WeedLife News Network

Costa Rica’s Congress on Tuesday approved the legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes, despite opposition from conservative groups and President Carlos Alvarado, who still needs to put his stamp of approval on the law.

The law allows for the production and processing of cannabis, but does not regulate its recreational use.

Independent lawmaker Zoila Volio, who backed the law and called the move a milestone, said it would not open the floodgates to increased drug use in Costa Rica.

“I trust that President Alvarado has understood that and will not veto it,” said Volio.

If Alvarado vetoes the law, lawmakers would need to again vote on it and approve it with a qualified majority.

With some states legalizing the use of cannabis, the social stigma on the subject may start to loosen up. Today, cannabis seems to have become more popular and accessible to people. In fact, there are fitness gurus and athletes who even start to speak of its benefits.

Nowadays, some fitness enthusiasts incorporate cannabis before or after their workout routine and believe working out while high is beneficial. Aside from that, cannabis is believed to improve overall fitness, too.

To put your mind at ease, here are some claimed health benefits of cannabis, as well as how it’s supposed to level up your fitness game.

One of the most promising areas of cannabis research is its capacity to reduce joint and muscle inflammation. Studies have tried to prove that the nonpsychoactive cannabinoid in cannabis, cannabidiol (CBD), could help in reducing inflammation.

This could be beneficial for athletes and fitness enthusiasts dealing with inflammation and pain in the muscles and connective tissue. It could also be helpful for those recovering from surgery or past injury.

When you are too close to any open flame, the pain acts as a warning system. When your skin, joints, muscles, or other organs are damaged, pain prompts you to seek medical attention.

It is a generally acknowledged sensation felt in subtle ways or as potent and more piercing sensations. This warning sign is frequently beneficial since it encourages you to analyse and take action to repair and relieve unpleasant reactions. Pain, however beneficial it may be, does not eliminate the sensations you are experiencing, which can range from moderate to severe.

When you’re in pain as a result of an injury, or even if it’s chronic, you need aid to get it under control. When the pain is so terrible that it impairs your quality of life, relief is vital. If you’ve decided to try CBD, you’re probably aware that there are many options available. A topical treatment might be the most soothing choice to attempt if you’re suffering from joint stiffness and muscular discomfort. You may use a tincture, which can get under the tongue, pills, or even sweets like candies to make dosing more enjoyable. Another treatment, such as a CBD hemp cream for joint pain, has pain-relieving effects of CBD but also nourishes and soothes dry skin.

What is CBD cream?

CBD can be inside oils, such as hemp seed oil, and then used as a component in skin creams and lotions.

It has anti-inflammatory effects, according to research, and may assist with the symptoms of several skin disorders.

The Michigan Cannabis Manufacturers Association is encouraging its members to provide free or low-cost cannabis products to patients with severe or terminal illnesses.

MCMA’s Board of Directors unanimously passed a resolution last week that asks member companies to create a program to ensure seriously ill patients have access to low- or no-cost cannabis products that are tested, labeled, tracked, and licensed.

MCMA represents cannabis businesses across the state.

“Just like any other form of medicine, patients with cancer and other severe or terminal illnesses deserve to know their cannabis has met the highest standards for testing, tracking, licensing and safety — and our members’ products do just that,” MCMA Executive Director Stephen Linder said in a news release. “Michigan’s patients rely on cannabis as medicine and deserve to know where their cannabis comes from and what’s in it. We encourage our member companies to assess the specific needs of these patients in their communities and help ensure they have access to safe, tested cannabis products.”
 

Here’s the resolution:
 

The Board of Directors of the Michigan Cannabis Manufacturers Association hereby resolves: The membership of the MCMA is committed to making sure that patients and children with chronic illnesses such as cancer, autoimmune diseases, autism, and many other chronic or terminal illnesses should have access to safe, tested and cost-effective medical cannabis products.

The FDA can “emergency approve” vaccines but have taken more than 50-years to admit that cannabis has medical properties.

If there’s one thing you can say about the avid cannabis smoker is that they do love their conspiracies. Now, let me get something straight about conspiracies — they do happen.

There’s this idea that if you’re a “conspiracy theorist”, you’re some kind of whack job, but I think it was Eric Weinstein who said it best on Lex Fridman’s podcast: “No, I don’t believe you…I don’t believe that after COINTELPRO, Operation Paperclip, Operation Mockingbird, uh…I don’t even know if I should bring up REX84. To NOT believe in conspiracies is an idiocy.”

