WeedLife News Network

Quebec, Canada: Prenatal cannabis exposure is not associated with an increased risk of attention deficit disorders among children, according to data published in the journal BMJ Open.

Canadian investigators evaluated the relationship between in-utero marijuana exposure and attention deficit with or without hyperactivity disorder in a cohort of 2,408 children.

Researchers reported “no significant association” between either occasional or regular prenatal cannabis exposure and ADHD after adjusting for potential confounders.

“In our study, we did not find any association between in-utero occasional or regular exposure to cannabis and the risk of ADHD in children, as well as overall exposure to cannabis and the risk of ADHD in children,” authors concluded. “Further research focusing on the timing of exposure during pregnancy (e.g., first, second, third trimester), as well as using different methods for quantifying prenatal cannabis exposure (e.g., biological samples), is needed to better understand the impact of cannabis use during pregnancy and developmental outcomes in children.”

Full text of the study, “Is in-utero exposure to cannabis associated with the risk of attention deficit with or without hyperactivity disorder? A cohort study within the Quebec Pregnancy Cohort,” appears in BMJ Open. Additional information is available from NORML’s fact sheet, “Maternal Marijuana Use and Childhood Outcomes.”

With the modification of the Swiss Narcotics Law, which changed the legal status of cannabis, patients can now obtain medical marijuana through a simple prescription from their doctor. (Benzinga)

Starting September 15, Basel City will begin the first Swiss project on the legal sale of cannabis in pharmacies. The project will help evaluate the effects of new regulations on the recreational use of cannabis and combat black market distribution.

The Federal Office of Public Health approved the pilot in April. As a part of the project, the University of Basel, its psychiatric clinics and health department will participate.” Six cannabinoid products – four types of cannabis flowers and two types of hashish – will be sold in nine pharmacies selected by the authorities,” said Lukas Engelberger, health minister.

Cannabis users over 18 can now register to participate, with the number of participants limited to 370. In addition, pharmacies will charge prices around those set on the black market for products with THC content. A gram will therefore cost CHF8-CHF12 ($8.40-$12.60).

The Swiss parliament laid the legal basis for such small-scale initiatives in September 2020. After that, also other local authorities, including Zurich, Geneva and Bern, applied to roll out similar trials.

Legal Prohibition For Adult-Use Cannabis

In 2008 almost two-thirds of Swiss voters rejected an initiative to decriminalize cannabis consumption. Despite a legal ban, the health office estimates there are 220,000 regular consumers of cannabis in Switzerland.

There are some drawbacks to living with another person, especially if you two do not live similar lifestyles or have different views on cannabis usage in the home. Here’s how to deal with it.

Marijuana legalization has liberated those who regularly use cannabis and live in states where it has recently become legal. While recreational marijuana has eliminated a lot of difficulties and roadblocks for those who indulge in smoking weed, it has created some new challenges, and magnified a few existing conflicts. One area that has grown increasingly more complicated is weed etiquette in the home when you have a roommate.

Having a roommate certainly has its pros and cons: they split your rent, walk your dog, and listen to you when you have something (or nothing at all) to say. There are, however, some drawbacks to living with another person, especially if you two do not live similar lifestyles or have different views on cannabis usage in the home. If you have a roommate, this might have you wondering what proper weed etiquette is these days now that we are in this new age of cannabis freedom. 

Check the Lease

Before you start wondering what is polite or impolite, you should first determine what is allowed and what is prohibited in your rental. More and more properties have very clear smoking policies. No-smoking policies do not simply refer to cigarettes. They can also apply to marijuana, and do not necessarily have to specify the type of smoke, as long as they are specific about the rules. 

According to the legal website Nolo, “A clear no-smoking policy prohibits all forms of smoking, including smoking marijuana for medical reasons.” These no-tolerance smoking policies are quite serious.

If you signed the lease and agreed to no-smoking terms, the violation can land you on the street. “A landlord who has included a no-smoking policy in a lease or rental agreement can terminate the tenancy of or evict a tenant who smokes,” the article continues. Make sure you are aware of your lease and its fine print, especially if you have a roommate or neighbor who is likely to rat you out to your landlord for smoking.

Squat berry plants do little to conceal tall hoop houses containing illegal cannabis.

A massive illegal cannabis grow-op made up of almost 300 greenhouses containing about 14,000 illegal plants was recently found amidst a berry farm in northern Monterey County, Calif.

