Category: Health

Marijuana Posted on

2014: Marijuana Treats on the Go

Just step up to the window and buy a marijuana-laced sandwich or cup of soup. A food truck out of Seattle is giving new meaning to the foodie phrase “classics with a twist.” The truck is dishing up items like grilled three-cheese sandwiches, tomato soup and truffle popcorn. The twist? They’re made with marijuana. MagicalButter.com is the purveyor of a nifty gadget for cannabis edibles lovers—the MB2, a fully automated extractor that transfers the active ingredients from the plant into butter, cooking oils, alcohol (for tinctures) or lotions. With the 2012 legalization of marijuana in their company’s home state of Washington and in Colorado (where they debuted their food truck at the Cannabis Cup in Denver on April 19 and 20), MagicalButter.com saw an opportunity […] Read More

Medical Posted on

Who Is Behind the Pain Killer Epidemic? Big Pharma, Of Course

The FDA approved Zohydro, with five to 10 times the abuse potential as its predecessor, OxyContin. There is good news and bad news when it comes to the nation’s decade-long opioid/heroin addiction epidemic. The good news is the government has cracked down on pill mills, strengthened warnings on pill labels and approved an injectable form of naloxone which reverses heroin overdoses and will reduce deaths in the hands of caregivers and police. The bad news is on the same day the FDA announced plans to tighten restrictions on hydrocodone combination products like Vicodin, it approved the long-acting drug Zohydro made from hydrocodone bitartrate which has five to 10 times the abuse potential of the infamous OxyContin. The FDA did so over the objections of many medical and public […] Read More

Herbal Posted on

Herbalism and YOU

The terminology and dogma of herbalism are ever-changing.  I know I’ve mentioned this before, but when we started out several decades ago, there were relatively few people who were referred to as herbalists.  Everyone else considered themselves to be enthusiasts or as just being “into” herbs.  Now it has changed, and that’s okay.  You’re an herbalist, you’re an herbalist, everybody’s an herbalist!  In some dictionaries, the term is defined as one who studies herbs – so it’s all good, and since there is really no legal definition in the US, it doesn’t make a lick of difference. Then there are the (apparent) rules.  There are many new ones, many of which are driven by the vastness of the internet and the many, many voices.  Some […] Read More

Vaccine Cover-up Posted on

A Major Development In The Vaccine Autism Link Exposes The CDC’s Cover Up

In a new development involving a press release from congressman Bill Posey who has called out the CDC, the link between autism and vaccines takes another step closer to truth. To begin, and I truly believe this is incredibly important to embrace, one of the biggest issues we have with the vaccine debate and link to autism is the lack of level headedness on both sides of the coin. Human ego has led us to fight each other on a very serious and real issue as opposed to coming together and figuring out what the best course of action is. On one side, anti-vaxers are calling anyone who uses vaccines ‘stupid’ while on the other side pro-vaxers are calling anyone who doesn’t stupid and conspiracy theorists. […] Read More

Drug's Posted on

It’s Official: Tennessee Becomes First State to Jail Women for Pregnancy Outcomes

Against the advice of doctors, addiction specialists and reproductive health groups, Gov. Haslam signs the bill anyway Tennessee has become the first state in the nation to pass a law criminalizing women for their pregnancy outcomes. Republican Gov. Bill Haslam took the 10 days allotted to him to consider the advice of doctors, addiction experts and reproductive health groups urging him to veto the punitive and dangerous measure that allows prosecutors to charge a woman with criminal assault if she uses illegal drugs during her pregnancy and her fetus or newborn is considered harmed as a result. Haslam ignored these recommendations — and the recommendations of nearly every major medical association, including the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy  — and signed the […] Read More

Drug's Posted on

2014: How the Corporate Media and Journalists Perpetuate Lies and Misinformation About Drugs

Drug panics have real and damaging consequences. The following article first appeared on Substance.com:  Journalists are no less likely to take drugs than anyone else—indeed, in my admittedly anecdotal experience, they’re more likely to use. You’d think that this would make us especially skeptical both about federal policies that failed to prevent our own drug-taking and about extreme claims about drug users. But the press may actually be one of the biggest obstacles to reform. Instead of asking tough questions, reporters tend to simply parrot conventional wisdom—and reinforce the idea that the drug war is the only way, even when drug warriors’ claims contradict the evidence of the writers’ own lives. In the last month alone, we’ve seen several particularly egregious examples of mindless reporting—including one that […] Read More

Marijuana Posted on

The Surprising Truth About Driving While High

The human body does not process cannabis the way it processes alcohol. The following article first appeared in Cannabis Now Magazine:  As more and more states adopt medical and recreational marijuana policies, it seems the most feared outcome of legalization is that with the passage of laws that permit any sort of marijuana use, more impaired drivers will end up on the roads. In fact, during the Denver 4/20 celebrations last weekend, tourists learned just how easy it was to get a ticket for smoking cannabis in public because of these concerns. Under Amendment 64, establishments designed for cannabis consumption (akin to a bar or lounge where alcohol is served) are prohibited. Although loopholes have allowed some such clubs to exist (by charging a cover fee but not actually […] Read More

Marijuana Posted on

Medical Marijuana Is More Effective for Fibromyalgia than Prescription Drugs

The following article first appeared in High Times: For the estimated five million Americans suffering from Fibromyalgia (FM), a chronic pain condition of unknown etiology, pain, fatigue, and depression are often a way of life. Though the US Food and Drug Administration has approved a small number of drugs to treat symptoms of FM, many patients report that these prescription pills provide little relief. By contrast, more and more patients with FM are finding effective relief from medical cannabis. So say the results of a recent online survey of over 1,300 subjects conducted by The National Pain Foundation and NationalPainReport.com. Among those surveyed, 379 subjects said that they had used cannabis therapeutically. Sixty-two percent of them rated the substance to be “very effective” in the treatment of their condition. Only five […] Read More

Drug's Posted on

WATCH: Martin Sheen Stars in Powerful New PSA Calling for Drug Sentencing Reform

The actor and his ‘West Wing‘ alter ego have a clear message for Congress and President Obama. On Tuesday, Brave New Films released a new PSA calling on Congress to pass the Smarter Sentencing Act. The proposed sentencing-reform legislation aims to reduce prison populations and costs by creating less severe minimum terms for nonviolent drug offenders. (On Monday,Yahoo News reported that President Obama could grant clemency to “hundreds, perhaps thousands” of nonviolent drug offenders by the end of his second term.) The video was produced in partnership with the ACLU and Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), and stars actor Martin Sheen. It’s titled “President Bartlet has a message for Congress,” in reference to Sheen’s role on Aaron Sorkin‘s political drama The West Wing. Watch it here: “When BNF joined with FAMM and the ACLU to […] Read More

Drug's Posted on

Whoopi Goldberg Claims Using Marijuana Changed Her Life

Whoopi described her experience with a vape pen as ‘beautiful.’ The outspoken comedian, actress, talk show host, and now marijuana-columnist Whoopi Goldberg has penned her first article for the newly launched marijuana-related website The Cannabist. And in said article, she claims that consuming THC via pen-style vaporizers has “changed” her life. Whoopi says: The vape pen has changed my life. No, I’m not exaggerating. In fact, her name is Sippy. Yes, she’s a she. And yes, I named her Sippy because I take tiny, little sips — sassy sips, even — from her. And with each sip comes relief — from pressure, pain, stress, discomfort. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Whoopi says that after quitting cigarettes two years ago, she found it all but impossible […] Read More