Study: MJ Linked to Prediabetes, but Not Diabetes

Youths who use marijuana heavily are at greater risk of developing prediabetes, according to a new study released in September. But cannabis smokers are no more likely than others to actually develop full-blown diabetes.

The study’s results were published Sept. 13 in Diabetologia, a medical journal. Researchers analyzed data from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults study (CARDIA), which include responses from more than 3,000 subjects at age 32 and again at age 50.

Scientists concluded that young adults who consume marijuana are 40 percent more likely to develop prediabetes by middle age.

“We tried to capture . . . marijuana use in young adulthood, when you would assume it would be the highest” and then look for signs of prediabetes or diabetes, said Michael P. Banks of the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. “It is unclear how marijuana use could place an individual at increased risk for prediabetes, yet not diabetes.”

Marijuana’s effect on blood sugar levels

Researchers have a couple of theories, however. For one, marijuana may exert a greater effect on blood sugar levels in the prediabetic stage. For another, there could be other variables – for example, the same genes that make people susceptible to substance use might also make them susceptible to prediabetes.

Scientists said more research will be needed to fully explain how marijuana use impacts the risk of developing diabetes.

But this isn’t the first study on the topic. Earlier research has concluded that heavy cannabis smokers tend to lose weight despite increased hunger (the “munchies”), and that the drug can reduce insulin resistance and insulin levels in people at risk of type 2 diabetes.

Diabetes comes in several forms, but the most common are type 1 and type 2. Type 1 is mostly a childhood disease and has unknown causes. Type 2 is usually caused by obesity or other health concerns, and typically strikes later in life.

Study results apply to type 2 diabetes

The results of the new study only apply to type 2 diabetics. This disease involves insulin resistence, in which the body rejects attempts by insulin to deliver glucose (sugar) to its cells. Weight loss is also a critical component of preventing type 2 diabetes and treating it, and cannabis leads to slimmer waistlines, according to scientists.

There have been few studies into the efficacy of marijuana in treating symptoms of type 1 diabetes, but at the very least it may help protect these patients from also developing type 2 diabetes in middle age.

The new study, which covered a 25-year time frame, found that heavy cannabis users are more likely to be men (62 percent), to currently smoke cigarettes (39 percent), and to drink more than one alcoholic beverage per day (31 percent). Chronic marijuana users were also more likely to use hard drugs, including cocaine (40 percent), crack cocaine (34 percent), amphetamines (30 percent), and heroin (6 percent).

Study: MJ Linked to Prediabetes, but Not Diabetes

Stoners Less Likely to Use Prescription Meds

People who use medical marijuana tend to use fewer prescription meds, according to a new study published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs.

The report, released in September, examined demographic data from 367 medical cannabis patients across Arizona, who had an average age of 46 years old. Most of the patients were white, and most said they use marijuana every day. They were recruited from several MMJ dispensaries in the state.

Medical marijuana has been legal in Arizona since 2010, though any other use of the drug is treated as a crime. The program is widely considered a success, even under especially stringent laws.

MMJ is legal in Arizona only for patients with certain debilitating conditions. The list includes cancer and HIV/AIDS, but chronic pain was the most widely reported condition treatable with cannabis. Other commonly reported disorders were muscle spams (multiple sclerosis), nausea, anxiety, arthritis, depression, headaches, sleeplessness, and stress.

MMJ reported by patients to be highly effective

Most patients also said marijuana is highly effective at treating their symptoms. Previous studies of MMJ users have reached the same conclusion.

Most notably, researchers found the vast majority of patients who use cannabis to treat nausea, spasms, headaches, and pain said it allowed them to cut back on their use of dangerous prescription drugs. More than 80 percent of patients with anxiety, insomnia, and arthritis reported using fewer pharmaceuticals while using marijuana.

The so-called “substitution effect,” in which users substitute cannabis for another intoxicant, is borne out by earlier studies, too, in California, Rhode Island, and Canada, among other places.

One-quarter fewer opioid overdoses in states with MMJ

This is especially true for patients who use powerful opiate painkillers and then start smoking cannabis. Opiates and their synthetic cousins, opioids, account for the origins of a massive heroin scourge sweeping the East Coast. Patients typically start on a prescription painkiller, often Oxycontin, get hooked, and then move up to heroin when the pills become too expensive or too hard to get.

“States permitting medical marijuana dispensaries experience a relative decrease in both opioid addictions and opioid overdose deaths compared to states that do not,” researchers wrote in a study released this summer by the National Bureau of Economic Research, a think tank.

Another report, issued last year in the Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine, concluded that medical marijuana laws correlates to many fewer fatalities from opiate or opioid overdose. Scientists speculated that cannabis use is driving down opiate abuse.

