This Week in Psychedelics - 12.24.21

Cannabis

• Analysis: Unregulated Delta-8 Vape Products Frequently Mislabeled, May Contain Heavy Metals (NORML)

• Malta Officially Legalizes Marijuana With President’s Signature, Becoming First In Europe To End Cannabis Prohibition (Marijuana Moment)

• Several States to Usher In the New Year with Cannabis Liberalization Laws (NORML)

• The Next States to Legalize Recreational Marijuana (MSN)

• Pfizer Bets On Medical Cannabis With $6.7 Billion Acquisition (Forbes)

• Scientists are (finally) studying how weed affects athletic performance and recovery (Leafly)

• New York Senator Files Bill To Extend Marijuana Equity Benefits To Gay, Lesbian And Bisexual People (Marijuana Moment)

• Cartels Ditch Pot and Opium Fields for Synthetic Drugs, Mexico Defense Secretary Says (High Times)

• Ohio: Citizens’ Petition Seeks to Compel Lawmakers to Hold Marijuana Legalization Vote (NORML)

• Senator Calls For Federal Marijuana Standard To Measure Impaired Driving (Marijuana Moment)

• Top Maryland Lawmaker Files Marijuana Legalization Referendum For 2022 Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Iowa Democrats Announce Plan To Let Voters Decide On Marijuana Legalization Amid GOP Resistance (Marijuana Moment)

• Whole-Plant Cannabis Extract Reduces Epileptic Seizures By 86% in Small Study (High Times)

• Researcher Uses Reddit To Learn What Kinds Of Marijuana Posts Influenced Legalization Attitudes (Marijuana Moment)

• Pair of Cops Booked After Being Caught Smoking Pot in Mississippi (High Times)

• Marijuana Group Releases ‘Robbery Preparedness Guide’ For Dispensaries Amid Spike In Thefts (Marijuana Moment)

• Dr. Sanjay Gupta adds to chorus of cannabis research on autism in 2021 (Leafly)

• Legal Cannabis Outsells Ontario Illicit Market for First Time (High Times)

• These were the weirdest weed news stories of 2021 (Leafly)

LSD

• U.S. FDA puts plans to test LSD in anxiety patients in clinical study on hold (Reuters)

Magic Mushrooms

• Canada’s Psilocybin Policy Reform Movement Continues to Make Progress Federally (Truffle Report)

• FDA Approves Psilocybin For Binge Eating Study By Tryp Therapeutics (Benzinga)

Ayahuasca

• Global ayahuasca trend drives deforestation in Brazil’s Acre state (Mongabay)

Morning Glory Seeds

• Study shows common flower species holds promise for beneficial psychedelic drugs (Newswise)

Ketamine

• Ketamine Therapy Quickly Reduces Depression and Suicidal Thoughts (SciTechDaily)

DXM

• Cough medicine creates dangerous interaction (The Seattle Times)

Miscellaneous

• Port Townsend Becomes 13th City to Decriminalize Psychedelics (DoubleBlind)

• Psychedelics: The newest tool in nuclear negotiations? (Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists)

• How Should Psychedelic Medicine Handle “Flashbacks”? (Mad in America)

• New center to study psychedelics pops up at University of Texas at Austin (My San Antonio)

• The Dumbest Drug Scare Stories of 2021 (VICE)

• DEA Wants To Help Parents Decode The Emojis Young People Use To Discuss Marijuana And Other ‘Bomb Ass’ Drugs (Marijuana Moment)

• GOP Lawmakers File Bills To Streamline Research Into Marijuana, Psychedelics And Other Schedule I Drugs (Marijuana Moment)

• Colorado Ballot Initiatives Filed to Legalize Psychedelics (Truffle Report)

• Two Leaders in Psychedelics Industry and the Harm Reduction Approach (Nasdaq)

• How Do Hallucinogenic Drugs Change Our Personality? (Psychology Today)

• Microdosing companion app Houston wants to be your guide to 'inner space' (Mashable)

• Why Psychedelic Research May Bring the Next Big Breakthrough in Dementia Treatment (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• MYND Life Sciences Acquires Rights for the Use of Psychedelics to Treat Alzheimer’s Disease and other Dementias (Psilocybin Alpha)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychoactives - 3.6.20

Cannabis

• Malawi legalises cannabis amid hopes of fresh economic growth (The Guardian)