Cannabis users who know something about the origins of cannabis prohibition also know of the great Anslinger-Hearst-DuPont conspiracy to tarnish the good name of cannabis. This was reported recently in a 2020 study, published in the journal Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research, on the effect of racism on cannabis research:

“Even putting economic interests aside, Hearst and Mellon were at the center of a vicious anticannabis campaign based on racism, sensationalism, and social control of racial minorities. Racism and sensationalism are strong allegations, but consider the roles of Hearst, Mellon, and Harry Anslinger.”

The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, or OMMA, released a patient advisory Monday for the state when a specific batch of pot came back positive for the compound THC-O-acetate.

In their release acting as a “smoke signal”, the governing agency said it’s a combination that could prove dangerous.

The situation all started when the OMMA received a complaint from a patient who had a bad experience on the green.

“We discovered that there was a product that tested positive for a compound called THC-O-acetate,” said Kelsey Pagonis, the communications manager for the agency. “We don’t yet have that confirmed where it happened in the supply chain.”

Facebook posts shared hundreds of times claim that "marijuana preserved with honey" cures 40 different medical conditions, including Alzheimer's, diabetes and high blood pressure. The posts are misleading; there is no evidence the purported remedy can cure these conditions. Health experts said people should see a doctor if they have health concerns. "Recipe of marijuana preserved with honey, cures 40 different diseases," reads a Thai-language Facebook post from September 18 shared more than 600 times. The post lists a variety of health conditions, including Alzheimer's, diabetes and high blood pressure. 

"Use the entire cannabis trunk, as well as leaves, root and flowers. Chop them into pieces, sundry them, and leave them for 15 days. Have a teaspoon every day before going to bed". Screenshot of the misleading claim shared on Facebook, taken on October 18, 2021 Marijuana has been used as a traditional herb for centuries in Thailand but was banned decades ago. In February 2019, Thailand legalised the use of marijuana for medical purposes.

In December 2020, marijuana was removed from a government list of "harmful drugs", meaning it is now legal to plant it domestically if government approval is obtained. A similar claim was shared here, here and here on Facebook.  The claim is misleading: experts say there is insufficient evidence to prove that the purported remedy cures any health conditions. 'No evidence' Dr Khwanchai Wisitanon, deputy director of Thailand's Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine said there was no evidence to prove the effectiveness of the purported remedy.

"Based on the medical record, there is no research to support the claim," he told AFP.  "If you are diagnosed with a certain disease, you should seek health professionals' advice for medical treatments". Dr Thiravat Hemachudha, an expert on medical marijuana at Chulalongkorn University, also said there was insufficient evidence to prove the purported recipe can "cure" diseases. "There is no evidence to suggest the claim is correct," he told AFP.

"It is true that marijuana has anti-inflammatory properties, but patients should not rely on it in order to get better. They should always seek professional medical advice." Although marijuana may have properties that can alleviate certain symptoms, it cannot "cure" diseases, according to Pakakrong Kwankhao, head of Chaopraya Abhaiphubejhr Hospital's Centre for Evidence-based Thai Traditional and Herbal Medicine. "Marijuana can help alleviate some symptoms. It can ease the patient's pain or make the patient get rested or be happy. However, it still lacks evidence that it can be used to "cure" any diseases," she told AFP.

The skeletal system is an essential of the human anatomy. We need our skeletal system to stand erect, to walk properly and function optimally. The sad reality is that, a lot of people take their bone health for granted thereby affecting the skeletal system.

For some individuals, poor bone health is caused by the strenuous activities that they engage in on a daily basis. For others, it is poor workout routines that leaves a strain on the bones.

Cannabis has emerged as a possible remedy for poor bone health in recent times, but just how?

Our bones are essential to our proper functioning as humans. Without bones, we will simply be a pool of tissues that cannot accomplish the most basic activities. Our muscles and tissues attach to the bones, giving our body shape and form. The functions of our bones can be broken into three main parts.

Best Practices for Good Bone Health

When it comes to figuring out the best practices for good bone health, there are two simple answers: movement and nutrition. Food provides your bones with the necessary nutrients and building blocks, while movement helps the bone to remodel itself in the best way to give the body a great shape.

In what feels like another lifetime, before COVID-19, there was a different type of lung disease affecting some people. Vape consumers, primarily those who consumed cannabis, were suffering from a disease called EVALI, which caused respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms. The disease could result in long-lasting damage to the lungs and even death. And now, a recent study reveals that U.S. states with legal cannabis programs had fewer reports of the illness.