“States with medical cannabis laws had a 24.8 percent lower mean annual opioid overdose mortality rate compared with states without medical cannabis laws,” the researchers behind that study wrote.

The results hold great promise for a wide range of substance abuse issues, including alcoholism, which kills nearly 20,000 Americans each year. In the future, addiction to the most harmful drugs may be treated with marijuana as a (relatively) healthy substitute.

Stoners Less Likely to Use Prescription Meds

NYC Gets Its First Marijuana Dispensary

Union Square will be home to the first medical marijuana dispensary in the nation’s largest city.

The company behind the New York City store said in September that it should open its doors in January. That means medical cannabis will be available in each of the country’s three largest cities, including Chicago and Los Angeles.

Columbia Care, a New York-based MMJ provider, plans to open its dispensary on 14th Street between 2nd and 3rd avenues. The firm won one of just five state licenses to grow and sell medical marijuana. More than 40 companies applied, and the licenses were awarded in July.

Lawmakers adopted MMJ last year, making New York one of 37 states that allow some form of medical cannabis. It is the second-largest state with MMJ, after California.

Five licensed grow sites

The state’s program, run by the New York Department of Health, will allow five grow sites, each run by respective license holders. Each licensee will also be allowed to operate as many as four dispensaries across the state.

The other license winners include Pharmacannis, Etain, and Bloomfield Industries. New York’s medical marijuana program will be one of the most tightly regulated in the country; among other rules, patients won’t be able to smoke the drug. Instead, they must eat, drink, or vaporize it.

Columbia Care CEO Nicholas Vita said his company plans to use rigorous cultivation methods to create a more consistent medication.

“We hope to move as closely to a pharmaceutical manufacturing process as we can,” Vita said.

Attitudes changing in the nation’s second most-populous city

Political observers say it’s notable New York is moving forward with MMJ. Not only is the state the second-most populous in the United States, but its marijuana policy has long been hostile to users. That is changing, rapidly, with the city backing off on harrasment of low-level offenders and state lawmakers openly discussing full legalization.

Indeed, New York is on a short list of states likely to legalize over the next few years. Marijuana is now legal in four states: Colorado, Oregon, Alaska, and Washington, as well as the District of Columbia. Each of those places has legalized by way of public ballot initiatives. If New York legalizes, it could become the first state to do so by way of legislation.

“The New York (medical marijuana) program is a symbolic step forward in terms of visibility and awareness,” said Matthew Karnes, founder of industry research firm Greenwave Advisors.

MMJ available for a short list of conditions

New York’s medicinal cannabis system is closely linked to a handful of hospitals throughout the state, including New York City. It is allowed only for a short list of conditions, including cancer and HIV/AIDS.

That could change as the program grows, and activists are certain to push to create coverage for other conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

“There is no doubt that people really see and believe this (legalized medicinal use) is actually working and doing something, but what people are missing is how and why it’s working,” said Pharmacannis co-founder Teddy Scott. “That is where we are trying to take this right now. . . . We can be leaders in the industry for respected purposes.”

NYC Gets Its First Marijuana Dispensary

Feds: Teen Marijuana Use Holds Steady Despite Legalization

Despite dire warnings that American teenagers would rapidly become hooked on legal marijuana, new federal data show that hasn’t happened.

The numbers, released in September by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, show that teen cannabis use stayed steady in 2014, the first year the drug was available on legal markets in Washington State and Colorado.

The data shows 7.4 percent of adolescents aged 12 to 17 use cannabis each month. That marks a slight increase, 0.3 percentage points, from 2013, but the agency says the difference is statistically insignificant.

Teen marijuana user significantly lower than a decade ago

Even with the increase, the numbers for 2014 are substantially lower than they were just a decade ago, reflecting the reality that legalization doesn’t lead to increased use. During that decade, four states have legalized marijuana and dozens more have adopted medical cannabis laws.

The numbers are in line with previous studies finding no significant rise in marijuana use by teenagers since the advent of legalization. But the data show that marijuana use has increased notably among adults in the same time frame.

Among adults over age 26, the monthly use rate rose from 5.6 percent in 2013 to 6.6 percent in 2014. Use increased even more among 18-to-25-year-olds, rising from roughly 17 percent in 2013 to nearly 20 percent in 2014.

Data contradicts conservative predictions

The new data flies in the face of apocalyptic predictions by conservative politicians about the effect of legalization. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, for one, frequently says reform would “send the wrong message” to kids. The new evidence suggests kids aren’t getting any such message.

Observers say the numbers mean legalization is not leading more youths to light up but could be driving the increase in adult use. The data released in September cover only national trends; statewide statistics will be released later this year.

