What was the most exciting cannabis news of 2023?
The many milestones this year include the Dept. of Health and Human Services' (HHS) scheduling recommendations to the DEA, Ohio becoming the 24th state to legalize recreational marijuana, President Biden's pardon of thousands convicted of cannabis possession and a lawsuit filed against U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland by cannabis operators and investors.
Interestingly though, these important developments were not necessarily the stories that attracted the most attention from our readers. According to page-view statistics, the stories that most resonated with Benzinga readers this year included marijuana use by seniors who partook for reasons having to do with keeping their brains sharp, treating age-related conditions or just because! Among the surprising political moves were those that involved Republicans and other perceived cannabis opponents who suddenly had a change of heart. And the often humorous actions of high-profile celebs like Elon Musk and Snoop Dogg were irresistable. Let’s take a look.
Month by month, these are the most-read Benzinga cannabis stories in 2023:
January
As cannabis users get older and/or as weed consumption among seniors becomes more common (it has quadrupled in the past seven years!) a group of scientists honed in on this large demographic of pot-smoking baby boomers..and guess what? Their results suggest that the use of whole-plant cannabis does not have a negative impact on cognition. In fact, the opposite is true.
The study, done at the University of Colorado Boulder, examined the effects of cannabis use in adults aged 60 to 88 with no history of alcohol or other substance use disorder.
Gary Wenk Ph.D., a scientist not involved in the study, noted that while high THC levels can have negative effects on the adolescent brain, quite the opposite is true with older brains. Older cannabis users, relative to non-users, have significantly greater neuronal communication between the cerebellum and hippocampus.
Why? Age-related changes in the endocannabinoid system (ECS) include a decrease in the number of cannabinoid receptors throughout the brain. The ECS, a significant aspect of our human physiology that helps maintain homeostasis, is a complex cell-signaling system in the brain and body that interacts with just about all of our other body systems.
February
Elon Musk Calls This Drug The 'Most Concerning:' Is It Marijuana, LSD, Speed, Or Caffeine?
Elon Musk, who in August 2022 weighed in on the impact of different classes of psychoactive drugs, commented on the topic yet again on Friday.
What Happened: The billionaire, in August, reacted to a graphic shared by one of his Twitter followers which showed the results of a study conducted by NASA on the effect of various psychoactive substances on spiders.
The study evaluated the web pattern formed by spiders when fed marijuana, LSD, speed, and caffeine. The results of the study published in 1995 showed that the ones given caffeine and LSD produced the most bizarre and incomplete patterns.
Musk chimed in with his view that the effect produced by caffeine was the most concerning.
March
Is cannabis helpful for alleviating arthritis-related challenges? Although there are no ultimate studies that have proven cannabis benefits various conditions, testimony of patients is what matters the most, or should.
When it comes to arthritis, many people swear that medical marijuana helps with painful inflammation. One such person is a 68-year-old man from a town north of London. He wanted to protect his identity and asked for his name to be changed when interviewed by Express.co.uk. Robin, the outlet called him, has two grandchildren and has been dealing with severe arthritis for about five years.
Shortly after being diagnosed, his body “started to deteriorate,” and he ended up on crutches. For four years, Robin relied on morphine to get through the day, but still felt like he was “going downhill.”
Then, things changed when he reached out to Mamedica, a private cannabis clinic in central London.
April
This Cannabis Company Just Signed A New Deal In Europe's Largest And Most Profitable Medical Cannabis market – A Look At Their Journey So Far
The medical cannabis industry in Canada has come a long way over the past few decades, particularly after the passing of Bill C45 in 2018 in the Canadian Senate and the publication of the Royal Assent. The bill legalized the use of cannabis ...