“The illegal operation was hidden on a berry farm in unincorporated Salinas, Calif., nearly 300 hoop houses,” notes a statement from the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office (MCDAO). “Berries were planted along the perimeter of the hoop houses to conceal the true nature of the operation,” MCDAO adds.

In all, members of the Monterey County Cannabis Enforcement Unit found and destroyed 14,000-plus illegal weed plants and just shy of 13,610 kilograms of processed cannabis. The unit was aided by MCDAO’s Bureau of Investigations, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Monterey County Department of Public Works.

An investigation into the illegal operation is continuing.

Medicinal and recreational cannabis are both legal in California. That said, individuals 21 and older can only grow up to as six cannabis plants at home for personal use, while commercial cultivation requires a licence and adherence to local rules, including whether or not outdoor grows are even permitted.

PEQUOT LAKES — Pequot Lakes Police Sgt. Ryan Franz educated the city council on recent legislation that makes it legal in Minnesota to sell certain edibles and beverages infused with tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the cannabis ingredient extracted from hemp.

“Every regional group I’m involved in … this has been a topic that has come up,” City Administrator Rich Spiczka told the council at its regular meeting Tuesday, Aug. 2, adding cities don't quite know what to do with it.

“They passed it without a lot of oversight,” Franz said after giving an overview of the legislation regarding cannabinoids.

“Most municipalities are unsure of how to best proceed and what steps are best so some are in the ‘wait and see’ realm, while others are attempting to pass ordinances banning the sale of these items,” Spiczka wrote in a memo to the council.

Franz said many municipalities are waiting for bigger cities to tackle the topic. He doesn’t feel the need to enact any moratorium now, though the legislation will present challenges.

It won’t change how police do their job, Franz said, adding he’s come across people in the past month who claim marijuana is legal.

Advocates in Ukraine have called on the global cannabis community for support.

“The smell of cannabis in Europe always gave me a sense of freedom,” says Nazariy Sovsun, a resident in the city of Kyiv.

“This is something we want for Ukraine too.”

Nazariy has worked in drug policy since 2011. He and Maksym Kharkavyi, are members of Freedom March, a longstanding movement, which has advocated for the legalisation of cannabis in Ukraine since 2005.

“For generations we have been fighting for adoption and implementation of the drug policy strategy in Ukraine, organising rallies, campaigns and advocating for cannabis patients in the courts,” Nazariy explains.

Colorado’s marijuana businesses adjust to inflation, market saturation and competition from other states. Municipalities face declining revenues as shine fades from legal weed.

Colorado’s legal marijuana industry is weathering its first sustained downturn since dispensaries began selling recreational weed in 2014.

Dispensaries are closing. New ventures, like delivery services and social clubs, are struggling. Tax revenues are plummeting. And across the industry, layoffs are sending marijuana workers packing. Colorado’s green boom is beginning to bust as more states legalize the sale and use of marijuana and inflation pinches spending. 

The contraction is proving a rare vulnerability for cannabis, which seemed immune to downturns as it soared every year since 2014 — reaching $2.2 billion in sales last year. 

“More people are going to get laid off. We are probably going to see more small shops close down and a lot of brands are going to go away,” said Spencer Ward, a longtime salesman for Bronnor Corp., which manufactures edibles and infused products for brands that are in 400 stores.

Through July, taxes and fees collected from retail marijuana sales reached $198.3 million, down $53.7 million — or 21% — from the same seven months in 2021. Last year set a record in Colorado, with dispensaries selling $2.2 billion worth of cannabis and the state collecting $423.5 million in taxes and fees. 

Legal cannabis states offer plenty of options, from desserts to forests, for the adventurous at heart

Road trips are back in fashion in a big way, with the pandemic catapulting them back into popularity so much so that vans and other road trip vehicles were snatched up and rented in record time. Current gas prices and uncertain economic times, however, may have some people in the U.S. are staying close to home. Still, if a person happens to be a cannabis lover getting a bit stir crazy while waiting for prices at the pump to return to normal, there are some great road trips in states where marijuana is legal that are worth investing in and investigating. Some might require saving, while others are more approachable if timed right.

Here are five unforgettable road trips that are worth saving up for if someone loves both the open road and recreational marijuana.