Published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, and conducted in conjunction with the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the study shows that in states where cannabis is medicinally or recreationally legal, there was not as much reported EVALI. In 2019, states with marijuana laws had 42 per cent fewer cases of the condition. “Marijuana policy attributes linked to lower EVALI incidences were also associated with reduced likelihoods of vaping as one’s primary mode of use,” study authors write. “As additives in informally sourced vaping concentrates could drive future EVALI cases, marijuana policy design should account for effects on mode of use in licit and illicit markets, to limit the scope of future outbreaks,” they add.

EVALI first appeared in 2019, creating a sort of panic within the vaping community, especially since vape pens were becoming increasingly common. After some study and research, the disease was linked to an element in cannabis vapes known as vitamin E acetate, although other compounds and elements could potentially also have an influence.

By now, most people are probably familiar with CBD gummies and vapes, but topicals are slowly beginning to gain popularity, too. They’re easy to find and come in a variety of different forms, from lip balms to lotions.

Although the CBD market is currently unregulated by the FDA, CBD products became federally legalized following the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which legalized the growing of hemp nationwide.

Since then, the market for CBD topicals has been hot and shows no signs of slowing down. The question is whether or not they’re worthy of all the buzz.

How Does It Make You Feel?

As is the case with most cannabis-related products, images of CBD topicals may lead the mind to consider them simply as nothing more than skincare products for stoners, but the reality is that they have no psychoactive effects whatsoever. While the case is likely different for THC topicals, applying CBD topicals won’t lead to a consumer getting high. Even full-spectrum CBD topicals contain less than 0.3% THC content. The reality is that many people use CBD topicals for medicinal purposes (research pegs that number at 62%). CBD balms are effective when it comes to treating a number of medicinal conditions like chronic pain because applying it directly to the skin allows cannabinoids to attack problem areas directly at the source.

Week after week, thousands of new patients enroll in Missouri’s fast-growing medical marijuana program. Less than a year since the start of retail sales, nearly 150,000 Missourians with cancer, epilepsy, glaucoma and 20 other qualifying conditions can now safely purchase their medicine at any of the more than 150 dispensaries approved to operate so far.

What those patients can’t now do — thanks to a vague, overly broad and confusing rule interpretation recently announced by the state Department of Health and Senior Services — is access complete information related to the manufacture, quality, safety, contents, application and pricing of medical cannabis products in Missouri.

The department’s ban on “promotional events” may be rooted in the best of intentions, but its prohibition on “any activity, advertisement or publicity designed to increase interest in purchasing medical marijuana or a particular product or brand” is an unduly restrictive burden.

Many medical cannabis patients, including those we both treat at our St. Louis practices, as well as across the state, are on fixed incomes. It’s imperative that they know which dispensaries carry their preferred products and how much those products cost so that they can locate, budget and shop accordingly. Dispensaries offer promotional pricing to help patients afford their medicine and use these opportunities to educate and inform patients.

State regulators routinely refer to the importance of patient education in an arena in which many program participants may still be unfamiliar. The ability to discuss the direct-to-patient benefits allowed by dispensary education events cannot be realized if these patients are unaware of the cannabis retail outlet’s available pricing programs and products.

The days of Reefer Madness hysteria seem long behind us as more and more states legalize recreational marijuana. (Last week, one of the most conservative Supreme Court justices, Clarence Thomas, said he believed federal anti-marijuana laws might no longer be necessary.) Although pot is no longer considered the mania-inducing menace of years past, it's not harm free—like many milder, legal substances such as caffeine, pot can cause negative side effects if you use too much. Here are some potential physical reactions that may surprise you. Read on—and to ensure your health and the health of others, don't miss these Sure Signs You May Have Already Had COVID.

1. Anxiety

Marijuana has a long reputation as a relaxant. But taking too much of it can have the opposite effect, causing anxiety, paranoia, and even panic attacks, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "A fatal overdose is unlikely, but that doesn't mean marijuana is harmless," the CDC warns.

Some heavy marijuana users experience severe nausea, vomiting, and pain after using cannabis. It's called cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, or CHS, and the symptoms tend not to respond to drug treatment. Experts estimate 2.7 million Americans experience the condition, which is frequently misdiagnosed as a psychiatric problem or GI issue before the true culprit is discovered. (Last year, it was the subject of the Washington Post's "Medical Mysteries" column.) "CHS went from being something we didn't know about and never talked about to a very common problem over the last five years," Dr. Eric Lavonas, a spokesman for the American College of Emergency Physicians, told the New York Times. It has a simple cure: Stop smoking pot.

3. Trouble Breathing

Just like cigarettes, marijuana joints require you to inhale smoke, which can lead to breathing issues. "Marijuana smoke irritates the lungs, and people who smoke marijuana frequently can have the same breathing problems as those who smoke tobacco," says the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). "These problems include daily cough and phlegm, more frequent lung illness, and a higher risk of lung infections." However, the agency notes, smoking pot has not been found to raise lung cancer risk.

