A study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), “The Associations between prenatal cannabis use disorder and neonatal outcomes” (Y. Shi et.al) examines potential health issues of newborns of mothers with a cannabis use disorder (CUD) at the time of delivery. Researchers reviewed over 4.8 million California birth[Read More…]
Public Health and Safety
Drug-Impaired Driving: A National Threat
The Heritage Foundation, a Washington D.C. based “think tank”, recently hosted an educational seminar focused on sharing research findings associated to the issue of drug-impaired driving. A summary of the information cited in the presentation is provided here as a reference guide to impaired driving and poly-drug usage. The summary[Read More…]
Marijuana, Youth & The Developing Brain: A New Study of Risks
Just released in JAMA Psychiatry (June 16, 2021) is a new longitudinal study (Association of Cannabis Use During Adolescence With Neurodevelopment) from Europe that examines the association of marijuana and its effects on the developing brain on in youths. The authors (Albaugh et.al.) acquired over 1,500 Magnetic Resonance Images (MRI)[Read More…]
Cannabis Policy: Recommendations from the United States Senate Caucus
The United States Senate Caucus recently issued a report titled, “Cannabis Policy, Public Health and Safety, Issues and Recommendations”. The report focused on five (5) key areas: (1) Barriers to Researching Cannabis, (2) Impacts of Increased Cannabis Potency, (3) Cannabis Use on the Developing Brain, (4) Unregulated Products and (5) Cannabis[Read More…]
Suicide, Marijuana and Depression: Increased Risks
Just published in the JAMA Network (June 22, 2021) was a study examining marijuana use and its association with suicide risks in young adults using data from the 2008 – 2019 National Surveys of Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The report, “Associations of Suicidality Trends With Cannabis Use as a[Read More…]
Marijuana’s Impacts in Colorado: A Policy Memo
June 2021 Dr. David Murray, a Senior Fellow with the Hudson Institute, a “think tank” based in Washington D.C. released a policy memo titled, “The “Colorado Experiment”: Legalized Marijuana’s Impact in Colorado”. This brief, yet informative read, offers insights into what has been called the “Colorado Experiment” referring to the[Read More…]
THC & Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in Adults Age 50+ (Feb 2021)
In the February 2, 2021 edition of Jama Network Open, a study titled, “Evaluation of THC-Related Neuropsychiatric Symptoms Among Adults Aged 50 Years and Older, A Systematic Review and Metaregression Analysis” (Velayudhan et.al.) was released. While there are numerous studies that examine youth / young adults, marijuana use and adverse[Read More…]
Drug Threats in America: DEA 2020
March 2021 – The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has just released their National Drug Threat Assessment of drugs in American for 2020. This unclassified publication is based in law enforcement intelligence and data from the public health sector. It provides a broad overview of the drugs (illicit and legal) in[Read More…]
Impaired Driving in Colorado: 2016 – 2018 (Nov 2020)
In 2017, Colorado passed House Bill 17-1315 which requires the Colorado Department of Public Safety to annually produce a report regarding data associated with impaired driving in the state. One of the requirements was to include data not only for alcohol, but on other drugs to include marijuana. As with[Read More…]
Vaping or Smoking: An Early Look at Impairment
Currently, there is scant policy or guidance when it comes to either smoking or vaping cannabis. Similarly there is no uniform policy as to the potency levels of products available in today’s public market; nor a complete understanding how the two administration methods (smoking v. vaping) can affect the user. [Read More…]