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This Week in Psychoactives - 12.13.19

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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

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.

This Week in Psychoactives - 4.5.19

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CANNABIS

  • Guam Legalizes Marijuana Use By Adults (NORML)

  • New Mexico Governor Signs Marijuana Decriminalization Bill (Forbes)

  • Los Angeles to Erase 50,000 Criminal Cannabis Convictions (Leafly)

  • States With Legal Marijuana Would Be Protected From Feds Under Newly Filed Bill (Marijuana Moment)

  • Legalization Bill Clears New Hampshire House, but Veto Expected (Leafly)

  • Federally Produced Marijuana Is Closer To Hemp Than Commercial Cannabis, Study Shows (Marijuana Moment)

  • Street cannabis 'contains dangerous amount of faecal matter' (BBC)

  • Wisconsin Voters Approve Multiple Marijuana Ballot Questions (Marijuana Moment)

  • Science Says: Better Orgasms Through Cannabis! (The Stranger)

  • Texas removing hemp from controlled substance list (The State)

  • The EPA Is Funding Research On Using Hemp As A Sustainable Alternative To Concrete (Marijuana Moment)

  • Medicinal use of cannabis based products and cannabinoids (The BMJ)

  • Using Marijuana With Your Partner Increases The Likelihood Of Intimacy, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Georgia on cusp of legalizing medical marijuana (CNN)

  • Medical Marijuana for Autism Law Approved on World Autism Day (The Fix)

  • Will Germany become the world's largest market for medicinal cannabis? (Deutsche Welle)

  • ‘Weed Dip’ Could Help Curb A Smokeless Tobacco Addiction (NowThis News)

  • The Unique Challenges to Recycling Vapes in the Cannabis Industry (Civilized)

  • Legalizing pot is the new Democratic litmus test (Politico)

  • New York Governor Cuomo Leaves Marijuana Legalization Out of State Budget (NORML)

  • Why Is the Cannabis Industry Struggling to Build Social Equity in the City of Angels? An Interview with Kristen Lovell of the Social Impact Center, Los Angeles (Psychedelic Times)

  • PGA Issues Warning To Golfers Using CBD Products (Marijuana Moment)

  • Can marijuana help end the opioids crisis? (The Guardian)

  • The Feds Are Looking To Hire A Professional Marijuana Joint Roller (Marijuana Moment)

  • Oklahoma Medical Cannabis Patients Can Hold Open-Carry Gun Permits (Leafly)

  • “Our lawmakers don’t talk to their constituents.” An Interview with New Mexico Activist Monique Chavez on Why Pot Legalization Failed In Her State (Psychedelic Times)

  • One county’s take on medical marijuana makes some users criminals (Arizona Capitol Times)

  • Hemp Is At The Center Of Fashion, Politics, And Sustainability (NYLON)

  • Florida Lawmakers Want to Limit Medical Marijuana Potency (Leafly)

  • Cannabis stocks mixed ahead of bill proposing protections for weed companies (MarketWatch)

LSD

  • Police suspect LSD contributed to death of Springfield teen (KEZI)

  • Explainer: Can you die from LSD? (The Register-Guard)

  • Man spiked his co-workers' water with LSD because they were ‘too uptight’ (Her)

  • Scary Combination: A Navy Nuclear Powered Aircraft Carrier and LSD (The National Interest)

  • Bizarre true story of the UK military testing LSD on Royal Marines revealed in incredible footage that shows high soldiers stumbling and climbing (The Sun)

  • The acid test: Here's what LSD does to your brain (The Sydney Morning Herald)

  • From Hollywood to Silicon Beach, L.A. Professionals Are Using LSD to Amp Up Their Careers (LAmag)

MAGIC MUSHROOMS

  • Why Stop at One Campaign to Legalize Psychedelic Mushrooms? Oregon Has Two—and They Don’t Get Along. (Willamette Week)

  • Denver Will See Whether Voters Favor Decriminalizing Psychedelic Mushrooms (Weedmaps)

MDMA

  • Psychedelic drug MDMA may reawaken 'critical period' in brain to help treat PTSD (ScienceDaily)

  • Ecstasy use by Australian high school students doubles over three years (Stuff.co.nz)

