This Week in Psychedelics - 9.18.20

Cannabis

• House Postpones Vote On Bill To Federally Legalize Marijuana Until After Election (Marijuana Moment)

• These states are voting on cannabis legalization this November (CNN)

• Vermont Bill To Legalize Marijuana Sales One Step Away From Governor’s Desk After House Vote (Marijuana Moment)

• Vermont House Approves Marijuana Expungement And Decriminalization Expansion Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• How cannabis use impacted mental health during COVID (Cannabis Health News)

• Virginia House And Senate Approve Marijuana Expungement Bills (Marijuana Moment)

• NORML Files Amicus Brief to the Supreme Court Challenging Cannabis’ Schedule I Prohibited Status Under Federal Law (NORML)

• Nebraska Medical Marijuana Activists Will Pursue 2022 Ballot Measure After Court Blocks This Year’s Effort (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis Pilot Programs Are Sprouting in Europe (Cannabis Wire)

• Mississippi Medical Marijuana Ballot Language Threatens To Confuse Voters With Two Questions (Marijuana Moment)

• Cancard Will Effectively Decriminalise Medicinal Cannabis In The UK From November 1st (Seedsman)

• Policy Briefing: World Health Organisation Cannabis Rescheduling And Its Relevance For The Caribbean (TalkingDrugs)

• Slim Majority Of Arizona Voters Support Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure, New Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Americans will spend $60 billion on illicit marijuana this year, report says (Leafly)

• USDA Approves Hemp Plans For Utah And Another Indian Tribe (Marijuana Moment)

• The Feds Are Funding a Study to See If Milk From Hemp-Eating Cows Will Get You High (MERRY JANE)

• Missouri Sends $2.1M In Medical Marijuana Revenue To Military Veterans Health Programs (Marijuana Moment)

• Cheap Cannabinoids That May Cure Cancer (Nanalyze)

LSD

• Scientists Uncover the Molecular Origins of an LSD Trip (Inverse)

• Figuring Out a Mouse-Sized Dose of LSD (Psychedelic Science Review)

• LSD Won’t Make a Good Painkiller (Pain News Network)

Magic Mushrooms

• Usona Puts New Psilocybin Synthesis Method in the Public Domain (Lucid News)

• First clinical trial launched to test psilocybin therapy for depression in cancer patients (News-Medical.net)

• Stopping a Too-Intense Mushroom Trip: Should You Even Try? (DoubleBlind)

MDMA

• Australians Are Lending Their Weight to Get Shrooms and MDMA Rescheduled (VICE)

Ayahuasca

• Legal Ayahuasca Churches Are Spreading Across Canada (VICE)

• Ayahuasca Makes you See, and Tobacco Makes You Dream (Chacruna)

• Ayahuasca Impacts the Big 5 Personality Traits (Psychedelic Science Review)

• A Woman Takes Ayahuasca and Discovers a Universal Truth (Patheos)

Peyote

• Indigenous Voices in Peyote Conservation: Preserving Medicine for Future Generations (Psychedelic Today)

Nitrous Oxide

• Aurora City Council Approves Temporary Ketamine Ban For First Responders (CBS Denver)

PCP

• Daniel Prude video initially withheld by Rochester police, documents show (Fox News)

Miscellaneous

• UC Berkeley launches new center for psychedelic science and education (Berkeley News)

• Can Psychedelics Treat Physical Illness? (DoubleBlind)

• Ann Arbor to consider decriminalizing psychoactive mushrooms, plants (Detroit Metro Times)

• Why Psychedelic Medicine Startups Are Poised To Get A Share Of Next Billion Dollar Market (PR Newswire)

• Compass Pathways Seeks $100 Million IPO For Psilocybin-Based Treatment (Seeking Alpha)

• How COVID-19 Has Impacted the Psychedelic Community (High Times)

• Why Set and Setting Matters for Microdosing (Medium)

• Compass Pathways IPO to Begin Trading 18th September on Nasdaq: CMPS (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Federal Workplace Drug Testing Proposal Could Discriminate Against People Of Color (Marijuana Moment)

• Women in the History of Psychedelic Plant Medicines (Chacruna)

• How Psychedelics Are Entering the Mainstream (Psychology Today)

• Could Group Therapy Make Psychedelic Drug Treatments More Accessible? (Forbes)

• IntelGenx inks double deals to develop oral film psychedelics for psychiatric use (Fierce Pharma)

• Expanded States of Consciousness for Healing and Growth (Chacruna)

• Red Light Holland’s Science and Innovation Division, Scarlette Lillie Joins Medical Psychedelics Working Group with Leading Academics; Professor David Nutt and Professor Jo Neill (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Conscious Parenting with Plant Medicine Allies (Reality Sandwich)

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 catalogue how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychoactives - 1.31.20

Cannabis

• New Mexico Lawmakers Approve Marijuana Legalization Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• New Hampshire Lawmakers Approve Marijuana Legalization Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• Illinois Is Already Getting a Weed Lounge, Just Weeks After Legalizing (MERRY JANE)

• Berkeley Council Votes To Allow Cannabis Consumption In Lounges (CBS San Francisco)

• First Alaska retail pot shops get approval for on-site consumption (Anchorage Daily News)

• Local Australian Marijuana Legalization Law Takes Effect This Week (Marijuana Moment)

