A growing number of individuals are finding their financial security in retirement may be tied to the growing popularity of medical marijuana. That’s because more than a dozen public pension funds are investing in marijuana through a California real estate investment trust (REIT).
According to Nick Thomas writing for Marijuana Business Daily, at least 16 state pension funds in the United States, including New York State Common Retirement Fund, California State Teachers Retirement System and Texas Permanent School Fund and one fund in Canada, are investing in San Diego-based Innovative Industrial Properties. The Chicago Sun Times reported that the company leases properties to licensed medical cannabis operators.
As of July 19, the REIT owned 24 properties that were 100 percent leased to state-licensed medical marijuana operators in Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. The REIT, Innovative Industrial Properties, trades on the New York Stock Exchange as IIPR
Said Craig Behnke, equity research analyst at Marijuana Business Daily, “Pension funds typically invest with a long-term horizon and are viewed by many companies as ‘sticky money’ that doesn’t move in and out of stocks frequently.” He believes a rising investment appetite from investors with long-term outlooks could have positive benefits such as serving to de-risk early stage cannabis investing through more stable and consistent exit opportunities.
To learn more, visit Nick Thomas’ article in the July 25, 2019 issue of Marijuana Business Daily. mjbizdaily.com/us-public-pension-funds-invest-in-cannabis-through-california-based-reit/
What Seniors Need To Know
In a new feature, professionals in the industry share what they believe mature consumers need to know about marijuana. This week’s contributor, Jay Sochoka, R.Ph., MCP is a consultant pharmacist at Columbia Care, LLC dispensary in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Breaking the Ice
When you hear the term “medical cannabis,” what do you think? Do you understand the beneficial impact that this new medical option is making in the lives of people of all ages? As a medical cannabis consultation pharmacist, I see patients ranging from ages three to 88, with many different qualifying conditions. I introduce these patients to the world of medical cannabis, many of whom have never used a cannabis-based product.
First-time patients experience a variety of emotions—hope, bewilderment, joy, and apprehension, which I understand. However, since the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania passed and enacted medical cannabis legislation, you are legally allowed to be in a dispensary. You may purchase THC-based cannabis products with a physician’s certification and possess and use it to treat your medical conditions within the confines of the law.
When a person comes in for a consult, I always extend a warm greeting, because I am genuinely happy to see each patient. I love introducing patients to cannabis for the first time or working to find an individualized regimen appropriate for their personal needs. I put them at ease by making it clear they are among friends. Everybody in the building supports the cause of medical cannabis and all of our patients. We can help custom build a medical cannabis program for any patient with a qualifying condition. While the final decision to accept a recommendation is up to the patient, we aim to provide the best guidance to ensure a beneficial treatment course.
There are so many different types of medical cannabis patients. Name any profession or age range, and chances are I have seen a patient who fits that description. Many cannabis users are highly functional, productive members of society with families, jobs, and bright futures. We acknowledge and understand that patients are trying to alleviate physical and psychological pain to feel better without experiencing the serious side effects and health issues caused by some traditional pharmaceuticals.
Thanks to medical cannabis, some patients have returned to work or regained mobility. Their pain, while not always gone, has become more manageable. In some cases, opioid and gabapentin doses are stabilized or even reduced (with the help of a physician). Children are experiencing fewer seizures without additional pharmaceuticals
The world of medical cannabis is just beginning to emerge. Product innovation in the Commonwealth is tremendous. A new medical platform is awaiting you, and I am eager to welcome you to it.
Tips on Managing Edibles
Many mature consumers find “edibles” (food products that contain cannabinoids such as THC and CBD) to be a convenient way to consume cannabis products. Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon for those who consume edibles, particularly new users of cannabis, to report they have bitten off more than they were ready to experience. That’s because consuming cannabis through an edible can make for a longer and more intense event.
As Olga Khazan points out in her article for The Atlantic, some researchers, such as Nick Jikomes, the principal research scientist at the cannabis website Leafly, contend that the body metabolizes THC differently when a person smokes marijuana than when a person eats it and as a result, the type of THC that enters the bloodstream when cannabis is smoked and the form of THC that enters the body when cannabis is eaten are slightly, but significantly, different—and that difference can make for a more intense and longer-lasting experience when consuming an edible.