  • GHB and MDMA are the best drugs for 'enhancing' sex, new study finds (Metro)

AYAHUASCA

  • Scientists studying psychedelic ayahuasca as a potential anti-depressant (CTV News)

  • Great Shamanic Deception: Using Ayahuasca as a Conduit for Sexual Fulfillment (Chacruna)

  • Am I a Sectarian Drug User? A Brief Legal Comment on the Religious Use of Ayahuasca in Brazil, Belgium and the Netherlands (Chacruna)

  • Catharsis through vomiting: My experiences with an ancient Amazonian drug at a Haryana farmhouse (Scroll.in)

  • Inside Chelsea Handler’s Shocking Psychedelic Drug Confession (Radar Online)

5-MEO-DMT

  • Could Bufo toad toxins be beneficial to humans? (NBC2 News)

NOVEL PSYCHOACTIVE SUBSTANCES

  • UAB research study finds that the majority of novel psychedelic drug users are white, college-educated men (Alabama Political Reporter)

SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS

NITROUS OXIDE

  • How Medical Researchers Used to Party (JSTOR Daily)

  • Red Bluff hospital first in Northstate to offer laughing gas for child birth (KRCRTV)

KETAMINE

  • Immunosuppressant May Extend Ketamine's Antidepressant Effects (Medscape)

  • When Nothing Seems to Help Your CRPS, Ketamine Pain Treatments May Bring Relief (Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic)

  • Effect of Ketamine With Electroconvulsive Therapy for Depressive Symptoms (Psychiatry Advisor)

  • FDA Approves Ketamine-Derived Treatment for Depression, But How Are People Really Using It? A Conversation with Kellye Greene of New York DanceSafe (Psychedelic Times)

  • Esketamine and psychedelics will require restructuring mental health care visits (STAT)

  • Study: Alligators on ketamine and headphones to mimic dinosaurs (Digital Journal)

  • Boys rescued from Thai cave were sedated with ketamine (CNN)

OPIATES/OPIOIDS

  • China to Regulate All Fentanyl-Related Drugs as Controlled Substances (TIME)

  • “Nation’s Most Comprehensive Lawsuit”—Now NY Takes On Purdue and the Sacklers (Filter)

  • Fear, Loathing and Fentanyl Exposure (The New York Times)

  • “Tranq Dope”—The Heroin Combo That’s Been Putting Philly to Sleep (Filter)

  • Naloxone remains stable for at least 28 days after enduring extreme conditions: study (The Record)

  • As overdoses rise, New Jersey removes a barrier to treatment for opioid addiction (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

  • A single-dose antidote may help prevent fentanyl overdoses (Science News)

  • Philadelphia Department of Prisons will begin offering buprenorphine to male inmates again (WHYY)

  • How to stop the opioid crisis (The Washington Post)

  • Philly sees concerning increase in new HIV cases driven by opioid epidemic (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

  • Study Finds Vast Differences In Ease-Of-Use For Naloxone Delivery Methods (PR Newswire)

  • Is Xi Jinping the New El Chapo? (The Trumpet)

  • Opium farming goes unchecked, difficult to locate plantation sites (The Kathmandu Post)

  • Narcan-resistant drug linked to suspected fatal OD, Montgomery County coroner warns (WHIO)

  • How Atlantic City is rethinking addiction amid opioid epidemic (The Press of Atlantic City)

  • Baby Born Prematurely, Addicted to Heroin Gets Second Chance at Life Thanks to Rare Adoption (Clay Center Dispatch)

  • Heroin Is Not Your Friend (Psychology Today)

COCAINE

  • Why Cocaine Turns People into Jerks, a Simple Explanation (VICE)

  • War on drugs has helped cocaine traffickers conquer swathes of Central America, study suggests (The Independent)

  • Man faces multiple felonies after alleged cocaine-fueled melee during concert (Aspen Daily News)

METHAMPHETAMINE

  • Messier Than Opioids, Meth Is Asia's Worst Narcotics Threat (Bloomberg)

  • Do you live near a meth lab? This interactive map will show you (KGUN)

  • Cheap, Nasty, Near You. How Crystal Meth Is Spreading (Bloomberg)

