“To assess the association between medical marijuana laws (MMLs) and the odds of a positive opioid test, an indicator for prior use.
State-specific estimates indicated a reduction in opioid positivity for most states after implementation of an operational MML,
Operational MMLs are associated with reductions in opioid positivity among 21- to 40-year-old fatally injured drivers and may reduce opioid use and overdose.”
“Contrary to the image that athletes do not use psychoactive drugs, this review suggests that a number of athletic subgroups are at increased risk for marijuana use. Surprisingly, a common rationale for use appears to be to enhance sports performance.”
“Cannabis is classified as a schedule I controlled substance by the US Drug Enforcement Agency, meaning that it has no medicinal value. Production is legally restricted to a single supplier at the University of Mississippi, and distribution to researchers is tightly controlled. However, a majority of the population is estimated to believe that cannabis has legitimate medical or recreational value, numerous states have legalized or decriminalized possession to some degree, and the federal government does not strictly enforce its law and is considering rescheduling. The explosive increase in open sale and use of herbal cannabis and its products has occurred with widely variable and in many cases grossly inadequate quality control at all levels-growing, processing, storage, distribution, and use. This paper discusses elements of the analytical and regulatory system that need to be put in place to ensure standardization for the researcher and to reduce the hazards of contamination, overdosing, and underdosing for the end-user.”
“Since 2002, marijuana use in the United States has increased among persons aged ≥18 years, but not among those aged 12-17 years.”
“Since 24 states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana in some form, suppliers of legal marijuana have developed Cannabis sativa products for use in electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes).
Personal battery powered vaporizers, or e-cigarettes, were developed to deliver a nicotine vapor such that smokers could simulate smoking tobacco without the inherent pathology of inhaled tobacco smoke. The liquid formulations used in these devices are comprised of an active ingredient such as nicotine mixed with vegetable glycerin (VG) and/or propylene glycol (PG) and flavorings.
A significant active ingredient of C. sativa, cannabidiol (CBD), has been purported to have anti-convulsant, anti-nociceptive, and anti-psychotic properties. These properties have potential medical therapies such as intervention of addictive behaviors, treatments for epilepsy, management of pain for cancer patients, and treatments for schizophrenia.
However, CBD extracted from C. sativa remains a DEA Schedule I drug since it has not been approved by the FDA for medical purposes.
Two commercially available e-cigarette liquid formulations reported to contain 3.3 mg/mL of CBD as the active ingredient were evaluated. These products are not regulated by the FDA in manufacturing or in labeling of the products and were found to contain 6.5 and 7.6 mg/mL of CBD in VG and PG with a variety of flavoring agents. Presently, while labeled as to content, the quality control of manufacturers and the relative safety of these products is uncertain.”
“To estimate whether marijuana use in pregnancy increases risks for adverse neonatal outcomes and clarify if any increased risk is attributable to marijuana use itself or to confounding factors such as tobacco use.
Maternal marijuana use during pregnancy is not an independent risk factor for adverse neonatal outcomes after adjusting for confounding factors.
Thus, the association between maternal marijuana use and adverse outcomes appears attributable to concomitant tobacco use and other confounding factors.”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27607879
“Marijuana Is Safe During pregnancy, Experts Do Not Encourage. Marijuana does not increase pregnancy risk according to new research. It does not have a negative outcome when it comes to premature birth and low birth weight. Still, experts do not encourage marijuana use during pregnancy.” http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/47194/20160910/marijuana-safe-during-pregnancy-experts-encourage.htm
“Cognitive Enhancement (CE) is often discussed in relation to stimulant drugs, such as amphetamines (AMPH).
However, there is some evidence that cannabis (CAN) can be used for CE.
A survey was taken of 1,538 students at four German universities.
A considerable number of students report having used CAN for CE.”
“We provide evidence for the presence of cannabinoid CB2 receptors in some cellular types of the cochlea of the adult albino rat. Cannabinoids and their receptors are increasingly being studied because of their high potential for clinical use. As a hyperspecialized portion of the peripheral nervous system, study of the expression and function of cannabinoid receptors in the hearing organ is of high interest. Stria vascularis and inner hair cells express CB2 receptor, as well as neurites and cell bodies of the spiral ganglion. Cellular types such as supporting cells and outer hair cells, in which the expression of other types of functional receptors has been reported, do not significantly express CB2 receptors in this study. An up-regulation of CB2 gene expression was detected after an ototoxic event such as cisplatin treatment, probably due to pro-inflammatory events triggered by the drug. That fact suggests promising potential of CB2receptor as a therapeutic target for new treatments to palliate cisplatin-induced hearing loss and other ototoxic events which triggers inflammatory pathways.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27564061
“In conclusion, evidence for the presence of cannabinoid CB2 receptor by immunohystochemistry and by RT-qPCR was provided. An immunolabeling of CB2 antibodies in four structures of the adult rat cochlea was found. That was, stria vascularis, inner hair cells, auditory afferent nerves and cell bodies of the spiral ganglion. Up-regulation of CB2 gene expression in animals exposed to CDDP treatment was also detected, when compared with healthy animals. This fact was partially supported by the higher immunofluorescence observed in the stria vascularis of CDDP-treated animals if compared with the healthy ones. These results suggest a considerable promising potential of CB2 receptor as a target of new treatments against CDDP-induced ototoxicity, and probably against other inflammatory diseases in the inner ear. Further research is needed to determine the functionality of CB2receptors in the organ of Corti and the potential therapeutic role of agonists and antagonists of these receptors.” http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0161954
“Study: Cannabinoids a Potential Treatment Option for Chemotherapy-Induced Hearing Loss” http://www.theweedblog.com/study-cannabinoids-potential-treatment-option-chemotherapy-induced-hearing-loss/
“Converging evidence suggests that an imbalance of ω3 to ω6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) in the brain is involved in mental illnesses such as anxiety disorders.
We previously reported that the dietary ratio of ω3 to ω6 PUFA alters this ratio in the brain, and influences contextual fear memory.
In addition to behavioral change, enhancement of cannabinoid CB1 receptor-mediated short-term synaptic plasticity and facilitation of the agonist sensitivity of CB1 receptors have been observed in excitatory synaptic responses in the basolateral nucleus of the amygdala (BLA).
These results suggest that the balance of ω3 to ω6 PUFA has an impact on fear memory and cortico-amygdala synaptic plasticity, both in a CB1 receptor-dependent manner.”
“Vascular dementia is the second most common cause of cognitive decline in aged people but the effectual therapeutic target is still missing.
Chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) has been widely found in vascular dementia (VaD) patients. CCH is thought to link with neurodegenerative disorders and their subsequent cognitive impairment.
The present study has been framed to investigate the role of selective agonist of CB2 receptor (1-phenylisatin) in CCH induced VaD.
These results indicate that 2VO induced CCH in rats, which was attenuated with the treatment of 1-phenylisatin.
Hence, it may be suggested that modulation in cannabinoid receptor may provide benefits in CCH as cognitive impairment and VaD.
Therefore, pharmacological positive modulation of CB2 receptors may be a potential research target for alleviation of VaD.”