Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at legalization in Germany, how older adults manage the social stigma associated with medical cannabis, cannabis and safe driving and much more. Enjoy.
Travel Tips
Mature consumers who are planning a trip to Europe may want to keep a “watch on the Rhine.” That’s because, as Mel Brooks might say, “It’s springtime for cannabis in Germany.”
Germany’s coalition government has reached a deal to legalize cannabis. That’s the word from Graham Abbott, reporting for Ganjapreur. Abbott writes that a final consensus on the coalition’s plan to federally legalize cannabis was reached last week. Abbott cites Forbes as the source of that report. Barring any unforeseen glitches, the legalization policy is set to take effect on April 1.
According to Abbott, under the plan, personal cannabis possession and consumption by adults would be legalized, as would home cultivation.
Also, cannabis sales would remain restricted but adults living in Germany will be able to register with private cannabis clubs starting on July 1, where cannabis distribution — but not consumption — will be allowed. The clubs will be limited to a maximum of 500 members.
What this means for tourists is still a bit murky, but we suspect that once you get past the “Sprechen sie english?” phase it will be possible for those who are so inclined to find a guy who knows a guy.
Abbott points out that with this policy in place Germany becomes the third member nation in the European Union to legalize adult-use cannabis—after Malta and Luxembourg.
Additionally, he notes many industry experts predict that cannabis reforms in Germany, which has the biggest economy in the EU, may inspire other EU members to follow suit and establish their own legalization policies.
You can learn much more by reading Graham Abbott’s insightful reporting in the February 6, 2024 issue of Ganjapreneur.com.
www.ganjapreneur.com/germanys-government-says-cannabis-legalization-deal-has-been-reached/?
Older Adults and Medical Cannabis
A new study suggests that despite the fact a growing number of older adults are using cannabis recreationally, a social stigma still surrounds using the drug for medical purposes and that seniors often use different coping strategies to manage that stigma.
The study was conducted by a team of researchers from the University of Alberta, Alberta Canada. They found that while there was an extensive body of literature in the social sciences on the social stigma attached to cannabis use, there was little research on how that stigma can affect the opinions held by older adults about using medical cannabis.
The study consisted of interviews with 36 English-speaking older Canadians ranging in age from 60 to 86 who had previously used or were currently using cannabis to manage a variety of health problems, including pain, anxiety, sleep problems and depression.
The findings revealed that the participants used what the researchers described as four different coping strategies to manage the social stigma associated with using medical cannabis.
Some concealed the fact that they used medical cannabis, some justified using it by emphasizing its medical value, others chose to underscore how medical use was different from recreational use and still others managed the stigma associated with cannabis by seeking to persuade others about the benefits of medicinal consumption.
The research team concluded that understanding the ways older adults manage the social stigma related to medicinal cannabis will help to inform and guide healthcare professionals in their conversations with seniors about the potential benefits of medical cannabis.
The study appeared in the February 2, 2024 issue of the journal Qualitative Health Research. To read an abstract of the study or a detailed description, simply click on the link that follows.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/10497323241227419
Cannabis Quote of the Week
“We tried everything with him, but nothing seemed to work until cannabis appeared in our lives.”—Dr. Diana Buitrago
Dr. Buitrago is a veterinarian at the Cali Zoo in Columbia. The “we” in her comment, which is taken from a very entertaining and informative article by Rachel Nuwear that appeared in the New York Times, refers to her colleagues at the zoo. The “him” refers to a jaguar who was obsessively pacing his enclosure and biting his tail.
After trying to address the jaguar’s anxiety with various medications—and failing—Dr. Buitrago’s team tried and succeeded by using THC. Dr. Buitrago also described how she used THC to bring relief to a stressed-out parrot that was plucking out its tail feathers.
Nuwear begins her article with the story of Nidia, a 55-year old Asian elephant suffering from chronic foot problems that led to painful abscesses on her feet that eventually led to a loss of appetite.
Nuwear goes on to recount how Dr. Quetzalli Hernández, the veterinarian in charge of Nidia’s care at a wildlife park in Mexico, decided to try cannabidiol, or CBD, the non intoxicating therapeutic compound found in cannabis.
Working with Dr. Mish Castillo, the chief veterinary officer at ICAN Vets, a company engaging in veterinary cannabis education and research in Mexico, Dr. Hernández eventually began treating Nidia with a dose of 0.02 milligrams of CBD per pound of Nidia’s weight, which she took daily with a chunk of fruit.
According to Dr. Quetzalli, the first sign that the treatment was working was the return of Nidia’s appetite —or as she told Nuwear, Nidia developed a serious case of the munchies. Within five weeks, the elephant had gained 555 pounds. Then her demeanor changed. She was “less grumpy” and her abscesses began to heal. Dr. Quetzalli believed this was due to CBD’s anti-inflammatory properties.