  • 'Completely preventable': 50 young people killed by stroke after using meth, MDMA (The Sydney Morning Herald)

CAFFEINE

TOBACCO

  • Maryland approves raising age to 21 to buy tobacco (The Washington Post)

  • State lawmakers raise age to buy tobacco products, e-cigarettes to 21 (The Buffalo News)

  • Olmsted County raises tobacco age to 21 (Med City Beat)

  • With vaping under fire for potential links to seizures, tobacco-free snuff latest alternative to help smokers quit (USA Today)

  • Alabama Congressman aims to raise the age someone can buy tobacco (ABC 33/40)

  • Could smokers under 21 be barred from buying tobacco products? Texas takes a step closer to raising the age (Dallas News)

ALCOHOL

  • Alcohol, caffeine are common triggers of irregular heart rhythm (Reuters)

  • More adults seeking support for alcoholic parents (BBC)

  • To Combat Binge Drinking, a Search for Chemical Solutions (Undark)

  • Don’t Call Jessica Lareau an Alcoholic. To Her, Words Matter (Boston University)

  • Even low alcohol consumption is bad news for strokes – study (The Guardian)

  • Brain damage from alcohol lasts up to six weeks after quitting (New York Post)

  • Millennials Are Sick of Drinking (The Atlantic)

  • Hangover free alcohol? Scientist claims he’s created magic recipe (FOX 8)

ABSINTHE

NOOTROPICS

KRATOM

  • FDA Confirms 'Dangerous' Levels of Heavy Metals in Some Kratom Products (Medscape)

  • Drug task force lobbies county to ban sale of opioid-like Kratom (The St. Augustine Record)

  • Commissioners postpone move to ban kratom in St. Johns County (WJXT)

KAVA

KHAT

MISCELLANEOUS

  • D.E.A. Secretly Collected Bulk Records of Money-Counter Purchases (The New York Times)

  • People who ‘microdose’ psychedelic drugs for a month say it increases positive emotions and productivity (PsyPost)

  • Drugs before sex more common in UK than in Europe or US – study (The Guardian)

  • Ralph Metzner, LSD and Consciousness Researcher, Dies at 82 (The New York Times)

  • Philly Councilman Mark Squilla moves to block supervised injection site (WHYY)

  • What Could a Conscious, Psychedelic #MeToo Look Like? (Chacruna)

  • Acetaminophen's Surprising Psychoactive Effects (RealClearScience)

  • On the Eve of the Great Psychedelic Debate (Quillette)

  • Drug Paraphernalia Laws: The “Swiss Army Knife” of the Drug War (Filter)

  • But The Drugs Keep Me Sober (The Small Bow)

  • Philippine Supreme Court Orders Release of Evidence From Duterte’s Drug War (TIME)

  • Supervised injection site supporters countersue feds, saying their Philly mission comes from religious and medical imperatives (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

  • Presidential Candidate Andrew Yang Pledges To Pardon All Non-Violent Drug Offenders On 4/20 (Marijuana Moment)

  • Let’s Address Four Common Myths About Harm Reduction (Filter)

  • Drug trips, not broken hips: let later life be the age of irresponsibility (The Guardian)

  • In the Space of One Minute, Joe Biden Defends the Death Penalty for Drug Dealers, Asset Forfeiture, and Mandatory Minimums (Reason)

  • The New Science of Psychedelics: A Tool for Changing Our Minds (SingularityHub)

  • Two SOM students explore psychedelic investment opportunities (Yale Daily News)

  • Psychedelic therapy for depression (The Naked Scientists)

  • What's the deal with microdosing? (Stuff.co.nz)

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.

On the Monday following each edition of “This Week in Psychoactives,” I post a “Last Week in Psychoactives” video recap to my YouTube channel. After that is done, I retroactively add the video to the corresponding blog post. Here is this week’s video recap:

This Week in Psychedelics - 12.28.18

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CANNABIS

  • Thailand approves medicinal cannabis (BBC)

  • These States Are Most Likely To Legalize Marijuana In 2019 (Forbes)

  • Alaska poised to become first state to allow on-site cannabis consumption (USA Today)

  • Marijuana Legalization Means Safer Borders And Less Smuggling, Study Shows (Forbes)