Other researchers, such as Ethan Russo, don’t agree. He contends the reason edibles can make for a more intense experience is because more THC gets into the body when cannabis is consumed in an edible. Russo estimates that when marijuana is smoked, only 10 to 30 percent of the THC is absorbed into the body. The percentage of THC absorbed by the body is significantly higher when a person eats marijuana.
No matter where you stand in this debate, the good news is that there are practical things a consumer can do to have more control over the edible experience.
To help, Nick Jikomes offers these tips. For starters, if you are new to edibles start with no more than a 2.5 milligram dose of THC—that’s lower than the amount in many packaged confections—and work up from there.
Next, it’s not wise to consume two edibles on the same day. Don’t consume a second dose until you’ve gone through the first “experience.” He also recommends if you are experimenting with cannabis for the first time your frame of mind can make a big difference and it would probably be best to wait for a time when you’re not feeling especially anxious or depressed.
Jikomes does not point out—but others do—that since it can take a while for an edible to take effect, those who are new to the practice may think they will help it along by eating more, kind of like a booster shot. That’s not a good idea. In this case patience really is a virtue.
To learn more, read Olga Khazan’s detailed article in the July 2019 issue of The Atlantic.
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2019/07/why-edibles-make-people-paranoid/594649/
New Hope For Treating Inflammation
New research published in the journal Phytochemistry suggests some little-known chemicals in cannabis have great potential when it comes to helping patients ease the feelings of pain—and may form the basis for nonaddictive pain relievers of the future.
According to Peter Hess reporting in Inverse.com, scientists at the University of Guelph have shown how the Cannabis sativa L plant produces two molecules, cannflavin A and cannflavin B, that were shown in 1985 to be approximately 30 times more effective than aspirin by weight at reducing inflammation in cell models.
Tariq Akhtar, Ph.D., the study’s corresponding author and an assistant professor of molecular and cellular biology said in an interview that the molecules are non-psychoactive and they target the inflammation at the source, “making them ideal painkillers.”
Akhtar also said he and his team hope this will help scientists develop opioid alternatives for patients living with either acute or chronic pain by reducing inflammation at the site of pain.
More information is available in Peter Hess’ article in the July 25, 2019 issue of Inverse.com.
https://www.inverse.com/article/58027-cannflavins-a-and-b-in-cannabis-anti-inflammatory
Legislative Tends
There is good news for mature consumers who also advocate for changes in the laws regulating cannabis. This past week saw legislative efforts at both the state and federal levels to reduce legal restrictions on the recreational use of marijuana.
At the state level, New York became the fifteenth state to decriminalize the recreational use of marijuana by adults. That means possession of small amounts of the drug will be punished with fines rather than jail time. The measure also allows for a mechanism for clearing the records of people who had been criminally convicted of possessing small amounts of marijuana.
According to Governor Andrew Cuomo, who signed the law on July 29, 2019, “By providing individuals who have suffered the consequences of an unfair marijuana conviction with a path to have their records expunged and by reducing draconian penalties, we are taking a critical step forward in addressing a broken and discriminatory criminal justice process.”
According to the Marijuana Policy Project lobbying group, eleven U.S. states plus the District of Columbia have fully legalized recreational marijuana. In 2014 Colorado became the first state to do so.
At the federal level, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) recently introduced a bill that would decriminalize marijuana and expunge previous convictions nationally.
The tax revenue generated by the proposed legalization would be used to support job training, substance abuse treatment, literacy programs and other services for individuals and communities hit hard by drug enforcement. In addition, some of the revenue would also support programs designed to help “socially and economically disadvantaged individuals” start their own marijuana businesses.
Analysts believe Nadler’s introduction of the legislation means the issue is very likely to get a hearing before his committee.
Also, the Senate Banking Committee recently held a hearing to discuss the complicated issue of banking reform efforts for the cannabis industry. A bill in Congress dubbed the SAFE Act would allow financial institutions to work with cannabis-related businesses without threat of federal punishment.
More information is available in Matthew Lavietes article in the July 29, 2019 edition of Reuters.com, the AP story on Pot Legalization in the July 23, 2019 issue of Boston.com and reporting by Chris Mills Rodrigo in the July 29, 2019 issue of The Hill.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-new-york-marijuana-idUSKCN1UO1TV
https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2019/07/23/pot-legalization-bills-introduced-in-congress
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com or by calling 347-528-8753.