The results are good news for reform advocates. Marijuana is now legal for personal use in four states: Colorado, Washington, Oregon, and Alaska. It is also allowed in Washington, D.C.

Expect more legalization soon

More states are lining up to legalize in coming years. The candidates for 2016 include California, New York, Massachusetts, and Michigan. Reform has also started to spread at the federal level.

Even the numbers showing increased adult use can be seen as good news. It means reform is working and adults are taking advantage of a legal drug without driving up teenage cannabis use.

That could have other beneficial consequences down the road. Scientific evidence shows that people who smoke marijuana are usually using it in place of something else – alcohol, for instance. This substitution effect could cut down on drunk driving, drug-fueled violence, and the long-term health consequences of drug and alcohol abuse, among other problems.

Indeed, impaired driving has been on a slight decline in Colorado since legalization took effect. In many other ways, the fact that more grown-ups are toking could in reflect a healthy change in the way America seeks chemical recreation.

Feds: Teen Marijuana Use Holds Steady Despite Legalization

Poll: Michigan Wants to Legalize

Voters in Michigan strongly support the legalization of marijuana in their state, a new poll finds.

The survey, conducted by Public Sector Consulting and Michigan Radio, found that nearly 56 percent of Michigan voters support full marijuana legalization, while just 40 percent oppose it. Cannabis activists are currently gathering signatures for a drive to put the issue on the ballot in November 2016.

The pollsters queried 600 likely voters, meaning the results are probably more accurate than they would be in a poll of all registered voters.

The results should be a boost to the backers of the legalization push. The group behind the campaign, MILegaize, has submitted a petition to allow the cultivation, sale, and possession of marijuana for recreational use. The drug is already legal in Michigan for medical use.

Most likely Midwestern state for legalization

MILegalize hopes to make Michigan the first state in the Midwest to legalize. It’s the only Midwestern state with an active legalization petition in the works, aside from Ohio, where the odds are much more daunting.

Michigan has long been friendly to cannabis reform. Every county in the state voted in favor of medical marijuana in 2008, and support for that program remains high – despite efforts by the state’s conservatives to derail it.

Voters in favor of regulated and taxed system

The new poll has even more encouraging news for advocates. Pollsters asked voters not only whether they support legalization but which approach to legalization they prefer. The largest group of voters, 27 percent, said they would like to see a state-regulated system that pays taxes, as well as rules allowing home growing.

That approach is similar to the petition filed by MILegalize, which would impose statewide regulations, levy a tax, and allow for home cannabis gardens. Members of the group said the poll shows they’re working in the right direction.

“This says that people prefer the MILegalize approach,” said Jamie Lowell, a board member.

A separate proposal to legalize came in second in voters’ preference, with 21 percent. That effort, backed by the mysterious Michigan Cannabis Commission, has gained little news attention and less voter traction. The MCC proposal would prohibit home grows and would allow cultivation only by a short list of state-approved commercial growers.

Even less popular: A system where marijuana is legalized but not taxed.

Legalization efforts must work together

When these three approaches are gauged separately, each falls short of the 40 percent who oppose legalization in any form. But together these three groups make up an easy majority of the electorate.

“The results indicate that this is not a slam dunk, but likely will get passed in some form, eventually,” pollsters said.

Cannabis is now legal for personal use in four states, including Colorado, Washington, Oregon, and Alaska – as well as the District of Columbia. Several states are in line to legalize next year, and more are likely to follow.

Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois are generally considered the most likely candidates for legalization in the Midwest. But conservatives are currently in charge in Illinois, leaving the state with a barely functional medical marijuana program, so full legalization is probably several years away there. Minnesota leaders still appear skittish toward full reform as well.

Poll: Michigan Wants to Legalize

MMJ Won"t Expand in Illinois

Illinois will not expand its medical marijuana program to cover patients who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and other conditions.

Gov. Bruce Rauner announced in September that he would not allow an expansion of the program and would veto legislation seeking to expand it. Rauner said the state’s MMJ program is still too young to add new conditions “before we have had the chance to evaluate it.”

A bill passed by the Illinois Legislature would have added PTSD and 10 other disorders to the current list of conditions covered by MMJ. That list includes cancer, HIV/AIDS, and multiple sclerosis, among other diseases.

Illinois MMJ program delayed

Illinois started its medical cannabis program in 2014 under then-Gov. Pat Quinn, a Democrat. But the program has been delayed several times, so farmers have only recently started growing crops. The first dispensary received a license in August, and patients won’t have access to the drug until late 2015 or early 2016.