• Utah’s first medical marijuana dispensary is now open (Leafly)

• Mexican Senate Committees Advance Marijuana Legalization Bill To Floor Vote (Marijuana Moment)

• Ohio Activists Formally File Measure To Put Marijuana Legalization Before Voters This Year (Marijuana Moment)

• The Smell of Weed Does Not Justify Warrantless Searches, New Study Proves (MERRY JANE)

• UK Government Looks To Ease Barriers On Bulk Importation Of Medicinal Cannabis (Forbes)

• Impression Healthcare (ASX:IHL) to start cannabis trials for treatment of brain injury (The Market Herald)

• What Is CBM and What Does This Uncommon Cannabinoid Do? (MERRY JANE)

• Baseball Players Can Smoke Marijuana But Can’t Be Sponsored By Cannabis Companies, MLB Says (Marijuana Moment)

• Utah’s cannabis czar is leaving his job (The Salt Lake Tribune)

Magic Mushrooms

• The Capital That Ate Wellness Is Going to Eat Your Mushrooms (The New York Times)

• Beta-Carboline Alkaloids Found in Psilocybe Mushrooms (The Third Wave)

Ketamine

• Toronto Just Opened a Ketamine Clinic to Help People With Depression (VICE)

• IV Ketamine Shows Promise for Chronic Pain, But Doubts Remain (Filter)

• K-Holing: Why Ketamine Causes Wild Hallucinations (VICE)

Opioids

• Younger drug users moving away from injecting heroin (BBC)

• Study: Stopping Long-Term Opioid Prescriptions Associated With Veterans’ Deaths (Filter)

• Illegal opium cultivation on the rise in Bandarban (Dhaka Tribune)

Cocaine

• Colombia will have to restart aerial spraying to destroy coca: Trump (Reuters)

• United States and Colombian Officials Set Bilateral Agenda to Reduce Cocaine Supply (WhiteHouse.gov)

Methamphetamine

• California May Soon Pay People to Reduce Their Meth Use (Filter)

• A New Wave Of Meth Addiction Is Hitting Queer People Of Color. But The Help Is Not There. (BuzzFeed News)

Caffeine

• Truck drivers with high caffeine intake crash more often than others (Medical Xpress)

• Caffeine boosts problem-solving ability but not creativity, study indicates (ScienceDaily)

Nicotine

• House Lawmakers Vote to Ban All Flavored Tobacco (Convenience Store News)

• The UK Government Says What the US Won't: Vaping Is Safer Than Cigarettes (VICE)

• Starting July 1st you'll have to be 21 to purchase tobacco products in New Mexico (CBS4Local.com)

Benzodiazepines

• Bitter pill: Benzodiazepine medication by Irish over-65s in Ireland highest in OECD (Irish Examiner)

Kratom

• Oklahoma House passes bill to regulate drug called kratom (The Journal Record)

• Kratom in the crosshairs: Mississippi considers limit or ban on herbal drug (Jackson Clarion Ledger)

• Liver Experts Sound Alarm on Kratom (Pharmacy Practice News)

• Popular Kratom Vendor Shows How Kratom Is Manufactured (New Kerala)

• This New Johns Hopkins Kratom Survey Offers Insightful Takeaways (Kratom Guides)

Miscellaneous

• Psychedelic therapy is on the cusp of legalization—and plagued with sexual abuse allegations (Quartz)

• Hawaii Senate Approves Drug Defelonization Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• Oregon Activists Collect Enough Signatures For Drug Decriminalization And Treatment Measure (Marijuana Moment)

• Did the UN’s Anti-Narcotics Board Just Recommend Decriminalizing Drugs Globally? (MERRY JANE)

• DC Psychedelics Activists, Citing Coronavirus Concerns, Want Online Petition Gathering Option (Marijuana Moment)

• Therapists Are Unprepared to Talk to People About Taking Psychedelics (VICE)

• A Statement Regarding “The Emergence of a New Market: Psychedelic Science Conferences” (Psymposia)

• American teens are delaying first use of drugs, including tobacco and alcohol, study finds (MinnPost)

• Did Ancient Buddhists Use Psychedelics? (DoubleBlind)

• Psychedelics for Climate Action? (Psymposia)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychoactives" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

Image by Psychedelic Astronaut.

