Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at boomers and cannabis use, women’s support for the cannabis industry, a desire by consumers for milder products and an historic step by Congress. Enjoy.
Cannabis Trends
According to a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, marijuana use continues to increase among baby boomers in the United States, especially men.
That’s the word from Linda Carroll, writing for NBC News.com. Carroll says the study found men ages 60 to 64 reported the highest rates of marijuana use, with 12.6 percent of those surveyed saying they used the drug in the past 30 days in 2018, up from 8.9 percent in 2016. Over the same time period, use also nearly doubled among men ages 65 to 69 (rising from 4.3 percent in 2016 to 8.2 percent in 2018) and among men ages 70 to 74 (from 3.2 percent to 6 percent). There was less change in the use among women.
Carroll acknowledges this increased use presents certain concerns to health care professionals. For example, she writes marijuana use in older adults might increase the risk of drug interactions when combined with certain medications. A review published in January in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology noted, for example, that marijuana can interact with certain heart medications, putting users at risk.
Carroll added that there is some concern among professionals that cannabis use in older individuals may present an increased risk for confusion, dizziness, falls and other accidents.
You can learn more by reading Linda Carroll’s article in the August 31, 2020 issue of NBC News.com.
www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/marijuana-use-rise-older-adults-n1238914?
Investor News and Notes
Thanks to a Maryland-based investment firm, investors who want to get into the cannabis market now have yet another alternative.
According to an article that appeared in Marijuana Business Daily, the company—AdvisorShares—has launched the first U.S.-listed exchange-traded fund (ETF) that will focus solely on American cannabis companies, including companies that operate in more that one state.
In addition to investing in multistate operators, AdvisorShares Pure US Cannabis ETF will focus on marijuana-related real estate investment trusts, CBD, hydroponics and cannabis-related pharmaceuticals. The fund will trade on the New York Stock Exchange Arca under the ticker symbol MSOS.
An exchange-traded fund (ETF) is a type of investment fund that is similar in many ways to a mutual fund, except that ETFs are bought and sold throughout the day on stock exchanges. Most ETFs are index funds, that is, they hold the same securities in the same proportions as a certain stock market index or bond market index. The most popular ETFs in the U.S. replicate the S&P 500 Index, the total market index, the NASDAQ-100 index, the price of gold, the “growth” stocks in the Russell 1000 Index, or the index of the largest technology companies.
Said portfolio manager Dan Ahrens in a news release, “We believe that the U.S. clearly represents the most attractive opportunity for cannabis investment and remains an exponentially larger market than the Canadian cannabis market.”
To learn more we suggest you read the article “US-focused cannabis ETF set to launch on New York Stock Exchange” which appeared in the September 1, 2020 issue of Marijuana Business Daily.
mjbizdaily.com/us-focused-marijuana-etf-set-to-launch-on-nyse/?
Women and Cannabis
American women continue to play a key role in the growth of the cannabis industry, both as consumers and as advocates and employees. For example, a Quinnipiac University National Poll conducted in 2019 found 61 percent of women surveyed in the US said that they supported marijuana legalization. That showed a jump from the 44 percent who supported the move back in 2012.
Now, according to Alicja Grzadkowska, reporting for Insurance Business America, women are more than just users of cannabis products. They also make up 36 percent of the cannabis industry workforce—and their presence in this sector continues to increase. This, she contends, is helping to guide the way cannabis products are marketed.
Norman Ives, broker and cannabis practice leader at NutraRisk, a division of Worldwide Facilities, told Grzadkowski he believes the cannabis industry is poised to reap the financial benefits of the interest women show in its products.
Said Ives, “Today, women drive 70-80 percent of all consumer purchasing through a combination of their buying power and influence. With the legal cannabis market expected to surpass $25 billion by 2025, this spending power will no doubt expand further into the cannabis industry in states where it is legal.”
Part of this support as consumers may come in the form of purchasing a wide variety of cannabis products. For instance, a 2019 study by the firm Headset revealed women are more likely than men to try different types of marijuana products, such as capsules, topical creams, and sprays. In the same study, the majority of women surveyed said they were more interested in how CBD could help them with various health and wellness issues than in the psychoactive effects of THC.
For more insight into the role played by women in the growth of the cannabis industry, you can read Alicja Grzadkowska‘s article in the September 1, 2020 issue of Insurance Business Magazine.
Stats of the Week
There’s little question that legal access to cannabis has sparked an interest in a wide variety of ways to consume it, including extracts and other potent forms of cannabis derived from flowers.
However, according to Addison Herron-Wheeler, reporting for High Times, a new study published in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence journal indicates nearly eight in ten consumers still prefer cannabis flowers to infused concentrates.
Herron-Wheeler writes that the study was conducted by Arizona State University and looked at 574 subjects from throughout the U.S. and their habits when it comes to consuming herbal cannabis and concentrates, as well as how those habits compare. In total, 78 percent of those polled said they choose herbal cannabis over concentrates.
Respondents said they found cannabis in the flower form a better solution for pain relief and thought flower was a better monetary value than concentrates. They also claimed they found that in their experience concentrates can cause unwanted effects, such as paranoia, forgetfulness, and cannabis hangovers.
Commenting on that same study, Chris Roberts writing in Forbes, reported that nearly 78 percent of people surveyed who use cannabis actually want products with less THC, somewhere between 9 and 20 percent THC. This runs contrary to the current trend in the industry to develop products with THC percentage that are well over 20 percent.
To learn more, visit the article by Addison Herron-Wheeler in the September 3, 2020 issue of High Times. The article by Chris Roberts appears in the September 3, 2020 issue of Forbes.
hightimes.com/news/study-shows-cannabis-consumers-prefer-flower-concentrates/?
Cannabis and the Law
The Democratic-controlled House is about to take an historic step. It will vote on legalizing marijuana at the federal level for the first time in the chamber’s history, a hurdle Democrats and advocates are celebrating as Congress grapples with a host of pressing issues before the November election.
So says Nicholas Wu, writing for USA Today. According to Wu, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md. has announced the House would vote on the MORE Act during the week of Sept. 21. The measure, sponsored by Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., would remove marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances and expunge some marijuana-related criminal records, though it would still be up to states to pass their own regulations on the sale of marijuana.
Nadler has said he is confident the bill would pass the House, telling USA TODAY the bill had “probably unanimous” Democratic support and “considerable Republican support” but was unsure of its fate in the Senate.
Most “Senate watchers” are doubtful the bill will pass in the Senate, leaving the status of marijuana at the federal level unchanged.
Nadler’s bill has one Republican cosponsor, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, and 86 Democratic cosponsors.
According to Wu, a 2019 Gallup survey showed 66 percent of Americans now support legalization of marijuana at the federal level, though support did differ by party. More than three-quarters of Democrats said they supported legalization, as opposed to about half of Republicans.
To learn more, we urge you to read Nicholas Wu’s article in the September 4, 2020 issue of USA Today.
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com or at 347-528-8753.