“No patients have yet been served, and, consequently, the state has not had the opportunity to evaluate the benefits and costs of the pilot program or determine areas for improvement or even whether to extend the program beyond its pilot period,” said Rauner, a Republican.

The state’s Medical Cannabis Advisory Board recommended earlier this year that 11 conditions be added to the list, most notably PTSD. This trauma-induced disorder comes with flashbacks, severe anxiety, and frequent substance abuse.

Many veterans suffer PTSD

PTSD is common among combat veterans and other people who have experienced severe trauma. It afflicts survivors of natural disasters, victims of violent crime, and war refugees, among many other people.

Substantial scientific evidence suggests marijuana may be useful in treating PTSD. Among other benefits, cannabis has memory-inhibiting properties that could reduce flashbacks and panic attacks. The drug also has a calming effect that can sooth chronic anxiety.

But states have been slow to add the condition to their medical marijuana lists. Several states have done so, but others, like Illinois, have rejected efforts to list PTSD.

Rauner’s veto statement coincided with a decision by the Illinois Department of Public Health, which he controls, that it would not add PTSD. That means veterans and other sufferers will be left without legal access to an effective medication.

Vets have access to medical marijuana in 12 states

Between 11 and 20 percent of all veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, together with 15 percent of Vietnam veterans, experience PTSD, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Twelve states have legalized the medical use of marijuana to treat it.

The VA officially refutes the science behind cannabis as a treatment for PTSD, saying there have not been enough controlled studies to determine the drug’s safety or effectiveness. Veterans have recently gained new rights related to the VA and medical marijuana, but most still find it hard to use MMJ within the VA system.

Rauner has generally been hostile to medical cannabis in Illinois, threatening to disband the program before it gets off the ground. He used his veto powers in August to change legislation that would have extended the program by several years, instead allowing only a four-month extension. MMJ suppoters say they’re negotiating with the governor to save the program.

MMJ Won"t Expand in Illinois

Court Overturns Massive Drug Sentence

Four years ago, a Pennsylvania man was charged with running a heroin ring out of a halfway house where he was serving parole. Gene “Shorty” Carter of Philadelphia was promptly tried and convicted.

A Blair County trial judge then sentenced him on 16 separate counts, each carrying a mandatory minimum sentence, and ruled that the terms would run consecutively. The net result: a sentence of between 105 and 216 years in prison, all on a non-violent drug conviction.

Carter’s case is just the latest example of the excesses of the criminal justice system. A major movement is underway to reform the way courts penalize drug users and overturn the kinds of laws that made Carter’s sentence possible.

Case sent for new sentencing

In the meantime, a Pennsylvania appellate court overturned Carter’s sentence in September, saying the 43-year-old man deserves a less excessive penalty. The appellate judges returned the case to the trial court for new sentencing rather than shorten his current sentence themselves.

But they did rebuke the trial judge for imposing the mandatory sentence without input from a jury, and called his sentence “manifestly unreasonable and excessive.” The judges pointed to a 2013 Supreme Court decision holding that juries, not judges, must have the final say in whether mandatory sentences apply.

Discriminate anti-drug laws

Carter’s case highlights the draconian means by which anti-drug laws can be used to doom poor people, especially poor black people, to a lifetime behind bars over relatively minor drug crimes that don’t involve violence.

Mandatory minimum sentencing laws were a product of the drug war during the late 1980s and 1990s. They were typically written on the theory that drugs are the driving factor behind all crime (they’re not), and they sought to lock up even small-time street dealers for decades at a time.

A similar case recently unfolded in Missouri, where Jeff Mizanskey was convicted in 1993 of trying to sell six pounds of marijuana to an undercover police officer. It was his third drug conviction, the state had a “three strikes” law, and the judge handed down a life sentence – over a few small, nonviolent cannabis sales.

Mizanskey finally freed

Mizanskey was finally freed last month, after Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon commuted his sentence. He was paroled after roughly 20 years behind bars.

But there are still plenty of other low-level offenders serving massively out-sized sentences for marijuana crimes. The war on drugs has left a wake of lives ruined by overzealous arrest, overzealous prosecution, and overzealous sentencing.

The pendulum is swinging in the right direction again, after a long time. But it still has a long way to go before our prisons are no longer crowded with young black men doing time for offenses that soon may not even be against the law.

Court Overturns Massive Drug Sentence

Can Doctors and Lawyers Toke?

Marijuana may be legal in parts of the United states, but that doesn’t mean everyone has the same rights to toke. Kids, for example, must wait until they’re older.

But there’s another group of people whose right to use even legal cannabis is tenuous, at best. Doctors, lawyers, and other professionals operate under legal and ethical rules that often make it difficult to use.

