WeedLife News Network

Even though melatonin is an over-the-counter medicine, not enough is known about it for people to be consuming it so comfortably.

Sleep disorders are incredibly common, affecting about 70 million Americans a year. Medications and other substances that treat sleep are increasingly common, although with some concerning side effects that might impact sleep in the long term.

One of the most harmless solutions to this is melatonin, a compound that’s been growing in popularity over the years. Still, when used at high levels, it has a certain amount of risks.

According to a new study, melatonin use has increased over the past few years, increasing by more than twice the amount consumed a decade ago.

According to the NIH, melatonin has been linked with headaches, dizziness, nausea, irritability, anxiety and depression, and is capable of interacting with other medications. “We cannot be certain of the purity of melatonin that is available over the counter,” sleep specialist Rebecca Robbins told CNN.

While it appears that in the short term melatonin provides useful benefits, its long-term use is much more complex than a harmless pill that can put you to bed.

The benefits of CBD as well as adaptogens clearly fill a massive void in western medicine so it’s not surprising to see patients fall for their charms.

Cannabidiol (CBD) may seem like it’s been a hot topic on the wellness front for quite some time now. After all, the non-psychoactive compound of marijuana has touted for its stress and anxiety-relieving properties without getting you high. It has a cult following, and for good reason — there’s a lot of data and evidence that CBD does work. It’s everywhere these days, from CBD capsules to oils, beverages and edibles, getting rid of stress has never been easier.

But sharing the limelight with CBD these days are adaptogens.

Adaptogens have been known for hundreds of years, especially in Asia and India, and among those who follow Ayurvedic lifestyle principles. They refer to types of plants that possess special properties to help the body cope with stress, regulate healthy functioning and hormonal balance. Aside from that, they have numerous other health benefits such as help fighting off fatigue, reduce inflammation, improve sleep, and improve cognitive function even when we are under periods of stress among others.

Benefits of Combining CBD and Adaptogens

Popular and common adaptogens that you’ll easily encounter in the market are the following:

Ashwagandha: Widely used for centuries to treat stress and anxiety, and its use in ayurvedic potions. Ashwagandha is a root that is also used in some eastern delicacies.

Women who smoke cannabis during pregnancy double the risk of stunting their baby’s growth, a study warns.

Risks of premature birth, lower birth weight and possible low intelligence in later life were all increased. The report came from data on 60,000 mothers in the US, Canada and Jamaica in 16 studies. Chances of newborns being small for their age rose by 61 per cent for cannabis users. And the risk of being born premature went up by 28 per cent. Scores given to newborns that assess pulse, breathing and reactions also fell by 26 per cent, the Marchand Institute for Minimally Invasive Surgery, US, found. Dr Greg Marchand said: “Women exposed to marijuana in pregnancy were at a significantly increased risk of adverse neonatal outcomes.

“Given increasing marijuana legalisation and use worldwide, raising awareness and educating patients about these adverse outcomes may help to improve neonatal health.”

Some people with Parkinson’s disease find that using cannabis products helps to ease certain symptoms, according to results from a survey.

The findings notably suggest that cannabis products with high levels of the chemical THC are more likely to induce both positive and negative effects in Parkinson’s patients.

“These survey results offer a broad overview of real-world cannabis use patterns and experience among a large group of people living with [Parkinson’s] and provide initial results regarding the differential symptomatic effects of” different cannabis products, researchers wrote.

Findings were published in the study, “Higher risk, higher reward? Self-reported effects of real-world cannabis use in Parkinson’s disease,” in Movement Disorders.

Cannabis has two main active components: tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the main chemical that induces a “high,” and cannabidiol (CBD), which doesn’t induce a “high” but may have numbing or anti-inflammatory properties.

This expands the eligibility criteria for patients who can benefit from medical cannabis and makes it easier for them to be certified by a medical practitioner.

Responsible parties should inform consumers, especially teens, about the harms of cannabis and the serious conditions that may arise from abusing the substance.

One of marijuana’s most concerning connections is the one it has with psychosis. While not wholly understood, this link has been reported to be significant, with several studies indicating that people who smoke large amounts of weed on a daily basis are five times more likely to develop psychosis than others. This depends on the age at which marijuana is first consumed and the individual’s genetic vulnerabilities.