This is, in many ways, the Mecca of weed road trips. It is best to start in San Francisco, as it is easier to load up on essentials and rent a car in the city rather than the wilderness. San Francisco is the first place to ever have a medical marijuana dispensary in the U.S., at The San Francisco Cannabis Buyers Club, opened by Dennis Peron. Enjoy the slow pace of Route 1 along the coast, and soak up the natural beauty. Eventually drivers will arrive in the Emerald Triangle’s most famous area, Humboldt County. Humboldt is known for cultivating some of the best marijuana in the world, and its small towns have all sorts of cannabis-themed activities. This area is also home to some of the largest trees in the world. Avenue of The Giants is perhaps the most breathtaking wooded drive a person may take in his or her life. Visitors don’t even need any weed to marvel at the wonder of the ancient giant Redwoods throughout Humboldt county. Shelter Cove and Trinidad are two fantastic Humboldt coastal towns worth one’s time before beginning the return towards the Golden Gate. It is important to note that while this is certainly a must-do for any true marijuana and road trip lover, it is also a bit pricey. California gas, hotel and car rental prices are some of the highest in the entire U.S., so this might be a trip to save up for.

Arizona to New Mexico

The story of Tusk and its hemp seed-flavored rum began over 100 years ago, when Maurice Morton’s great-great-great-grandparents made a fortuitous, and hard-earned, purchase.

“In 1906, my great-great-great-grandparents, who were former slaves turned sharecroppers, purchased the land that they actually used to work on,” he says. Morton’s grandfather passed it to the next generation, and in 2019, his aunt decided to move to the property, in Halifax, VA, to build a home. Morton and his cousin presented her with a plan to plant hemp seed — which took some convincing. “She thought we were [going to] turn into a cartel family,” he says with a laugh. “Once she realized that we were talking about actual hemp and not marijuana, it turned into an ‘Okay, let’s do this.’”

With his aunt on board, Morton got to work. The first harvest, in late 2020, resulted in a CBD coconut oil, with plans to use the leftover seeds as the base of a textile product. However, as a fledgling operator, Morton didn’t have access to the equipment required to process the hemp. Things seemed to be at a standstill until Morton and his cousin came across an article about hemp spirits. Morton discovered that hemp-infused spirits were popular in Europe — so much so that bottles there were priced at absurd markups. “Their price ranges were ridiculous,” he says. “Like, they want $150 for a bottle.” Morton realized part of that markup was likely due to the cost of purchasing the seeds and then beginning the distillation process. From there, an idea took hold.

Tusk 1.0 centered on a hemp-infused whiskey. Morton had an in: He knew a friend who owned a whiskey brand; he’d been asked to invest in the company, but the timing hadn’t worked out. Plus, a hemp whiskey would be unique. “I’d never heard of a hemp whiskey, ever,” he says. “People wanna have a cigar with some hemp whiskey, and it’ll be unheard of.” But after realizing how long it would take to produce one — the average time to make whiskey is roughly three years — Morton pivoted. After “two or three” different formulations, Tusk 2.0 was officially born — in the form of a vodka and a white rum.

When I tested Hemp at a Tusk pop-up at Metrobar in June, the first thing I noticed was a surprising lack of bite to both spirits — I couldn’t believe how smooth they were. They didn’t have that typical “liquor” smell, either. Those successes belie the fact that Tusk almost didn’t come to fruition; there was a lot of back and forth between the ATF and Tusk to get approvals, much of it over the usage of hemp. That’s also been the sticking point (no weed pun intended) with local stores. Part of Morton’s job involves dispelling the myths around hemp. “I kind of try to educate [liquor store owners], but [there’s] still kind of that stigma there,” he says. 

The Metrobar pop-up is just one of many pavement-pounding tactics Morton’s used to get the word out about Tusk. That hard work is starting to pay off, with Tusk now in over 30 locations in the DMV, including Fat Boy’s Crabhouse in Crofton, which was the first place to stock it. Tusk will appear as one of the presenting sponsors for a party at the Virginia Black Business Expo this weekend. If you snag a bottle, Morton recommends using the vodka for a Lemon Drop and the rum for a Dark and Stormy. 

While many in Grimsby were hoping to avoid allowing cannabis to be grown in the town at all, the municipality has started the process to allow for medical and commercial growth.

Senate Democrats and other advocates for marijuana legalization may not have an ally in the White House despite the popularity of the cause among progressives.

President Joe Biden is a long-standing opponent of marijuana use and of policies that would decriminalize the drug, a stance that has only softened somewhat in recent years.

A group of six Democratic senators sent a letter to Biden on July 6 expressing frustration with his administration for refusing to remove cannabis from the list of Schedule I controlled substances and for failing to issue pardons to all individuals convicted of nonviolent cannabis-related offenses, the latter of which was a 2020 campaign promise.