So can these licensed professionals ever light up legally without endangering their licenses? As usual, the answer depends, but one thing is certain: The risk often outweighs the reward, especially for medical professionals.

First, let’s review. Cannabis is currently legal in Colorado, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska, as well as the District of Columbia. It’s already on sale in stores in Colorado and Washington State, and should soon be available on the retail market in Oregon, Alaska, and D.C.

The laws in those places allow (or soon will allow) all adults to buy, possess, and use marijuana on private property. That includes anyone over the age of 21. Doctors, dentists, lawyers: They’re all allowed to walk into a neighborhood store and buy small amounts of cannabis for personal use.

Licensed professionals subject to disciplinary board action

But that law is hardly the end of the question. Licensed professionals also answer to their respective disciplinary boards. These panels are composed of colleagues, bureaucrats, and outsiders, and they decide whether professionals should be punished for infractions of the profession’s code of conduct.

Doctors are under especially close attention. Violating confidentiality. Writing excessive prescriptions. Sleeping with patients. All these things can lead medical boards to institute fines, restrict medical privileges, or even permanently revoke licenses.

Drug abuse among most common reasons for sanctions

Drug abuse is one of the leading reasons for medical sanctions. Evidence that a doctor is drinking on the job or using any illicit drug could lead to mandatory rehab and a suspended license. A California neurosurgeon was recently accused by the state medical board of smoking marijuana constantly, even between surgeries.

But what about doctors who only use at home? There things get trickier. In 2012 Colorado medical authorities decreed that any doctor using medical marijuana to treat a chronic condition must stop treating patients until the medicinal cannabis is no longer needed.

The rules are less clear on recreational cannabis. But it’s safe to say most if not all states, including those with legalization, prohibit physicians from consuming marijuana in almost all circumstances, on or off call.

How does cannabis affect medical competence?

Sadly, there isn’t much data to determine exactly how cannabis affects medical competence. The drug can interfere with certain cognitive functions and can sometimes cause tremors, among other potential problems for a practicing physician.

The best advice for most doctors in most places is simple: Either stay away from marijuana or keep your use as low-key as possible. Drug tests are always possible once a disciplinary proceeding is underway, so it’s best to assume you’re always in danger of discovery.

The situation is easier for lawyers. Of course, attorneys are barred from using cannabis wherever it’s illegal under state law. But the rules get hazier when federal law comes into play. Marijuana is illegal for any use under federal anti-drug statutes.

In Colorado, at least, lawyers are clear to use cannabis anyway. They are also free to represent clients who trade in cannabis, regardless of the federal laws that ban it. Of course, any allegation that an attorney is using on the job would open the door to serious penalties.

Can Doctors and Lawyers Toke?

Study: More Teens Vape THC

File this under news everyone already knew: A new report says teenagers are increasingly using their e-cigarettes to vape marijuana rather than nicotine.

The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, found that more young tokers are re-purposing vape pens for use with marijuana. Liquid nicotine is easily replaced with hash oil, wax, and other liquid cannabis concentrates, the study concluded.

Researchers asked nearly 4,000 Connecticut high school students about their drug use. Youngsters use vape pens with marijuana at a rate 27 times higher than that of adult vapers, the study found. Cannabis is legal for medical use in Connecticut, but teens are not allowed to buy e-cigarettes there.

“The rates were a little bit surprising, especially in a state where it’s illegal to sell e-cigarettes to kids,” said Meghan Morean, a professor of psychiatry and psychology who co-authored the report. “They’re using them at pretty considerable rates.”

Vaporizing more popular among young users

Of course, this isn’t news to anyone who regularly uses either marijuana or e-cigarettes. Vape pens are most popular among young people, both cannabis and nicotine consumers. The fact that more teens are using the pens to consume marijuana doesn’t mean they’re actually consuming more marijuana; other studies have showed that isn’t the case.

The new survey found that 30 percent of the Connecticut students said they have tried cannabis in some form. Roughly 5.5 percent said they had used a vape pen to consume marijuana. Of those who already smoked marijuana, 18 percent said they had vaped THC.

The study took a decidedly negative view of vaping and marijuana in general, declaring that vape pens could contain spectacular concentrations of THC. Anyone who has ever vaped hash oil knows that while it can lead to real intoxication, it isn’t heroin. There is no magical “super” cannabis oil.

Lack of research on effects of vaping

Researchers also complained that there isn’t yet enough evidence to support vaping as a healthy alternative to smoking. Actually, a study released just days earlier found that the evidence of vape safety is compelling.

“The relative safety of vaping marijuana versus smoking it is not well established,” Morean insisted. “One of the things that is different, it doesn’t smell as strong as when you smoke it.”

