Extroverting

Author: Brad Dunn

  • Teen Drug Use Reaches a 43-Year Low (Except for Marijuana)

    Teens today are using fewer drugs than the age group has used over the the past 43 years, with one clear exception: marijuana.

    A recent University of Michigan study found that one in 10 high school seniors say they’ve vaped marijuana in the past year. The vape caveat is an important one. Richard Miech, the researcher in charge of the study, said the number of teens that are vaping the drug is much higher than he expected, The Chicago Tribune reports.

    Over the past few years, teen marijuana use has been flat. However, in this year’s study, use of the drug is up 1% in teens, with 25% of respondents saying they had vaped, smoked, or eaten marijuana over the past year.

    Read the full story.

  • Vaping Cannabis More Popular Than Smoking Cigarettes Among U.S. Teens

    Vaping Cannabis More Popular Than Smoking Cigarettes Among U.S. Teens

    US teenagers are using marijuana and vaporizers more than they smoke cigarettes, a government study shows, according to the BBC.

    Some 15% of high school students said they had used marijuana within the previous 30 days, found the report for the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

    And 12.1% of students said they had used a vaping device. But only 5% had smoked cigarettes.

    One in 10 high school seniors said he or she had vaped marijuana at least once in the past year.

    “It’s much higher than I expected,” said Richard Miech, the University of Michigan researcher who led the study, of the cannabis vaping figure.

    Read the full story.

  • Tennessee Lawmakers Push to Legalize Cannabis Oil for Medicinal Purposes

    A medical marijuana task force was formed earlier this year to study the topic of medical marijuana and then make a recommendation to be presented to the general assembly, according to WBIR.

    The co-chair of the task force, state Rep. Jeremy Faison, R-Cosby, is confident their bill will pass once it hits the table, but critics are urging a "no" vote again on the issue.

    "What you need to understand, in Tennessee, the cannabis plant is coming and it's coming to every state in America," Faison said Friday. "We don't want to wait until every state around us has something and then we are trying to build an airplane while we are flying."

    Faison said 30 states have already legalized medical marijuana including, most recently, Arkansas, which borders part of Tennessee.

    Read the full story.

  • Cannabis Industry May Shed Light on Future of Bitcoin

    Cannabis Industry May Shed Light on Future of Bitcoin

    Although medical use marijuana is now legal in more than half the states and recreational use is in some others, the drug is still illegal on the federal level. As a result, most major banks shun the marijuana business.

    The cannabis industry, projected to grow to $50 billion from $6 billion by 2026, has long been in need of a financial solution, according to CNBC.

    Many in the industry are hanging their hopes on cryptocurrencies.

    Technology companies like SinglePoint and POSaBIT are working to generate a payment method for dispensaries and consumers using bitcoin. In recent years, some cryptocurrencies have cropped up specifically for cannabis transactions, like PotCoin and HempCoin.

    Read the full story.

  • Cannabis Nasal Spray Goes Mainstream

    When listing off drugs you can snort up your nose, marijuana usually doesn’t make the list. But with cannabinoid-spiked nasal sprays, that’s now possible, though when it comes to how high it gets you, sniffing might not be any different than smoking.

    Homemade cannabis nasal sprays have existed on the fringes of the medical weed market for years now, but a Colorado company recently released a commercial version. Verra Wellness’s “nasal mist” comes in three ratios: 10:1 THC to CBD, 1:1, and 1:100. According to the company’s marketing material, spraying the mist up your nose allows for “increased bioavailability,” of the cannabinoids. But an expert I spoke to said there’s not much science to back up these kinds of claims.

    “A lot of the stuff about bioavailability and any drug tends to be kind of hype-y,” said Dr. David Casarett, the chief of palliative care at Duke University who has researched and written about medical marijuana. “If one product had a bioavailability of 50 percent over, say, 25 percent, you could use a little less but it’s not like it’s a life changer.”

    Read the full story.

  • Can Your Dog Be Arrested for Using Cannabis Extract?

    Can Your Dog Be Arrested for Using Cannabis Extract?

    The question Thomas McDermott wanted answered Wednesday doesn’t get asked often during policy discussions in Indiana: Could his Labrador retriever be breaking the law by using a pain remedy extracted from cannabis?

    McDermott, who happens to be the Democratic mayor of Hammond, asked the question from the audience during an otherwise buttoned-down panel discussion on alcohol and marijuana policy at the BGD Legislative Conference in Indianapolis, according to the IndyStar.

    On the panel was Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill, a Republican who last month issued a legal opinion that said the use of cannabidiol oil, or CBD, was illegal in most circumstances in Indiana.

    Read the full story.

  • Recreational Cannabis ‘Inevitable’ in Ireland, Says Political Leader

    Gino Kenny thinks Ireland could legalize cannabis for recreational use within the next few years, saying it is a debate that "needs to happen."

    But the People Before Profit TD also said he is focusing on ensuring that his bill which would regulate cannabis for medicinal use gets over the line first, according to Dublin Live.

    Deputy Kenny was speaking to Dublin Live after Minister for Health Simon Harris granted a licence to Ava Barry last week that will allow her to use the drug to alleviate symptoms of Dravet syndrome, a form of epilepsy.

    Read the full story.

  • New Cannabis Products Changing the Way We Think About Marijuana

    New Cannabis Products Changing the Way We Think About Marijuana

    There’s a renaissance happening in the world of cannabis products, due in large part to the growing trend of legalization across the country. 

    In markets which are legalizing, the fastest growth demographics are among women and adults over 50, according to Care2.

    In response to these growing customer segments, cannabis operators are responding with innovative types of products.

    From CBD Water to Cannabis Caffeine, see the site's list of the Top 5 cannabis products that are reinventing marijuana. 

  • Cannabis Stocks Ready To Turn A New Leaf In 2018

    Next year looks like it could be a tipping point for the cannabis industry, according to Seeking Alpha.

    Not only will we see Canada going full recreational but you also have California widening its budding roots for its recreational marijuana marketplace to go live. Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada, seems to be very bullish on the subject. He recently tweeted his optimism surrounding the opportunity that legal cannabis could bring to the country.

    The early part of 2014 was a realistic tipping point for what had been building momentum during the years prior. Colorado legalizing recreational marijuana was the proof that other states needed in order to begin the domino effect that we know today as the green rush. But just because there has been so much success in the market (and failure for that matter), it doesn’t mean the rush is over.

    Read the full story.

  • Will New York or Illinois be Next to Legalize Recreational Marijuana?

    A recent poll in New York shows strong public support for legal pot, while Illinois has crushing budget pressures that make cannabis taxes very appealing, according to Entrepreneur.

    While medical marijuana is legal in New York, the state has been slower to adapt legalization of recreational marijuana that’s already happened in Alaska, California, Colorado, Oregon, Nevada, Massachusetts and Washington.

    New York might be about to catch up, if a new poll is any indication. And in Illinois, a budget crisis is driving some lawmakers to push for legal marijuana to help pay the state’s massive debt. They even brought in a celebrity this week to make their case.

    Read the full story.