Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at GLP-1 drugs and cannabis, the number of registered medical marijuana patients in the U.S. and veterinarians legally suggesting cannabis medicine in Maryland. Enjoy.
Cannabis News and Notes
Top takeaway: For a small percentage of patients, cannabis may interfere with GLP-1 drugs.
If you think there’s a “fat chance” cannabis can prevent your GLP-1 weight-loss drug from working properly, think again. A physician who is a cannabinoid specialist believes mature consumers and others need to be aware of the potential interactions between cannabis and GLP-1s for a small percentage of people who use both.
So says Heather Miller, reporting for the Fox news service Live Now. According to Miller, Dr. Jordan Tishler, a cannabis physician and president of the Association of Cannabinoid Specialists, believes it’s important for doctors to ask their patients about cannabis use before prescribing a GLP-1.
Tishler told Miller the need for caution when mixing cannabis and GLP-1 drugs stems from the fact both drugs slow stomach emptying, which could lead to bloating and discomfort in mild cases, and in rarer instances nausea and vomiting, both of which are already listed as potential side effects when taking GLP-1 drugs.
Explained Tishler, “You know, we like to think of our brains as being the big bunch of neurons, right? And we tend to think of our gastrointestinal tract as kind of a tube, right. But it turns out that there are as many neurons in the GI tract as there are in our brains. I don’t know exactly what that means in the grand scheme of things, but the idea that cannabinoids would have a significant effect on your GI tract one way or the other, just as they do with our central nervous system, makes a lot of sense.”
He added that for people with diabetes, the risk could be greater because diabetes also sometimes causes delayed stomach emptying, or gastroparesis.
While Tishler told Miller he doesn’t believe the issue is a medical emergency, he does hope doctors and public health experts will study the relationship between cannabis and GLP-1 drugs so they can educate their patients.
Said Tishler, “I think it’s more a matter of nuance that my colleagues in medicine need to just be forewarned so that, you know, before you write the prescription for a GLP-1, you say to the patient, what are your other medications? Does it include cannabis? You know, in a very non-judgmental way, of course, but just to say, look, you know, these medicines can interact with other medicines and I need to understand everything that you’re taking in order for me to give you good advice.”
While he acknowledges that, in the end, he would probably advise ninety percent of his patients to take the GLP-1 along with their cannabis, he told Miller it’s still best to warn the patient about the possible interaction so that if something does come up, “they can come back to you and say doc, you know what? You’re right. This became a problem for me.”
A graduate of both Harvard College and Harvard Medical School, Dr. Tishler is the Founder and President of the Association of Cannabinoid Specialists which aims to educate clinicians, lawmakers, and the industry about best practices and needed tools for proper patient care.
Heather Miller’s reporting is clear and on point. To learn more, we urge you to read her article in the September 27, 2026 issue of the website Live Now from FOX.
www.livenowfox.com/news/doctor-warns-potential-interactions-between-glp-1s-cannabis-use
Notable Numbers
Top takeaway: There are approximately four million registered medical marijuana patients in the U.S.
This week’s notable number is four million, give or take. According to a new study by the American College of Physicians that appeared in the Annals of Internal Medicine, there are just under 4 million patients registered to use medical marijuana under state laws in the U.S.
Tom Angell, writing for Marijuana Moment, reports that the number of Americans who are registered under state medical marijuana programs more than quintupled from about 747,000 in 2016 to approximately 3.9 million in 2024.
Members of the research team, who are affiliated with the University of Michigan, noted that the fact that patient registration has “flattened since 2022″ does not mean fewer individuals are using cannabis for medical reasons.
On the contrary. They believe that declining growth in medical marijuana patient registrations in recent years is likely tied to a growing number of states enacting broader adult-use legalization laws. Put another way, many individuals are self medicating by consuming adult-use cannabis.
Wrote the researchers, “Decreased patient enrollment in recreational jurisdictions may result from patients opting out due to licensing fees or inconvenience, privacy concerns, and their use of recreational products for medical purposes without licensure.”
Angell notes that according to the research team, chronic pain was the most common qualifying condition for state-registered medical marijuana patients, accounting for 65 percent of all patient-reported conditions, followed by PTSD (29 percent) and anxiety (17 percent).
The same research team also found that the number of clinicians authorized to recommend medical marijuana to patients grew from nearly 31,000 in 2020 to almost 36,000 in 2024. At the same time, the research team conducted what they described as the first-ever analysis of the number of caregivers who are authorized under state laws to assist medical cannabis patients in growing, obtaining and using their medicine. They found that there were nearly 11,000 such approved caregivers in 2024.
In addition, the researchers believe the “widespread use” of medical cannabis “reflects the importance of continued rigorous clinical investigations of cannabis products in these conditions and more broadly to better understand possible risks and benefits.”
To learn more, we urge you to read Tom Angell’s excellent reporting in the September 29, 2026 issue of Marijuana Moment.net.
The Shape of Things to Come
Top takeaway: It is now legal for veterinarians in Maryland to discuss cannabis products with pet owners.
New rules that allow vets to discuss cannabis products for pets are in effect in Maryland. Maryland is the fifth state to allow veterinarians to discuss cannabis and CBD products with their clients, joining California, Michigan, Nevada, and Utah.
That’s the word from TG Branfalt reporting for Ganjapreneur. According to Branfalt, prior to the new law, veterinarians in Maryland risked license suspension, revocation, or professional reprimand or censure for discussing cannabis as a therapeutic option with pet owners.
Lack of research leading to FDA approval of cannabis drugs for pets has been a major stumbling block for the profession. In his article, Branfalt quotes from a statement from the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) that cites the lack of available scientific evidence pertaining to the use of cannabis-based medicine designed for animals for various conditions as a significant problem.
However, the organization does say that it, “continues to support well-controlled clinical research and pursuit of FDA approval by manufacturers of cannabis-derived products so that high-quality products of known safety and efficacy for specific therapeutic use can be made available for veterinarians and our patients.”
As always, Branfalt’s reporting is crisp and insightful. To learn more, we suggest reading his article in the October 1, 2026 issue of Ganjapreneur.com.
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com and at 347=528-8753.