11 Year Study Finds Opioid Deaths Down In Medical #Marijuana States

In an article entitled “Medical Cannabis Laws and Opioid Analgesic Overdose Mortality in the United States, 1999-2010” published August 25, 2014 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researcher and primary author, Dr. Marcus A. Bachhuber, MD, with the Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 423 Guardian Dr, 1303-A Blockley Hall, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (marcus.bachhuber@gmail.com), and others concluded that, “The present study provides evidence that medical cannabis laws are associated with

News for the “Medical Marijuana”/420 crowd: Israeli firm grows “highless” marijuana strain

What if the so-called “medical marijuana” proponents could have their cake, and eat it to?

That is, what if they could have the “benefits” they claim they derive from smoking marijuana, while NOT having its intoxicating effects?

Would they still smoke it?

That would tell the story.

It certainly would.

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What a drag, Israeli firm grows “highless” marijuana

A worker tends to cannabis plants at a plantation near the northern Israeli city of Safed June 11, 2012. REUTERS-Baz Ratner

By Maayan Lubell SAFED, Israel | Tue Jul 3, 2012 9:48am EDT

(Reuters) – They grow in a secret location in northern Israel. A tall fence, security cameras and an armed guard protect them from criminals. A hint of their sweet-scented blossom carries in the air: rows and rows of cannabis plants, as far as the eye can see.

It is here, at a medical marijuana plantation atop the hills of the Galilee, where researchers say they have developed marijuana that can be used to ease the symptoms of some ailments without getting patients high.

A worker tends to cannabis plants at a plantation near the northern Israeli city of Safed June 11, 2012. Credit: REUTERS/Baz Ratner

“Sometimes the high is not always what they need. Sometimes it is an unwanted side effect. For some of the people it’s not even pleasant,” said Zack Klein, head of development at Tikun Olam, the company that developed the plant.

Cannabis has more than 60 constituents called cannabinoids. THC is perhaps the best known of those, less so for its medical benefits and more for its psychoactive properties that give people a “high” feeling.

A worker tends to cannabis plants at a plantation near the northern Israeli city of Safed June 11, 2012. Credit: REUTERS/Baz Ratner

But cannabis also contains Cannabidiol, or CBD, a substance that some researchers say has