4. Rapid Heart Rate

Also surprising for a renowned chill-out drug: Smoking marijuana can increase blood pressure, says the Mayo Clinic. "Marijuana raises heart rate for up to three hours after smoking," says NIDA. "This effect may increase the chance of heart attack. Older people and those with heart problems may be at higher risk."

Cannabis and its effect on sex is a topic that is often discussed. But cannabis and its effect on the sex lives of seniors doesn’t get nearly as much coverage, but it should.

The range of which cannabis can affect someone’s sex life is wide, from simply helping people feel more turned on, to opening the mind to deeper intimacy and promoting mindfulness. When applied to seniors, cannabis can provide an even larger influence, offering relaxation and increased libido, while also treating symptoms that naturally appear as people grow older and their bodies start to change.

Forbes spoke with Ashley Manta, a coach that specializes in the “cannasexual.” She said, “Cannabis is so useful for seniors because it addresses the common things that get in the way of intimacy. For folks whose bodies are aging, one of the more common things is pain. Whether from arthritis, stiffness or an injury, pain can be very distracting when it comes to pleasure.”

Cannabis and its use on seniors is a topic worth pursuing and initiating. Studies show that cannabis use among seniors steadily increases year after year, with a majority of people growing more educated on the subject and learning to use the plant to their advantage. Cannabis’s influence can be beneficial for a variety of aspects in seniors’ lives, like treating chronic conditions or providing some escape from stress. Sex is the least discussed of these issues, but it’s just as important.

As more companies continue to get involved with cannabis, there will likely be more products designed to reach a variety of people, including older demographics who want to have sex because it’s fun and healthy, and it makes them happy.

The Long Beach City Council this week voted to allow more cannabis dispensaries and delivery-only marijuana businesses, but asked staff to figure out how to pay for the expanded program without raising taxes.

“It could potentially cripple the businesses we’re trying to lift up,” Councilman Al Austin said about the rejected tax increase. “That’s my real concern.”

The city’s social equity program was created in 2018 to allow those who were targeted for cannabis-related crimes to benefit from legalization.

The ordinance will allow eight more dispensaries to operate in Long Beach, exclusive to those who qualify for the equity program.

To qualify, equity applicants must meet one of the following requirements:

 Louisiana’s largest medical marijuana producer is adding a new growing operation in a Ruston warehouse to ready for the expansion of cannabis products in January.

Good Day Farm is the medical marijuana grower licensed by Louisiana State University.

The company is positioning itself to meet what is expected to be a growing demand for medical marijuana in January, when a new law allows the program to sell raw, smokable cannabis to patients.

Marijuana is the most used illicit drug among females of childbearing age and during pregnancy in the United States.1,2 This prevalence is largely secondary to the recent state level legalization of marijuana, resulting in both its availability and perceived safety.

Jamie O. Lo, MD, practices in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, and in the Division of Reproductive & Developmental Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Beaverton.

Carol B. Hanna, PhD, practices in the Division of Reproductive & Developmental Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Beaverton.

This is troublesome considering that the potency of marijuana has significantly increased in the past decade.6 The average concentration of THC in products sold in dispensaries can range from 17.7% to 23.2% but can be as high as 75.9%.7

Also, only 17% to 31% of the THC content in products sold through state-licensed and internet dispensaries is accurately labeled.8,9 With growing public endorsement of the potential benefits of marijuana, it is important for health care providers to effectively counsel patients regarding its effects on fertility and future offspring.

Oklahoma, Colorado and Missouri allow sale of pot for health purposes.

Advocates of legalizing marijuana sales formed the Kansas Cannabis Chamber of Commerce to move the political, business and health debate forward in a state bordered by dispensaries in Colorado, Oklahoma and Missouri and a renewed push to open markets in Nebraska.

The Kansas House overwhelmingly approved a bill during the 2021 session that would have created a highly regulated medical cannabis structure, but it wasn’t taken up by the Kansas Senate. Gov. Laura Kelly said she would sign medical marijuana legislation, if the Legislature sent a package to her desk. Polling last year indicated two-thirds of Kansas adults supported legalization of marijuana sales.

Heather Steppe, president of the new chamber of commerce, said the idea was to model the business organization on the array of groups that formed industry coalitions to press for government policy reform. She said Kansas should avoid being left out in the cold as dozens of states moved on with development of industries to grow, manufacture, transport and market cannabis for medicinal benefit.

“We’re not inventing the wheel,” Steppe said. “We’re just trying to, you know, grease it up and get it working for Kansas.”