New studies: Survey of user experience and warnings of unregulated contaminants.

The sudden appearance of delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-8-THC, or delta-8) and its quick rise in popularity is a classic tale of unintended consequences and loopholes that enterprising entrepreneurs rush through.

1. Delta-8 is a cannabinoid molecule naturally found in cannabis.

The cannabis plant contains over 100 similar molecules called cannabinoids, most of them in small quantities and with unknown properties. Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, commonly called THC, is the most abundant and most psychoactive molecule in popular strains of marijuana. When the double bond between two carbon atoms shifts location slightly, it creates delta-8, which has similar effects as delta-9 but is only two-thirds as strong. Until recently, delta-8 was little known because cannabis plants contain only .1 percent delta-8, which is too little to extract profitably.

2. Delta-8 is legal and unregulated.

The 2018 Farm Bill legalized industrial hemp products as long as the delta-9 content remained below .3 percent. This bill permitted a great increase in the production of CBD (cannabidiol), which exists in sufficient amounts in hemp to be extracted profitably. When over-production of CBD created a glut that plummeted prices in 2020, the industry began looking for innovative ways to make the excess CBD profitable. Simple chemistry discovered in the 1960s using solvents like toluene began being used to convert CBD into delta-8.

Since the Farm Bill said nothing specific about delta-8, it remained legal federally, and only 14 states have restricted its sale to date. Able to be offered on the Internet, mailed through the US Postal Service, and sold in gas stations, convenience stores, and cannabis dispensaries, it has been the fastest-growing segment of the hemp-derived market this last year, says Ian Laird of data analytics company Hemp Benchmarks.

The hemp industry has been unloading products containing new alternative cannabinoids targeting specific moods and providing more benefits. One of the cannabinoids increasing in popularity is called CBN (Cannabinol), also known as the CBD for sleep.

CBN is a cannabinoid found in, and derived from, the hemp plant. Although close in chemical structure to CBD, the compounds produce very different results. CBN is specifically for getting to sleep, staying asleep and for anti-anxiety.

What is CBN?

Cannabinol, the scientific name for CBN, has been the newest upcoming cannabinoid and consumers have been flocking to it due to its sleep and relaxing properties.

CBN is created naturally due to the degradation of Delta 9 THC. Because of the technology that hemp companies have been able to scale, this magical cannabinoid can now be adopted at scale by consumers.

What is the difference between CBN and CBD?

Due to the fact that the hemp industry is discovering more potent benefits the alternative cannabinoids are offering, CBD has been slowly fading out into the background due to its lack of strength in benefits compared to CBN and others.

An expansion to Utah's medical cannabis program has officially launched, allowing more health care workers to recommend marijuana to qualifying patients.

The program allows any licensed physician, physician's assistant, nurse or podiatrist with a controlled substance license to recommend cannabis to up to 15 patients. There are more than 21,000 medical providers who can now recommend medical cannabis, the Utah Department of Health said.

"This program expands access to medical cannabis for qualifying patients by increasing the number of clinicians who have the option to recommend medical cannabis. In the past, adult patients had to obtain a recommendation from one of the 800 medical providers who were registered with the Utah Department of Health but that is no longer the case," Richard Oborn, Utah Department of Health's Center for Medical Cannabis director, said in a statement.

FOX 13 first reported in 2019 about problems qualifying patients were having getting a physician willing to recommend. The Utah State Legislature created the "limited medical provider" option to get health care workers more comfortable with cannabis.

The expansion was supposed to launch last October, but staffing and technology issues delayed it. Lawmakers, caught off guard by the delay, were not pleased and demanded timelines be sped up. Patient advocates were also frustrated.

Six reasons why doctors recommend using marijuana, according to experts.