This Week in Psychoactives - 2.7.20

Cannabis

• Bernie Sanders Pledges Legal Marijuana In All 50 States On Day One As President (Forbes)

• Businesses Are More Profitable And Innovative In States With Legal Marijuana, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Nepal’s Communist Party Wants to Legalize Weed and Ban Booze (MERRY JANE)

• Vermont Committee Unanimously Approves Bill To Legalize Marijuana Sales (Marijuana Moment)

• Another Vermont House Committee OKs Bill To Legalize Marijuana Sales (Marijuana Moment)

• Gallup: Twelve Percent of Adults Acknowledge Smoking Marijuana (NORML)

• Virginia Lawmakers Approve Another Marijuana Decriminalization Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• CBD May Treat Psychosis Rather Than Cause It, Study Shows (MERRY JANE)

• Liberal Americans Are Six Times More Likely To Smoke Marijuana Than Conservatives, Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Whoopi Goldberg's cannabis company has shut down (CNN)

• Cannabis in South Africa: the duplicity of colonial authorities (TalkingDrugs)

Magic Mushrooms

• Inside the Campaign to Legalize Magic Mushrooms in California (Reason)

MDMA

• Speech Pattern Technology Can Now Detect If You’re High on MDMA (MERRY JANE)

5-MeO-DMT

• Supportive Context is Associated With Positive Effects From Inhaling 5-MeO-DMT (Psychedelic Science Review)

• 5-MeO-DMT: The 20-Minute Psychoactive Toad Experience That’s Transforming Lives (Forbes)

PCP

• What is PCP? The ‘angel dust’ drug used in Netflix’s The Stranger (The Tab)

Opioids

• The highs and lows of the opium trade in southern Africa (TalkingDrugs)

• "Gray death" drug is so dangerous, police say you shouldn't even touch it (CBS News)

Cocaine

• A fingerprint can show if someone has taken cocaine or just touched it (New Scientist)

• Enhanced cocaine vaccine blocks the high in mice (Futurity)

Caffeine

• Caffeine has been a boon for civilization, Michael Pollan says. But it has come at a cost. (The Washington Post)

Nicotine

• The vaping 'flavor ban' goes into effect today. Here's what it does (The Hill)

• Mismatched tobacco laws could put federal funding for NC at risk (The News & Observer)

• American Lung Association Gives Arizona Failing Grades in Tobacco Control Report (Phoenix New Times)

• American Lung Association gives Georgia low grades for tobacco use (11Alive.com)

• Michigan receives 'F' grade for tobacco prevention, new report shows (WWMT)

Alcohol

• Baby boomers are the booziest generation – and are driving a 60 per cent rise in alcohol-related hospital admissions (The Telegraph)

Kratom

• Natural herb kratom may have therapeutic effects and relatively low potential for abuse or harm (Medical Xpress)

• Maryland bills aim to restrict kratom (The Southern Maryland Chronicle)

Kava

• The great kava boom: how Fiji's beloved psychoactive brew is going global (The Guardian)

Miscellaneous

• Measure To Decriminalize Psychedelics Advances In Washington, D.C. (Marijuana Moment)

• Scientists find a new trippy link between psychedelics and climate change (Inverse)

• Psychedelics linked to persisting reductions in cannabis, opioid, and stimulant use (PsyPost)

• Could wearable microdosing technology be a thing one day? (Psymposia)

• DEA’s National Drug Threat Assessment Shows Decrease in Drug Overdose Deaths (Pharmacy Times)

• A New Nonprofit Is Betting on Psychedelic Therapy (Outside Magazine)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychoactives" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

Image by Psychedelic Astronaut.

This Week in Psychoactives - 12.27.19

Cannabis

• “Impermissible Levels of Lead” Found in Massachusetts' Legal Weed Vapes (MERRY JANE)

• Travelers caught with weed in Chicago airports won’t be busted, police say (Chicago Sun-Times)

• Federal CBD Regulations Are Finally Coming (MERRY JANE)

• Peoria airport to allow recreational marijuana (CIProud)

• Legal Marijuana Shops Refuse Sales To Underage Customers, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Marijuana On The 2020 Ballot: These States Could Vote (Forbes)

• South Dakota: Medical Cannabis Initiative Certified for 2020 Ballot (NORML)