That seems to be the central complaint, in fact, of police and health care workers: that vapes are too easy to conceal. A recent scare story on CNN breathlessly reported that hospitals were swamped with addicts vaping synthetic cannabis through e-cigarettes. The story offered no statistical data to support this supposed flood of vape crimes.

Vaping is likely an effective and unobtrusive way to consume both nicotine and marijuana. Some people use the pens to smoke other substances, just like some people will use any available materials to smoke whatever they can get their hands on.

What matters, really, isn’t whether teenage marijuana smokers are switching to vapes. It’s whether teenagers are doing more things that are bad for their health. And this study doesn’t suggest they are.

Study: More Teens Vape THC

Indian Tribes Are Jumping into Legal Marijuana

Late last year, the Obama administration quietly announced a new policy that would allow American Indian reservations to decide for themselves whether they want to legalize marijuana for personal use.

The decision made a few waves, but it mostly went unnoticed. What difference could it make if a reservation here or a reservation there lets members grow, sell, and use cannabis within tribal boundaries?

Well, as it turns out, quite a lot – especially when you consider all the white people living nearby.

Just one or two tribes have acted on the idea yet, but dozens of others are already talking about it. And it could be just a matter of months before the first legal marijuana is available on an Indian reservation.

Flandreau Sioux Tribe makes the first move

That would be the Flandreau Sioux Tribe in eastern South Dakota. Tribal leaders voted earlier this year to start a program for cultivation, sale, and recreational use of cannabis on the reservation by January. It would make Flandreau the first tribe in the United States to fully legalize marijuana.

The drug would also be available as medicine to reservation patients, but the chief attraction would be a first-of-its-kind marijuana lounge, complete with music, games, food, and cannabis. The drug would sell only in small amounts, 1 gram at a time, and customers would be held to a strict 2-gram maximum per day.

Low sale limits

That’s not a lot of marijuana, and there’s a reason for it. Police and civic leaders in nearby Flandreau, S.D. – not to mention state leaders and lawmakers – are aghast at the idea of legal marijuana in a South Dakota town. Cannabis is strictly forbidden for any use under state law, and even simple possession is a crime.

So tribal leaders plan to clamp down tight on off-reservation smuggling by limiting daily consumption. Police have as much as said they’ll be swarming the exits of the reservation once the program opens.

The Flandreau Sioux reservation is remote, hundreds of miles from any major city, but it’s not as remote as it might seem – and that’s one reason the tribe’s plans could have wider implications. Flandreau sits near two interstates, I-29 and I-90, and is just miles from the Minnesota line. Iowa, North Dakota, and Nebraska are a short drive away.

“There’s great economic advantages, and medicinal value,” said Tony Reider, the tribe’s president. “Plus, with any business venture, the first to market can corner the market early.”

Addiction is an existing problems among tribes

Legal cannabis isn’t an easy sell on many Indian reservations, where alcoholism and addiction are major problems. But legalization offers two things almost all tribes badly need: improved medical care and money.

In Wisconsin, the Menominee Tribe recently held a public referendum to decide whether to legalize. Nearly 60 percent of residents said yes, while 77 percent said they want medical marijuana. The tribal council now must draft legislation and decide whether to move forward.

There is plenty of opposition to Native American marijuana. White local leaders insist it will bring crime and impaired driving, while state politicians fear they’ll miss out on a windfall, since tribes aren’t subject to sales taxes.

Indian reservations exist outside of state jurisdiction

But there isn’t much they can do. Indian reservations interact with the U.S. government through formal treaties and fall outside the jurisdiction of the states.

Cops in Flandreau and Wisconsin have said they plan to ramp up enforcement in town. That could make leaving the reservation a risky proposition for visitors – and even for residents. It could even encourage greater racial profiling by police.

But there’s one thing it’s sure to do, and that’s the most important: It’s going to bring legalization somewhere new. And once Minnesotans and Iowans and Nebraskans and Dakotans can drive a few hours for legal marijuana, how long will it be before their own states give up the game?

Indian Tribes Are Jumping into Legal Marijuana

Surgeon Toked on the Job: Complaint

A California neurosurgeon allegedly used marijuana between operations, according to a professional complaint filed against her.

The Medical Board of California formally accused Dr. Gunjan Goel, a surgeon at the University of California San Diego, of practicing medicine while under the influence of cannabis. Goel used the drug at the office and at home, the complaint says.

“She uses it daily, while at work, and on call,” the Medical Board alleged in the complaint, which was filed Aug. 26.

Board members launched an investigation in May 2014 after they received a complaint about Goel’s marijuana use. Eight months later, a state investigator approached the doctor in her apartment’s parking lot and asked for a sample of her hair.