  • Study Reveals How Marijuana Components THC And CBD Affect Chronic Pain (Marijuana Moment)

  • 2018 Year In Review: NORML’s Top Ten Events In Marijuana Policy (NORML)

  • What’s Really Behind Americans’ Increased Support for Marijuana Legalization? Study Sheds Light (Marijuana Moment)

  • FDA Weighs In On Legal Status of Commercially Available ‘Hemp-Derived’ CBD Products (NORML)

  • Kansas Supreme Court Says Cops Can Search Your Home Without a Warrant If They Claim It Smells Like Pot (Reason)

  • South Africa poised for cannabis trade despite obstacles (The Washington Post)

  • Getting a handle on cannabis potency labeling (The GrowthOp)

  • Why Calling Different Marijuana Types ‘Strains’ Is Technically Wrong (Marijuana Moment)

  • How do pro leagues feel about marijuana use? It depends. (Boston.com)

  • Veterinarians Want Marijuana Laws Loosened For Pets And Humans, Survey Finds (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

Magic Mushrooms

  • Why Santa Claus and Magic Mushrooms Have More in Common Than You Think (Paper)

MDMA

  • Octopuses High on MDMA Gave Eight-Armed Hugs (Inverse)

  • Vicky Pattison’s ‘Mr Newcastle’ pal Paul Burns died after taking ‘high’ levels of MDMA (Metro)

  • Police issue warning over 'potentially lethal' ecstasy tablets (ITV News)

AYAHUASCA

SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS

  • Govt science institute testing for synthetic cannabis (Radio New Zealand)

  • California-Based Opiant Licenses Synthetic Cannabinoid Overdose Drug From Sanofi for $500,000 (BioSpace)

  • Synthetic marijuana: A pot alternative or a silent killer? (The Desert Sun)

NITROUS OXIDE

  • Shock as 'hippy crack' canisters strewn around popular site for children's activities (Glouchestershire Live)

KETAMINE

  • For People Battling Depression, These May Be the Treatments of the Future (Inc.)

PCP

  • Police: Man high on PCP caused head-on crash, injuring woman in Annapolis (Capital Gazette)

OPIATES/OPIOIDS

  • Wristband That Detects Opioid Overdose Joins U.S. Race for Tech Solutions (IEEE Spectrum)

  • After naloxone, when can opioid overdose patients be safely discharged? (EurekAlert!)

  • Ex-Insys CEO Accused of Bribing Doctors to Prescribe Fentanyl Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy, Mail Fraud (Daily Beast)

  • Opium Production in Afghanistan Has Skyrocketed Since 2001 Invasion (People's Pundit Daily)

  • Feds Urge Doctors to Co-Prescribe Naloxone (Pain News Network)

  • In Cincinnati, a winning opioid strategy (The Blade)

  • Greer mother focuses on saving lives after her daughter died of heroin overdose (Greenville News)

COCAINE

KRATOM

  • Thailand Legalizes Medical Marijuana And Kratom (Forbes)

  • Is It Illegal to Fly With Kratom Within the United States? (Aeronautics Online)

MISCELLANEOUS

  • Study Shows EDM and Heavy Metal Fans Consume the Most Drugs and Alcohol Compared to other Genres (EDM.com)

  • The First Step Act is not the criminal justice reform we need. But it’s a start. (Psymposia)

  • How Does a Writer Put a Drug Trip Into Words? (The New York Times)

  • Altering Memories to Treat Addiction (Undark)

  • Drug Testing Organizations Save Lives, So Why Haven't Rave and Concert Organizers Embraced Them? (The Appeal)

  • Fifty Years After Timothy Leary's Historic Laguna Beach Drug Bust, California Reconsiders Psychedelics (OC Weekly)

  • Young women are warned against taking ‘date rape’ drug GHB as a ‘zero calorie alternative to binge drinking’ after teacher at prestigious Catholic school, 24, dies from accidental overdose (Daily Mail)

  • Will pill testing save lives? (ABC News)

  • All I want for next Christmas is the Church of Safe Injection in Philly (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

  • Jeff Goldblum Talks About His Experiences With Psychedelic Drugs (The Fresh Toast)

  • Psychedelics May Offer Artists a Creative Boost (Artsy)

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" 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 Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.