​​There's been plenty of evidence that finds using marijuana for certain medicinal purposes is highly beneficial. It's proven to be helpful for patients who experience seizures, have autism, severe nausea or vomiting caused by cancer treatment, Alzheimer's disease, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), HIV/AIDS, Crohn's disease, epilepsy and seizures, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis and muscle spasms, among other medical conditions. In addition, doctors are suggesting marijuana for other reasons and Eat This, Not That! Health talked to experts who explained the reasons marijuana is prescribed the most. (NOTE: In order to responsibly use marijuana for medicinal purposes, do not use unless under the care of a medical professional guiding its use, know how to legally obtain marijuana and familiarize yourself with what the laws are regarding its use and purchase.) 

Dr. Tom Ingegno DACM, MSOM, LAC says, "Pain is probably the number one reason anyone recommends cannabis. Pain is a symptom of many different issues and diseases, not just injuries.  Due to cannabis's ability to reduce inflammation, it can be used for everything from arthritis to intractable cancer pain.  With a big national push to move away from opiates, doctors have been looking at other sources for pain relief and cannabis fits the bill."

Dr. Kristina Hendija explains,"It works for stress and anxiety relief for many. Cannabinoid receptors are present in all the brain regions responsible for processing anxiety and stress. Use of medical marijuana helps to dampen the severity that stressful events have on an individual. It helps form a regulatory buffer system against overwhelming emotional responses while also modulating the networks balancing distress and well-being. It should be known, however, that long term marijuana use with subsequent withdrawal can result in temporarily reduced dopamine levels."

3. Sleep

"Cannabis can help people sleep.," says Dr. Ingegno.

"CBD, the non-psychoactive compound, can help people sleep more soundly and delta 9-THC, the most commonly known psychoactive compound found in cannabis,  may help people fall asleep.  While there may be an entourage effect with many of the other cannabinoids and terpenes, the compounds that add the various flavors to the different strains, in general look for Indica-dominant varieties to help with sleep."

Cannabis sativa is a universal and versatile plant, so it’s no wonder that it has been given so many names throughout history and the world.

There are many names attributed to the plant that is scientifically known as cannabis sativa. From weed, to hemp, cannabis and marijuana, this seven-pointed leaf plant has a list of aliases that seems to grow as quickly as the plant itself. 

Many names linked to cannabis sativa refer to the same type of plant or product, but not all of these terms should be used interchangeably. In fact, cannabis, hemp and marijuana all refer to different products. It is critical to understand the difference as some of these products are fully legal while others are associated with possible felony offenses. 

Many cannabis enthusiasts understand the difference between cannabis, hemp and marijuana, but “a third of Americans think hemp and marijuana are the same thing, according to the National Institutes of Health, and many people still search Google to find out whether cannabidiol — a cannabis derivative known as CBD — will get them high,” according to The Conversation.

Photo by Catherine Falls Commercial/Getty Images

Cannabis 

Cannabis is an umbrella term of sorts. The word cannabis is an abbreviated name that comes from cannabis sativa, its scientific plant name. “The word “cannabis” refers to all products derived from the plant Cannabis sativa,” according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. This means hemp is a form of cannabis, and marijuana is also a form of cannabis.

Cannabis works wonders for chronic inflammation but we are just now understanding why.

Regardless of how anyone feels about inflammation or the amount of pain it comes with, it remains an unavoidable healthy response that keeps us alive. From bruising a finger to the after-effects of cancer treatments, inflammation is the body's automatic response to every physical condition. There are times when inflammation could lead to extreme pain and adverse conditions due to a dysfunctional effect on the immune system. At this point, drugs are needed to reduce the pain and hasten to heal.

Recent studies show that cannabis could be an essential anti-inflammatory agent. Some medications have been tested and proven over the years to be effective against debilitating and extremely painful inflammations. However, better options are being sought for managing chronic conditions. Because most potent anti-inflammatory medications tend to have adverse side effects when used for long periods,

This piece investigates the potential of cannabis to serve as a panacea for chronic inflammation and autoimmune disorders. We investigate the relationship between cannabinoids, the endocannabinoid system, and these disorders mentioned above.

What Is Inflammation?

You can consider inflammation to be the body's way of fighting and protecting itself against harm. In this case, harm could mean an infection or injury within or outside the body. For instance, when you have an injury, the first thing you notice is that the affected area reddens and swells. This reaction is due to the immune system sending out a group of white blood cells to contain the bleeding and fight off any form of infection.