Admission of occasional marijuana use

Goel allegedly told the investigator the hair would test positive for THC because she sometimes smokes cannabis on her days off. In a later interview, she admitted to toking three or four times between July and December 2014.

The filing didn’t indicate whether there was further evidence that Goel was using on a daily basis. The board said she “repeatedly” possessed a controlled substance and engaged in unprofessional conduct.

Strangely, Goel allegedly told investigators she didn’t have a legal medical marijuana card or recommendation. These are easy to get in California, even for recreational consumers, though they may carry some risk of exposing doctors who use.

Goel could lose her medical license

Goel was not charged with a crime as of early September. Medical misconduct is a professional allegation rather than a criminal charge, so at most, Goel could be fined and stripped of her medical license.

But prosecution might not be out of the question, as there are typically criminal statutes that protect patients from doctors who are high. The Medical Board did not openly accuse Goel of harming patients or risking their safety, but the mere proof of drug use could be enough to end her career.

That’s especially true since she’s a neurosurgeon. Good surgeons are prized for their steady hands, and regular marijuana use can cause mild tremors that could make the job impossible.

American professional boards are only beginning to struggle with the issue of marijuana use by members. Lawyers in some states are protected if they use legal marijuana or represent clients who trade in it, but in most places, health care professionals of all stripes can lose their licenses over drug use.

The open question is whether Goel’s alleged cannabis use caused any harm or impeded her in her job. But even if it didn’t, it would be hard for a neurosurgeon to keep practicing once patients and other doctors know she uses – even if the use isn’t out of hand.

Surgeon Toked on the Job: Complaint

What Would Donald Trump Mean for MJ?

Donald Trump doesn’t like to be pinned down. Just when you think you’ve got him nailed on a political position, he turns around and says exactly the opposite. This is one reason marijuana proponents have good reason to fear him: Even if he backs legalization now, there’s no guarantee that won’t change in a month.

But what has The Donald actually said about legalizing marijuana? And assuming he gets elected (he won’t), what would a Trump White House actually mean for cannabis users across the country?

The best answer may be, who knows? As with most things, Trump has been vague and contradictory on the subject. Early in his career, he said he supported legalization. Later, he backed away from that and said he wouldn’t allow cannabis for personal use. But we do know he backs medical marijuana.

Support for medical marijuana

“Medical marijuana is another thing,” he said earlier this year. “I think medical marijuana, 100 percent.”

Part of the problem is that Trump hasn’t spent much time on serious discussions of criminal justice reform. He prefers to stick to red-meat populist topics: immigration, Obamacare, incumbents in Washington.

Once upon a time, The Donald was a big supporter of all-around legalization. It was the first Bush administration, the war on drugs wasn’t working, and legalization was still considered a contrarian approach – exactly the kind that appeals to Trump.

“We’re losing badly the war on drugs,” he said in 1990. “You have to legalize drugs to win that war. You have to take the profit away from these drug czars. . . . What I’d like to do maybe by bringing it up is cause enough controversy that you get into a dialogue on the issue of drugs so people will start to realize that this is the only answer; there is no other answer.”

Of course, it’s impossible to peer into Trump’s mind, so it’s impossible to know whether he really meant those words. His work in real estate hasn’t given him a lot of opportunities to prove it by legalizing recreational drugs.

Contradictory comments to conservative audience

His comments in February at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference may give marijuana proponents more pause. Facing a decidedly right-wing audience, Trump said any legalization would be a mistake.

“I think it’s bad, and I feel strongly about that,” he said. “They’ve got a lot of problems going on right now in Colorado, some big problems.” Naturally, those words were subject to revision when Trump was asked whether he would uphold states’ rights to change cannabis laws: “If they vote for it, they vote for it.”

The best way to know whether Trump would push for legalization is to ask him, directly, during this campaign. Presumably that will happen at a debate before his candidacy flames out, but even then, there’s reason to take his answers with a grain of salt.

Donald Trump makes a living out of telling people what they want to hear. He does it better than he does anything else. And that means much of what he says is going to change, probably by a lot, depending on what makes him popular and what doesn’t. If he can rile one crowd by opposing reform and another by supporting it, expect him to do both.

What Would Donald Trump Mean for MJ?

College Students Toke More: Study

The rate of U.S. College students who use pot every day is rising rapidly, even as tobacco use falls, according to a new study.

The survey, from the University of Michigan, found more students now smoke cannabis than cigarettes. It’s the first time those tables have turned.

The study, released in September, concluded that about 40 percent of undergrads used drugs of some kind in 2014. That reflects an increase of 6 percent over the year before. Most of the spike came from increased cannabis use, but cocaine consumption is also rising, the study said.