• Trump Says He Can Ignore Medical Marijuana Protections Passed By Congress (Forbes)

• Alabama Legislature’s Study Commission Recommends Medical Marijuana Be Legalized (Marijuana Moment)

• Hemp cleans toxic soil and produces clean CBD flower, study finds (Leafly)

• Legalizing Cannabis Has Unexpected Impact on Food and Farming in Humboldt (KQED)

• Three-Fourths Of New Mexico Voters Support Marijuana Legalization, State-Funded Poll Shows (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

• Study reveals what happens to the brain on LSD (Inverse)

Magic Mushrooms

• Denver's psilocybin mushroom policy review panel set to launch in January (9News.com)

• Activists Take Next Step In Campaign To Legalize Psychedelic Mushrooms In California (Marijuana Moment)

• Paul Stamets Tells Joe Rogan About the Future of Psilocybin Research (Psychedelic Science Review)

MDMA

• More Patients Could Have Access to MDMA Therapy—Before the FDA Approves It (DoubleBlind)

• How — and why — to legalize ecstasy (AlterNet)

Ayahuasca

• Initial Trial of Ayahuasca for Depression Shows Promising Results (Mad in America)

• More Evidence About Ayahuasca ‘Death Cult’ Emerges With Arrest of Lawyer Paul Sulla in Hawaii (Frank Report)

Iboga

• For opioid addicts, African psychedelic ibogaine is last-resort detox drug. Research shows it works, but a legal grey area surrounds its use by clinics (South China Morning Post)

Opioids

• Risk Factors for Opioid Overdose Similar for Teens and Adults (PsychCentral)

• The opioid crisis shows why racism in health care is always harmful, never ‘protective’ (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

Methamphetamine

• Meth boom adds to Afghanistan's opium and heroin woes (Breitbart)

Nicotine

• Federal Legal Age to Buy Tobacco Products Officially Raised to 21 (TIME)

Benzodiazepines

• Benzodiazepines May Influence Suicide Risk in Anxiety Disorders Depending on Duration of Use (Psychiatry Advisor)

• Benzodiazepines linked to overdose deaths among those treated for opioid dependency (The Pharmaceutical Journal)

• More U.S. Teens Are Overdosing on Valium, Xanax (U.S. News and World Report)

Alcohol

• THC vs Alcohol Impaired Driving (DrugScience)

• Ad stating alcohol is a drug blocked as ‘too political’ (Irish Examiner)

• UNC researchers may have discovered why some casual drinkers develop an alcohol use disorder (WRAL Tech Wire)

Nootropics

• The 5 Most Science-Backed Nootropics for Energy (Psychology Today)

Miscellaneous

• Baba Ram Dass, Proponent of LSD Turned New Age Guru, Dies at 88 (The New York Times)

• Say Hello to World’s First Psychedelic Microdosing Study Mobile App (Psychedelic Science Review)

• Ireland's first supervised drug injection centre gets approved (The Irish Post)

• The future of psychedelic science: What the next decade holds (New Atlas)

• A New Way To Quit? Psychedelic Therapy Offers Promise For Smoking Cessation (NPR)

• Portland Activists Begin Gathering Signatures For Psychedelics Decriminalization Measure (Marijuana Moment)

• What Makes A Good Psychedelic Guide? (Maps of the Mind)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychoactives" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

Image by Psychedelic Astronaut.

This Week in Psychoactives - 12.13.19

CANNABIS

• Marijuana Legalization Could Be Coming To These States In 2020 (Forbes)

• Six Cases of Vaping Illness Linked to Legal Weed Vapes Sold in Massachusetts (MERRY JANE)

• Officials list pot vape brands reported in US outbreak (AP News)

• Heavy Metal Injury Caused by Vaping Confirmed in First Case Study (MERRY JANE)

• No vapes for Newfoundland and Labrador either (Leafly)

• MLB Officially Removes Marijuana From Banned Substances List For Baseball Players (Marijuana Moment)

• People with Depression Are Twice as Likely to Use Pot, New Study Finds (MERRY JANE)

• California Declares Pot Smoke and THC a Risk to Pregnant Women and Fetuses (TIME)

• Weed Doesn’t Make Us Stupid, Yet Another Study Confirms (MERRY JANE)

• Bees Like Big Hemp And They Cannot Lie, Study Shows (Marijuana Moment)