Within the body, this same reaction occurs around the vital organs and also in the blood vessels. Put simply; the immune system causes any part of the body at risk of being infected to be inflamed. The elderly deal with more chronic inflammation and use cannabis at a higher rate then early generations. 

It appears Pakistan may soon be entering the lucrative and growing global cannabis industry. Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government announced late last year that it would allow for the industrial production of hemp, a cannabis plant containing cannabidiol (CBD) that many experts believe has numerous therapeutic benefits and is generally sold in the form of gel capsules, gummies, oils, supplements, and extracts.

Unlike its cousin, marijuana, hemp does not contain significant quantities of the psychoactive component known as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). THC is the compound most associated with the intoxicating effects of cannabis. Although hemp-derived CBD production in Pakistan would mostly be for export markets, its use domestically for medical purposes has been legal since September of 2020, meaning that new production could also service a growing domestic market.

More recently, Pakistan’s Minister of Science and Technology Shibli Faraz is reported to have told the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Science and Technology that the government is set to introduce legislation to regulate the domestic cannabis industry imminently. This represents a huge economic opportunity for Pakistan as the country struggles to address its chronic current account deficit by boosting exports and diversifying its agricultural sector.

The use of CBD products related to health and wellness is set to experience exponential growth globally. This trend should be accelerated by the recent UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (UNCND) decision to reclassify cannabis as a “therapeutic product.”

In a consumer report from 2019, researchers estimated that 64 million people in the United States had tried CBD within a year of the study. The CBD market is also just starting to grow in Europe well as in other regions such as South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Fortune Business Insights recently reported that the global cannabinoid market is projected to grow from just under $3.7 billion in 2021 to approximately $58 billion by 2028, which represents a compound annual growth rate of 47 percent.

Lafayette - It’s been a few years since the first medicinal marijuana products became available to patients in Louisiana and earlier this month the raw smokeable form was added to the list of available options.

But medicinal marijuana patients in the state are concerned about the pricing.

"My hope is that more production takes place, more consumption takes place, and then it’ll be volume-driven," he said.

Before HB391 was passed last summer by governor John Bel Edwards, the only options for medicinal marijuana patients were products like gummies, oils and tinctures.

Often times these products were pricey due to the processing it goes through.

A new vaccine being developed could be used to help those prone to Opioid Use Disorder and opiate addiction.

Scientists with a new research center at the University of Washington are working on a vaccine to help fight the opioid epidemic in a bid to stem the tide of overdose deaths that has swept the nation over the past two decades. 

Marco Pravetoni, the head of the new UW Medicine Center for Medication Development for Substance Use Disorders, is leading the effort to develop the vaccine. Similar to immunization against an invading pathogen, the vaccine under development would stimulate the body’s immune system to attack and destroy opioid molecules before they can enter the brain. 

Such a vaccine would not prevent drug cravings commonly experienced by those with opioid abuse disorder. But the treatment, if successful, would block the effects of opioids including euphoria, pain relief and even overdose, thus likely reducing abuse.

The new research center opened this month and has raised more than $2 million in initial funding. Pravetoni hopes to raise enough money to complete further research on the vaccine under development.

“What I’m hoping to achieve is pretty much every year, we’re going to start a new clinical trial,” Pravetoni told the Seattle Times in early January.

Therapeutic hemp and cannabis products to get you through the first bacterium equinox of 2022.

Whether you’re concerned about flu season or a protracted pestilence that has likely kept you masked and hypervigilant, if not in quarantine mode, a robust cannabis medicine cabinet can help you through the first bacterium equinox of 2022. Cannabis is by no means a cure-all, but you can use it to temper certain cold and flu symptoms much in the same way you might with an over-the-counter remedy—no astro traveling necessary. Furthermore, CBD acts as a unique immune system supporter, functioning as an anti-inflammatory, immunosuppressant and immunomodulator, conceivably keeping your immune responses evergreen (as in perennially resilient AF). For the uninitiated, just as recreational cannabis is more than skunky blunts and milky bong hits, contemporary therapeutic cannabis is much more than inky tinctures and skunky salves. In fact, therapeutic hemp can be delivered in a number of holistic, novel and cutting-edge ways. Here are some standouts from our own cannabis medicine cabinet.

