IIPR).

In 2020 it’s possible to buy hemp rope, soap, shoes, and even beer. The question is, are these hemp products moving us to a more sustainable future?

Hemp an eco-friendly fibre

There is often an underlying confusion in society between hemp and marijuana, and whether they are the same thing or not. They do both indeed derive from the cannabis plant. However, hemp plants contain very small amounts of THC. The industrial cultivation of hemp has been legal in Canada since 1998 but it’s been around for thousands of years prior to this. Additionally, it is one of the first plants to be spun into usable fibre. Hemp has been labelled as one of the eco-friendly fibres in our world today.

What is an eco-friendly fibre? I’m glad you asked. Eco-friendly fibres are alternative to two things; petroleum-derived fibres and GMO cotton.

It depends on which products you compare hemp to, but hemp is a lot better for the environment than most, if not all of it’s alternatives. A large portion of textiles comes from petroleum-based products. The source of synthetic fibres like polyester, nylon and acrylic is from fossil fuel crude oil.

The combination of words, crude oil, is becoming a swear word in many households. In reality, the movement away from petroleum-based products can’t happen overnight as many of the world’s industries are essentially propped up on the use of crude oil. Can you guess what isn’t derived from crude oil? You guessed it, hemp products.

It’s hard to back away from the fact that yes, hemp is definitely more sustainable than its two alternatives. Some benefits of growing and using hemp are;

With that being said, I’m a believer in stepping back and looking at both sides of the argument with a unbias opinion. Some downfalls of hemp include;

The hemp industry is moving the world to a more sustainable future. If anything, it’s pushing the envelope for developers of other eco-friendly fibres to create more sustainable practices. Canada is still relatively new in the hemp industry but does have a head start on its neighbour down south who just legalized hemp cultivation in 2018.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic struck, we’ve heard a lot about resetting the economy and the need to focus on sunrise, not sunset, industries. At the same time, during the Alert Level 4 lockdown in April, the Ministry of Health pushed play on New Zealand’s Medicinal Cannabis Scheme.

The regulations are now in effect, enabling local commercial cultivation of cannabis and the manufacturing of THC and CBD products. New Zealand GPs can now apply their professional discretion to prescribe medicinal cannabis.

Estimated to reach $55 billion by 2025, the medicinal cannabis industry is one of the fastest growing in the world.

In New Zealand, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment forecasts a strong market opportunity in the next 10 years. The pharmaceutical cannabis segment is expected to reach $320 million - $50m from within New Zealand and $250m in export sales. The broader cannabis health product segment could represent a $1b market opportunity per annum.

Medicinal cannabis reforms took effect in Australia in 2016, with its success hindered by higher hurdles for patient access. But, in recent months, its government has awoken to the potential of medicinal cannabis to lift GDP and aid Australia’s economic recovery.