"There is widespread public support for cannabis legalization, with around two-thirds of the public supporting the legalization of cannabis," the letter reads before mentioning that 19 states and Washington, D.C., have legalized the drug for recreational use. "In communities where cannabis has been legalized, there have been widespread economic, racial-justice, public safety, and health benefits."

The senators wrote the Department of Justice on Oct. 6 and didn't hear back until April 13, which was a half-page response the group described as "extraordinarily disappointing."

Biden was similarly silent when Senate Democrats released a marijuana legalization bill earlier this week. The president has not commented publicly about the bill, and the White House did not respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.

When they called it 'leafy Tubridge Wells', this isn't quite what they had in mind. The leafy Kent town got a bit leafier after pranksters sneaked a cannabis plant into a floral display near the Millennium Clock in Calverley Road.

Martin Steers said he was amazed no one had noticed the plant

It's thought council gardeners watered the plant for weeks before it was spotted, growing in a pot of red and white flowers, by Tunbridge Wells resident Martin Steers last week.

"I had gone up to town first thing in the morning on Wednesday," said Mr Steers, 47. "As I was walking through town I saw the plant. It was about two feet tall and didn't fit in.

"I took a couple of photos and walked up to it. I squeezed one of the leaves to double check what I thought it was and I recognised the smell."

A keen gardener with a knowledge of plants, Mr Steers says he was certain it was a cannabis plant.

While possessing certain amounts of cannabis is now okay, legal stores have not yet opened.

Justice-involved applicants vying for a license can submit their information by the end of August. New Yorkers are expected to be able to purchase legal recreational cannabis by the end of the year.

When can a consumer shop?

Buying cannabis is still illegal, something that’s confusing for anyone living in New York and witnessing the number of retail shops that are around. Still, this is about to change, with the first recreational dispensaries expected to open by the end of the year.

Who gets a license?

The first licenses to be handed out will be the ones belonging to the conditional adult-use retail dispensary (CAURD) program. These are 150 licenses provided to “justice involved” applicants, who must also have experience owning and running a business. Applicants can submit their information by the end of August. 

What if a person doesn’t qualify for a license just yet?

More licenses are expected to come out soon, with different requirements for different businesses, which range from weed bars to regular dispensaries. This will all be revealed in the coming months, with applicants only able to apply for one license at a time.

Brittney Griner was arrested in Russia for possession of marijuana. She’s not the only athlete to use the drug for medical purposes.

Last week, Brittney Griner testified in front of a Russian court after being arrested for possession of marijuana. She claimed she used marijuana to treat her sports injuries. And she isn’t the only one.

“Because of my injuries that I’ve had over the long career of basketball. From my spine, no cartilage in my knee. I was in a wheelchair for four months. I broke my ankle and I also sprained my knee really bad. So I was wheelchair-bound,” she explained.

While banned by all sports, athletes are amongst the most consistent cannabis users in the world. In an interview with GQ, retired NBA pro Al Harrington said that he thought about 85% of NBA players used “some type of cannabis.” Martellus Bennett, a retired NFL player, said he believed “about 89 percent” used cannabis.

It’s usually when players retire that they come clean about their drug use, claiming that marijuana helped them calm down and manage the pain that comes from submitting their bodies to long hours of stress and exercise. “When we looked at the positive effects of cannabis for this population, sleep, pain levels, and the ability to calm down were the most common areas where athletes saw improvement,” said Joanna Zeiger, who conducted a study on the matter.

Despite the large numbers of cannabis users involved in sports, there’s not a lot of research on the matter. Kevin Boehnke, a researcher at the University of Michigan’s Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center, spoke with the New York Times and explained that while cannabis tended to be safer than anti-inflammatories and opiates, “that doesn’t mean it’s without risk.” Still, he believes the drug should be studied.

Places in Central Texas like Austin and Cedar Park have lifted penalties for low-level marijuana possessions. But, no city in Hays County has done that yet. The City of San Marcos could be the first.

Local advocacy group, Mano Amiga, collected enough petition signatures to get the issue in front of the city council and potentially the November ballot.

“Council cannot reject it and they cannot change any of the language in the policy. All they can do is pass it outright or send it to the ballot,” Communications Director for Mano Amiga Sam Benavides said.

The measure would decriminalize possession of up to 4 ounces of marijuana in San Marcos.

However, that only applies to the city’s police officers. In a statement sent to KXAN, Hays County District Attorney Wes Mau said this wouldn’t apply to other city or county law enforcement agencies.

“Officers, deputies and troopers who encounter persons in possession of marijuana in the city limits may still enforce the state law.” Hays county district attorney Wes Mau.