1. Identity CBD Bone Broths

Mercer Island, Wash.-based wellness brand Identity produces a number of alternative CBD-infused products, including an obsession-worthy Norwegian bone broth packet infused with 10 mg Oregon hemp CBD. Each package contains enough canna-bone bouillon for a relatively rich mugful of aromatic broth or toothsome addition to a more complex soup recipe.

Officially, the packages are meant to be mixed with 1 cup of water for a potent stock, but when mixed with 1.5 cups of water are much more sippable as a straight-up broth. The broths come in three flavors: Chicken, Chanterelle Mushroom and Ginger Ramen, with the mushroom being my own personal sick day standout.

2. Green Heffa Fixitea

A soothing cup of tea is a sick day necessity; Green Heffa’s Fixitea Herbal “Steam” Blend is a peppermint panacea complete with soothing antiseptic, antibacterial and antimicrobial properties. Green Heffa is a family owned and operated farm, producing not just hemp cannabis, but all the botanicals in its teas. The brand’s founder, Farmer Cee, uses Indigenous, heritage farming techniques across Green Heffa’s 14 acres, even calling on the quilters of her hometown of Wilcox, Ala., to produce the brand’s vibrant, Afro-centric packaging. Each of the brand’s teas are built upon unique therapeutic botanical medleys, so if minty relief isn’t your bag, there are multiple other tableaus to choose from.

3. Elixinol Everyday Rapid Reset

The oil-based cannabis tincture is a ubiquitous medicine cabinet addition, but Elixinol’s Rapid Reset absorption-ready CBD liposome stands apart from most dispensary tinctures for its water solubility. That means this tincture—unlike its oilier counterparts—will blend as seamlessly with a glass of plain, flat water as it will with more texturally complex drinks like smoothies or frothy hot drinks. The 1 mg of CBD in each pump is a low enough dose for beginners or those with THC aversions. It’s also easily buildable for users with more established cannabinoid tolerances.

Hemp compounds identified by Oregon State University research via a chemical screening technique invented at OSU show the ability to prevent the virus that causes COVID-19 from entering human cells.

Findings of the study led by Richard van Breemen, a researcher with Oregon State’s Global Hemp Innovation Center, College of Pharmacy and Linus Pauling Institute, were published today in the Journal of Natural Products.

Hemp, known scientifically as Cannabis sativa, is a source of fiber, food and animal feed, and multiple hemp extracts and compounds are added to cosmetics, body lotions, dietary supplements and food, van Breemen said.

Van Breemen and collaborators, including scientists at Oregon Health & Science University, found that a pair of cannabinoid acids bind to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, blocking a critical step in the process the virus uses to infect people.

The compounds are cannabigerolic acid, or CBGA, and cannabidiolic acid, CBDA, and the spike protein is the same drug target used in COVID-19 vaccines and antibody therapy. A drug target is any molecule critical to the process a disease follows, meaning its disruption can thwart infection or disease progression.

Among people with an aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) stroke, a type of bleeding stroke, recent marijuana users were more than twice as likely to develop a dangerous complication that can result in death or greater disability, according to new research published today in Stroke, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Stroke Association, a division of the American Heart Association.

"We're all vulnerable to a bleeding stroke or a ruptured aneurysm, however, if you're a routine marijuana user, you may be predisposed to a worse outcome from a stroke after the rupture of that aneurysm," said Michael T. Lawton, M.D., senior author of the study and president and CEO of Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, Arizona.

Researchers analyzed data on more than 1,000 patients who had been treated for aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage at Barrow Neurological Institute between January 1, 2007 to July 31, 2019. All patients had been treated to stop the bleeding either via 1) open surgery to clip off the base of the aneurysm, or, 2) noninvasively, by threading a slim tube through a blood vessel to the base of the aneurysm and releasing coils that fold to fill in the space and provide a barrier to further bleeding.

Among all participants, 36% developed delayed cerebral ischemia; 50% were left with moderate to severe disability; and 13.5% died.

After adjusting for several patient characteristics as well as recent exposure to other illicit substances, patients who tested positive for THC at last follow up were found to be: