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Abstract

Objective This study examined how freshman year substance use prospectively predicted time to college graduation, and whether delayed graduation predicted postponed adoption of adult roles and future substance use. Participants Participants were part of a longitudinal study that began in 2004. The first analyses focused on freshman year (N = 2,050). The second analyses corresponded to a subset of participants at age 27 (N = 575). Methods Measures included... Read More

Several other residents spoke in favor of more government regulations on medical marijuana dispensaries. Ellen Snelling said she voted against Amendment 2, which was overwhelming approved by voters in 2016.
"Medical marijuana is a drug. It is harmful and addictive. Limiting the number of dispensaries is a good public health policy," said Snelling.
She told commissioners she is concerned that too much access will lead to marijuana getting into the wrong hands and being used for... Read More

First, dosing of smoked marijuana remains unpredictable. And although much of the medical marijuana debate centers on the effects of single exposures, insufficient information exists regarding the effects of repeated exposures. Approximately 10% of people routinely using marijuana become addicted, with a higher incidence amongst adolescents. Tolerance and down-regulation of receptors have been documented with repeated marijuana use. A marijuana withdrawal syndrome has also been recognized,... Read More

Aside from the changes to criminal law, legalization has implications for school safety policies, child abuse and neglect statutes, child care center regulation, advertising restrictions, substance abuse programs, employment law, traffic offenses, banking, state revenue, ports of entry and federalism, among many others.
These policy challenges have far-reaching implications, few have been easy to resolve, and most have drawn time and resources away from other policy areas. But most... Read More

Authorities said a toddler nearly died from eating edible marijuana. The Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth and Families on Friday announced the 2-year-old girl had almost died Thursday and had been admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit at Hasbro Children’s Hospital.

Commissioners will consider banning anyone under 21, requiring dispensaries to keep visitor logs and extensive surveillance cameras, and even imposing "odor maintenance plans" on the three dispensaries the city plans to allow in designated zones.

“So called medical marijuana in other states has become a farce and a sham. The average user of smoked medical marijuana has no chronic illness and is a white male in his mid-30s with a history of drug and alcohol abuse. . . In the last 20 years and due to market demand, constant genetic engineering has increased THC potency in marijuana plants, and extraction-concentration methods are becoming extremely popular and widespread. become addicted.”Marijuana is the 2nd leading cause of impaired... Read More

We want to prevent what happened with Big Pharma from happening with Big Marijuana in Florida. We want to avoid the pill mill scenario we experienced several years ago.  Given the number of people dying in our state from opioid abuse be it heroin or prescription drugs we do not want to add fuel to this fire by inadequately regulating ‘medical’ marijuana dispensary zoning, licensing and locations.

We should approach mass marijuana production and distribution as we would any other large-scale public health problem. We should do what we can to limit exposure, and we should provide clear, unbiased ... Read More

“It’s not the job of the state government to create conditions in which private companies can be profitable for selling marijuana.”  Therefore regulate marijuana like it was a medicine with strict guidelines similar to the FDA process!

Kirk’s children are seeking damages for negligence, failure to warn, wrongful death, deceptive trade, strict liability, breach of implied warranty, misrepresentation and consumer law  violations. They are represented by Gregory Gold, of Greenwood Village.
The effects of marijuana can be much more powerful when it is eaten rather than smoked. New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, on a visit to Colorado, wrote a much-cited column about the misery induced by eating marijuana candy.

Pediatricians are in a unique position to provide parents and teenagers with accurate information and counseling regarding the consequences of marijuana or cannabis use by children, teenagers, and adults. A number of strategies can be used to counsel families about preventing use and to intervene if marijuana is being used either recreationally or medically by the families for whom they provide medical care.

Couture blamed "black ice" despite the nearly 50 degree weather at the time, according to the release. Police said the traveled portions of Pelham roads were clear of snow and ice. Couture admitted to smoking marijuana before driving and performed field sobriety tests. 

In a new study, researchers in London, Ontario found that women who used marijuana while pregnant were almost three times more likely to have an infant with low birth weight than women who did not use marijuana.

“Instead of people seeing this as a medicine, a lot of people see it as a big business,” anti-drug activist Teresa Miller said. “And it will change our landscape if we end up with pot shops on every corner.”

Ask any Florida legislator if their phone has been ringing off the hook from constituents who can't get enough vodka or rum, and they would have to say "no." Then why are they pushing hard liquor into our grocery stores without public input or backing?
 
It appears the driving force behind this change are corporate executives at big box stores who will profit greatly. They don't care about Florida families and are too cheap to spend money building a separate entrance. The current... Read More

Medical Marijuana is a very political, emotional and complex topic.  Now that amendment 2 has passed implementing it as a medication seems to be even more contentious.  I am sure we can all agree the goal, as with any medication, is to provide guidelines to make it as safe and beneficial as possible while at the same time preventing abuse or misuse.  Attempting to regulate prescription medications has proven to be very difficult and the lack of strict guidelines led to over... Read More

Findings suggest that marijuana use is associated with a 54% increase in the odds PDV (physical dating violence) victimization, and a 45% increase in the odds of perpetration. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that dating violence is a correlate of marijuana use, and that association is strongest among adolescents (vs. emerging adults) and girls (vs. boys).

"I think it's really important to remember that marijuana of any kind is illegal under federal law," Board Chairwoman Dianne Jacob said. "There have been comments made by the new administration in Washington that signs may point to action being taken in the near future to support federal law."

Adolescent marijuana use has significantly increased in our state post-legalization, as has been documented in numerous studies. Ask any teenager and they will tell you that marijuana use is rampant in our local high schools, which is obviously not surprising given its widespread availability and the perception of its safety. While we can debate the effects on adults, marijuana use clearly has a detrimental impact on a teenager.

Read more here:... Read More

Everyone should be concerned:  Voters, not medical practitioners or scientists, have been able to determine medical practice.
Beneath it all, however, we must pause to seriously consider the known, detrimental effects of repeated marijuana use on the developing adolescent brain.  We must act accordingly and responsibly in ways that promote the public health and safety, help delay initiation of use, and reduce, not increase, the accessibility of marijuana to this particularly vulnerable... Read More

The Washington Poison Center (WAPC) saw a slight increase in calls regarding opioid exposures in 2016 (n=1,696) compared to 2015 (n=1,672). Of the calls received, over 70% (n=1,199) of the exposures occurred in individuals 20 years of age or older.

Illness should continue to be treated by health professionals employing scientific evidence. This is responsible policy. It is not appropriate or medically justified for family physicians to refer patients to medical marijuana clinics; instead, they should inform their patients that medical treatment must be based on scientific evidence.

"THC is an addictive drug," said Sen. William Ligon (R-Brunswick) during floor debate.  Its detractors in the Senate say it’s also a danger – not only to its users but also to the state of Georgia.
Ligon warned that higher THC levels in cannabis oil could lead "toward the liberalization of marijuana laws and making it available for recreational use."

Widely viewed as one of the most restrictive medical marijuana laws in the country, New York’s Compassionate Care Act’s list of qualifying conditions is relatively short, no flower or edibles are permitted, and only five registered organizations (ROs) are licensed to manufacture and sell products.
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s administration had initially projected $4 million in medical cannabis tax revenues in 2016. Instead, the state will see about $1 million.

Since medical marijuana as legalized by popular vote and/or legislation is not a prescription drug as many people seem to believe it cannot be sold in drug stores.  This is not an evidence-based medicine and should not be referred to as a medicine. It is not supported by any medical association to include the organizations that proponents claim marijuana cures or helps.
 
Since only 5% of people in other states that have legalized marijuana for medical purposes actually use it as... Read More

Researchers at UC Davis are warning some medical marijuana users after identifying potentially lethal bacteria and mold on cannabis samples from 20 Northern California dispensaries.

Cannabis potency has risen significantly over the past several decades, with available evidence pointing to an increased risk of Cannabis use disorder, psychosis, acute cognitive impairment, and structural brain changes with use of high-potency Cannabis. Clinicians should consider asking patients who use marijuana about potency to better assess risk of psychiatric adverse effects.

Here are just a few of the health effects you may want to know:

• Marijuana use directly affects the brain—specifically the parts of the brain responsible for memory, learning, and attention.
• The compounds in marijuana can affect the circulatory system and may increase the risk of... Read More

According to research studies, marijuana use causes aggressive behavior, causes or exacerbates psychosis and produce paranoias. These effects have been illustrated through case studies of highly publicized incidents and heightened political profiles.
Marijuana is currently a growing risk to the public in the United States. Following expanding public opinion that marijuana provides little risk to health, state and federal legislatures have begun changing laws that will significantly... Read More

Colorado Assistant Attorney General Michael Song:

• Song cautioned that doctors have to be tightly regulated, with means to punish those abusing the ability to recommend medical marijuana.
• Song said problems are arising as people, for example, eat a whole cookie, or worse, several, while they wait for the effects to hit. Then they wind up in emergency rooms stoned way over the edge.

Now, as citizen groups attempt to put the brakes on the growing industry, a heated debate has emerged about the drug’s societal impact. Doctors report a spike in pot-related emergency room visits—mostly due to people accidentally consuming too much of potent edible pot products. Police face new cartel-related drug operations. Parents worry about marijuana being sold near their homes and schools. And less affluent communities like Pueblo struggle with the unintended consequences of becoming... Read More

Detailed Information
. Patients freely share their “medicine” with family and friends, and parents are self-diagnosing, and subsequently dosing their children with high-concentration marijuana products for conditions that may simply not exist (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, etc.); or allow their medical cards to expire and continue to grow... Read More

Ref: Rules on pot remain hazy
If doctors, dispensaries and patients are confused now just wait until a patient begins to ask their doctor typical questions about ‘medical’ marijuana. Such as:  How often should I take it, for how long, what strength, interactions with other drugs, expected side-effects, driving under the influence, research and validation that it will help specific symptoms, follow-up appointment … and the list goes on.  Most if not all these questions will be... Read More

Excessive alcohol use accounts for 1 of 10 deaths among working-age adults in the United States.

Marijuana use skyrocketed under President Obama, up 27 percent among kids, according to the National Institutes of Drug Abuse. Phoenix House reports that up to 50 percent become addicted.
 
Nearly 100,000 parents lose their children to drugs annually

If the changes observed in Washington are attributable to legalization, why were there no changes found in Colorado? The authors suggest that this may have been because Colorado’s medical marijuana laws were much more liberal before legalization than those in Washington. After 2009, Colorado permitted medical marijuana to be supplied through for-profit dispensaries and allowed advertising of medical marijuana products. This hypothesis is supported by other evidence that the perceived risks... Read More

The Medical Examiner’s toxicology report stated that both Lavin and Higgins had THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, in their system. THC is the chemical compound found in marijuana.    

This year, daily marijuana use exceeded cigarette use among 10th (2.5 vs. 1.9 percent) as well as 12th (6.0 vs. 4.8 percent) graders.

Ellen Snelling, chairwoman of the Tampa Alcohol Coalition and member of the Hillsborough County Anti-Drug Alliance, added that marijuana isn’t harmless, telling the panel of her teenage daughter’s decline into drug use after trying pot.

Is it possible to regulate a plant that people can grow in their backyards? Questions to consider and recommendations for implementing Amendment 2 (legalizing 'medical' marijuana in Florida).
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