News

Careful, cannabis users: Bongs may create more secondhand smoke than cigarettes

In a study sure to kill the buzz at many a party, researchers at UC Berkeley say bongs may create more secondhand smoke than tobacco cigarettes.

The study, published Wednesday on the JAMA Network, found that smoking cannabis in a bong created concentrations of fine particulate matter four times greater than concentrations observed after smoking a tobacco cigarette or hookah pipe.

To view LA Times article click here.

Like Tobacco, Cannabis Should Include a Warning Label — Especially for Suicide Risk

Cannabis products should carry a warning and consumer protections like tobacco and alcohol. One of the warnings is that the key ingredient THC has a risk of suicide. That’s why Senate Bill 1097, the Cannabis Right to Know Act, is a step in the right direction for consumer protection.

California has not passed any consumer protection laws on the cannabis industry since Proposition 64 legalized marijuana. In contrast, Colorado passed public health protection on marijuana concentrates.

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ADVANCING HEALTHY COMMUNITIES: DON’T MIX CANNABIS WITH MEDICATION

Every day in San Diego County, about three dozen people show up at a local hospital emergency room for several reasons related to cannabis use, a common one being drug interactions. Chances are that when the medication was prescribed and when the prescription was filled, neither the doctor nor pharmacist issued any warnings about using cannabis alongside their regimen. Now that cannabis is legal for recreational consumption in California, this has become a growing problem.

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Are state fair officials high? They should not reward super-potent marijuana

But Gov. Gavin Newsom, who campaigned for marijuana legalization and serves as an ex-officio member of the state fair’s board of directors, has a special obligation to ensure that California balances support for the legal industry with what’s best for public health — and that should include responsible messaging about legal marijuana. He and the rest of the board should reconsider the contest category encouraging growers to develop more potent strains of pot when existing research demonstrates their dangers.

To read editorial click here.

Over a third of parents believe CBD and marijuana are the same, a new report says

Some 80% of parents say they know little to nothing about CBD products, according to a new poll by C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health at the University of Michigan Health.

The term CBD stands for cannabidiol, a chemical compound found in marijuana and hemp, the report said. Unlike marijuana, CBD only has 0.3% of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. The THC is the psychoactive part of marijuana that makes people feel high.