Despite these and other success stories, Nuwear is very careful to avoid suggesting that it’s wise for pet owners to start diagnosing and dosing their house pets with THC or CBD on their own.
In fact, much of her article focuses on how difficult it is in the U.S. to find veterinarians trained in treating pets with cannabis. In addition, the laws concerning the use of cannabis in the treatment of pets vary from state to state and some veterinarians are reluctant to even discuss the subject with pet owners for fear of punishment.
We can’t say enough good things about Rachel Nuwear’s article on how animals may benefit from a treatment plan that includes cannabis and the challenges facing pet owners and veterinarians who may want to pursue treating pets with CBD and THC.
You can learn much more by reading Rachel Nuwear’s detailed and revealing article in the February 6, 2024 issue of the New York Times.
www.nytimes.com/2024/02/06/science/animals-veterinary-cannabis-marijuana-cbd.html
The article also appeared in the February 6, 2024 issue of DYNUZ.com.
dnyuz.com/2024/02/06/mammals-with-the-munchies-curing-animals-with-cannabis/
Cannabis and Highway Safety
A recent study found that cannabis use alone does not necessarily make it more likely a driver will have a motor vehicle collision. However, using alcohol alone does. The same for using both alcohol and cannabis together.
So says Ben Adlin, writing for Marijuana Moment. According to Adlin, the authors of the study, which appears in the April 2024 issue of the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention, represented a range of institutions, including the Oregon Health and Science University, the University of Colorado School of Medicine, University of California Davis, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (which funded the study), Portland State University and others.
During the course of the study researchers gathered data from hospital emergency departments in Denver, Colorado; Portland, Oregon; and Sacramento, California. They obtained drivers’ blood and measured it for THC and metabolites, recorded alcohol levels as measured by a breathalyzer or in the course of clinical care and conducted interviews with the drivers.
They found that the use of cannabis alone did not correlate to higher rates of motor vehicle collisions (MVCs).
Said the research team in its report, “Cannabis alone was not associated with higher odds of MVC, while acute alcohol use alone, and combined use of alcohol and cannabis were both independently associated with higher odds of MVC.”
Adlin noted that the nine-author research team also made the point that THC blood levels alone are a less-than-reliable indicator of driving risk, suggesting that a better test would be to measure actual impairment.
As they wrote in the study, “Alcohol use alone or in conjunction with cannabis was consistently associated with higer [sic] odds for MVC. However, the relationship between measured levels of cannabis and MVC was not as clear.” They added that, “Emphasis on actual driving behaviors and clinical signs of intoxication to determine driving under the influence has the strongest rationale.”
In his article, Adlin also pointed to the findings of a study published in 2019 that reported that those who drive at the legal THC limit—which is typically between two to five nanograms of THC per milliliter of blood—were statistically no more likely to be involved in an accident than people who hadn’t used marijuana.
You can learn much more by reading Ben Adlin’s excellent reporting in the February 5, 2024 issue of Marijuana Moment.net.
CBD and Sports
Mature consumers aren’t the only ones who use CBD to manage aches and pains. CBD products are also scoring with professional sports teams. The latest example is a new partnership deal involving two professional basketball teams based in New York City.
According to Kyle Jaeger, reporting for Marijuana Moment, the Brooklyn Nets and New York Liberty have entered into partnerships with Mynd Drinks, a hemp-based CBD sparkling beverage company.
These partnership agreements make them the first teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), respectively, to have formal business deals with a company in the cannabis sector.
Mynd Drinks is no stranger to the world of professional sports. Last year it became an official partner of the Chicago Cubs, making the Cubs the first Major League Baseball (MLB) team to partner with a CBD company. The deal involves the team marketing the CBD drink in signage and promoting it through in-game features.
In his article, Jaeger reports that the agreements between the Nets, the Liberty and Mynd Drinks come just months after the NBA removed marijuana from the banned substances list for players and also announced that players could invest in and promote cannabis companies without any repercussions from the league.
Jaeger notes that the Brooklyn Nets’s deal involves a multi-year contract that makes Mynd Drinks its official wellness and recovery drink partner. The details of the agreement between the Liberty and Mynd Drinks have yet to be revealed.
Jaeger also makes the point that multiple professional athletics organizations have contributed to what he refers to as “the normalization of CBD,” both with corporate partnerships and by revising cannabis policies for athletes amid the state marijuana legalization movement.
For example, after the Cubs’s agreement, the Kansas City Royals became the second MLB team to partner with a cannabis company. In the case of the Royals it was Pure Spectrum CBD, which produces hemp-derived cannabidiol products like oils and gummies. That followed the announcement in 2022 that MLB had negotiated a league-wide partnership with the popular CBD brand Charlotte’s Web Holdings.
You can learn much more by reading Kyle Jaeger’s article in the February 2, 2024 issue of Marijuana Moment.net. As always, his reporting is clear, concise and informative.
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.