• A Company Is Sending Cannabis and Coffee to Space to See if They Mutate (VICE)

• Applying CBD Topically Can Help Jaw Pain and Facial Stress, Study Finds (MERRY JANE)

• Study: Marijuana Retailers Not Selling to Underage Customers (NORML)

• States prepare to purge tens of thousands of pot convictions (Los Angeles Times)

• Trinidad And Tobago Lawmakers Approve Marijuana Decriminalization Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis and driving study casts doubt on zero-tolerance limits for THC (Global News)

• Israel Is Finally Allowed to Export Medical Cannabis Overseas (MERRY JANE)

• NHS approves CBD drugs for the first time (Leafly)

• ‘You smoke weed?’ Teacher says her medical pot use led to harassment in suburban district (Chicago Sun Times)

MAGIC MUSHROOMS

• New psilocybin trial data explores group psychedelic sessions (New Atlas)

• Oregon Activists Begin Signature Gathering For 2020 Drug Decriminalization Initiative (Marijuana Moment)

• Magic Mushroom Pill Is Being Developed to Treat Diabetes and Stop the Munchies (MERRY JANE)

• New Psilocybin Microdosing Data: How Much is Too Much? (Psychedelic Science Review)

MDMA

• Study: MDMA may have a surprising effect on our ability to learn (Inverse)

• MDMA Could Be Tailored to Make It More Suitable for Treating Mental Illness (Scientific American)

SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS

• Spice related hospital admissions in Sheffield fall (The Star)

NITROUS OXIDE

• Netherlands set to ban recreational use of laughing gas (NL Times)

KETAMINE

• Genetic Lead Suggests Ketamine May Benefit Autism, Tourette's and Schizophrenia (MedicalResearch.com)

OPIOIDS

• In documents, US officials said almost everything they did to end opium farming in Afghanistan backfired (Stars and Stripes)

• Home Depot faces Twitter backlash after blaming opioid crisis for recent rise in store thefts (USA Today)

• Ten years ago, OxyContin sales dominated Philly’s pharmacies. How the powerful painkiller helped fuel a crisis. (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

METHAMPHETAMINE

• A Dire Shortage of ADD Meds Is Pushing Some Patients to Street Meth (Filter)

CAFFEINE

• Nestle Is Planning To Make Caffeinated Water As A Solution To Midday Drowsiness (Delish)

NICOTINE

• Ban on vape sales in Massachusetts ends Wednesday — what happens next? (The Boston Globe)

• The FDA Can Now Regulate Vapes and E-Cigs Like Tobacco, Court Rules (MERRY JANE)

• Pace of Flavor Bans Accelerated in 2019 (CSP Daily News)

• Palo Alto: Council unanimously supports banning e-cigarettes, flavored tobacco (The Mercury News)

• Bill to raise minimum age to buy tobacco products in Kentucky to 21 pre-filed (WKRC)

ALCOHOL

• Yet More Research Links Even Light Drinking to a Higher Cancer Risk (Gizmodo)

• Study debunks the myth that an imposed floor on alcohol prices would punish the poor (Phys.org)

GHB

• What is GHB?: Dangerous party drug linked to multiple overdose deaths (9News)

NOOTROPICS

• How to Use Nootropics for Social Interactions (Psychology Today)

KRATOM

• Kratom leaves to be left out of new narcotics list in Thailand (AsiaOne)

MISCELLANEOUS

• Everyone Should Understand the Potential Heart Risk of Psychedelics (The Psychedelic Scientist)

• Silicon Valley’s psychedelic wonder drug is almost here (Fast Company)

• This Was The Decade Drug Overdoses Killed Nearly Half A Million Americans (BuzzFeed News)

• Study: Prior Authorization Requirement for Addiction Meds Is Killing NY Drug Users (Filter)

• Bill would require drug screenings for children at their annual physical (WKBW)

• ACT pushes for national pill-testing after study finds it encouraged people to ditch unsafe drugs (The Guardian)

• Pete Buttigieg Backs Supervised Injection Facilities For Illegal Drugs (Marijuana Moment)

• 'Drugs Without the Trip' Might Be Peak Silicon Valley (VICE)

• Ten Must-Experience Events For The Cannabis & Psychedelic Community In 2020 (Forbes)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychoactives" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

Image by Psychedelic Astronaut.