College cannabis use rising

Collegiate marijuana smoking has steadily increased since the first laws allowing recreational use. The rise accelerated after 2006, the study concluded. More students now consume the drug daily than at any time since the study was first conducted in 1980.

“There’s no question that marijuana use has risen considerably,” said Lloyd Johnston, principal investigator for the Michigan study. “In December, we released results on secondary-school students, and we’re seeing a rise in daily marijuana use there as well.”

Contradictory to similar studies

That claim is directly contradicted by other recent studies, which found no notable increase in teen marijuana use since the advent of legalization. But the studies agree on one thing: Students have a more positive attitude toward cannabis. Just 35 percent called regular toking dangerous, a drop of 20 percentage points since 2006.

While almost 6 percent of college students report using cannabis daily or almost daily, just 5 percent say they smoke cigarettes each day. Use of e-cigarettes was not tracked in the study.

Of course, the results exist mostly in the interpretation. Increased marijuana smoking by college students may mean less alcohol consumption, which in turn would mean safer roads and less crowded emergency rooms. So the increase, if real, isn’t exactly dire news.

Hard drug use increasing

The real downside to the report is that use of hard drugs is also on a steady climb. Amphetamines, including prescription medications, are increasingly being abused by students cramming for exams.

Even so, drug use remains decidedly uncommon among youngsters. Roughly half the study’s subjects reported no illicit drug use of any kind in the year before it was conducted. Even more, 75 percent, said they hadn’t used in the preceding month.

Some drugs are on the decline, including two considered especially dangerous: salvia divinorum and synthetic marijuana. Other so-called “research chemicals” were never popular with undergrads to begin with.

Thankfully, risky binge drinking is also becoming less common. Binging means imbibing five or more drinks in one sitting; it’s known to be the most damaging form of alcohol abuse. Five percent of the students said they go on super-binges, downing 15 or more drinks. Still, it’s possible college aggravates this problem, as fewer non-students binge.

“There are still a sizable number of students who consume alcohol at particularly dangerous levels,” Johnston said.

College Students Toke More: Study

MJ Expos Are Now Big Business

If there’s one thing the marijuana community loves (aside from marijuana), it’s a good trade show. Cannabis expos have exploded in recent years, playing a critical role in political reform and introducing stoners to some of the best products available.

The big ones are legend: The Cannabis Cup, HempFest, the Emerald Cup, all draw some of the best talent and product in the business. There are major expos almost everywhere that marijuana is legal, with the possible exception of Alaska.

Colorado hosts the premier American event by High Times, the Denver Cannabis Cup. Seattle is home to HempFest. Even in California, where marijuana remains illegal for personal use, large marijuana-oriented gatherings are common up and down the coast.

But there are trade shows that are less well-known to the general public, such as the Cannabis World Congress & Business Exposition in Los Angeles, or the Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Fest in Wisconsin – where cannabis possession remains a crime. As these festivals grow, more will come.

What t0 expect at a cannabis convention

What’s in store for the average expo-goer? It depends largely on the setting and local laws. At a Cannabis Cup convention in Colorado for example, you’re free to buy and sample product as long as you’re an adult.

It’s a little harder to light up if you’re in California or another state without legalization. There, you usually have to have proof that you’re a medical patient. That’s easy to get, but it does add a layer of hassle to the experience.

Most expos celebrate a particular aspect of the marijuana business. The Cannabis Cup pits the world’s best strains against each other, HempFest is advertised as the world’s biggest outdoor marijuana party, and the Emerald Cup focuses on organically grown cannabis.

Professional networking opportunities at the CWCB

On a smaller scale, the Cannabis World Congress expo is all about green business opportunities and industry networking. It’s geared toward professionals and entrepreneurs, providing classes, exhibits, products, and services on everything from accounting to vaporizers.

Expos are a critical means for cannabis businesses to build cultivation, distribution, and retail networks. The legal marijuana industry is still very young, and the rush of new businesses means a need for large business-oriented gatherings.

Of course, many expos are also an excuse to use cannabis. Rules about where and when attendees can toke vary from festival to festival, and in some places consumption is strictly forbidden at public gatherings.

Expos first started appearing around the United States in larger numbers in the 2000s; there were already strain competitions in the Netherlands, but the adoption of medical marijuana in California in 1996 opened the door for expos here.

The next generation of marijuana festivals will likely come on the East Coast, where at least one state could legalize by next year. The area is mostly bereft of public cannabis events, aside from 420 parties and the like.

In the meantime, legal marijuana providers can find contacts, education, and business advice from the Cannabis World Congress, which meets Sept. 17 and 18, as well as other business-friendly expos.

MJ Expos Are Now Big Business