• Cleveland City Council approves eliminating fines, jail time and criminal records for low level marijuana possession (Cleveland.com)

• Key Virginia Senate Committee Approves Marijuana Decriminalization Bill, While Broader Legalization Study Advances (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis Helps Protect HIV Patients’ Brains From Deteriorating, Study Finds (MERRY JANE)

• President Trump: Marijuana Makes You “Lose IQ Points” (NORML)

• Abnormal imaging findings key to EVALI diagnosis in vapers (Medical Xpress)

• Find That CBG and CGC Can Kill Gastrointestinal Cancer Cells (MERRY JANE)

• Missouri Activists Launch Signature Drive To Put Marijuana Legalization On 2020 Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis vaping devices reimbursement approval for Canadian veterans (Health Europa)

• American Cannabis Stocks Are Working Their Way To Wall Street (Forbes)

• Legalization may mean more cannabis and less alcohol in colleges (Medical News Today)

• U.S. Military Reiterates That CBD Is Off Limits To Service Members (Marijuana Moment)

• Across Utah more students are reporting using marijuana (KUTV)

• Weed-Sniffing K-9s in New York Are Getting Hounded into Early Retirement (MERRY JANE)

• Pennsylvania: Marijuana possession arrests decline statewide (NORML)

Magic Mushrooms

• Andrew Yang Wants To Legalize Psychedelic Mushrooms For Military Veterans (Marijuana Moment)

Iboga

• 'I cannot claim to have prevailed': Miami University professor reinstated after iboga tree suspension (Cincinnati.com)

• Special Forces: How Ibogaine is Helping Former Special Operations Soldiers with Traumatic Brain Injury and PTSD (Psychedelic Times)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

• Chicago Shop Owner Gets Prison Sentence For Selling K2 Laced With Rat Poison (High Times)

• Synthetic cannabinoids on the rise in Toledo, costing taxpayers thousands for EMS (WNWO)

Opioids

• Tom Steyer Calls For Marijuana Legalization And Opioid Decriminalization (Marijuana Moment)

• Could a Naloxone Implant Have a Major Impact on the Overdose Crisis? (Filter)

• Federal Crackdown On Fentanyl Analogues Repeats the Mistakes of the Drug War, Advocates Say (The Appeal)

Caffeine

• Everyone is making coffee wrong, study suggests (Fox News)

Nicotine

• WHO Report: Tobacco Use is Declining Worldwide (Vaping Post)

• International Experts Slam World Health Organization’s Deceptive Vaping Release (Filter)

• Wisconsin can’t enforce tobacco age at 21 because of state law, causing confusion at stores (WQOW)

• Study: Teens with ADHD Face Increased Risk for Nicotine Addiction (ADDitude)

Kratom

• Reasons why kratom is getting more popular in the past decade (Augusta Free Press)

Miscellaneous

• Santa Cruz City Council Approves Psychedelics Decriminalization Measure (Marijuana Moment)

• Goop on psychedelics isn’t bad, it’s just boring (WIRED)

• Psychedelic drugs may reduce depression and anxiety by increasing psychological flexibility (PsyPost)

• Heroin and cocaine can be injected safely in UK's first 'mock drugs room' (Sky News)

• Oakland Activists Unveil Plan To Legalize Sale Of Psychedelics This Year (Marijuana Moment)

• Music festivals responsible for minuscule percentage of drug deaths (The Age)

• Are Investors Ready To Change Their Minds About Psychedelic Drugs? (Forbes)

• Drug deaths summit to take place in Glasgow (BBC)

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 - 12.20.19

CANNABIS

• Marijuana’s Ten Biggest Victories Of 2019 (Forbes)

• Illinois cannabis dispensaries open New Year’s Day for adult-use sales (Leafly)

• New Jersey: Governor Signs Marijuana Expungement Bill into Law (NORML)

• Italy legalizes 'cannabis light' (The Local)

• Opioid Prescriptions Down In States With Legal Marijuana, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• New Jersey Lawmakers Pass Marijuana Referendum to Send to Voters in 2020 (TIME)

• Kids Aren't Buying Weed From Legal Pot Shops, Study Finds (MERRY JANE)

• Majority Of Americans Support Marijuana Legalization, Two More New Polls Show (Marijuana Moment)

• State recalls cannabis vape cartridges tainted with deadly vitamin E acetate (Detroit Metro Times)

• Survey shows boom in marijuana vaping among school kids (WHDH)

• Regular Cannabis Use Linked to Changes in Heart Structure, Study Finds (MERRY JANE)

• EPA Approves Pesticides For Hemp In Time For 2020 Growing Season (Marijuana Moment)

• Zenabis recalls mislabeled CBD gelcaps that actually contained THC (Leafly)

• Millions of Americans are driving under the influence of marijuana, CDC says (CNN)

• Atlanta Will Seal Records for Minor Weed Offenses by February (MERRY JANE)

• Oklahoma Activists Take First Step To Put Marijuana Legalization On State’s 2020 Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Indiana resists legalization, but it’ll be a hot issue in 2020 state elections (Leafly)

• Medical Marijuana Legalization Measure Officially Qualifies For South Dakota 2020 Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Elizabeth Warren Files Marijuana Bills For Veterans And Immigrants (Marijuana Moment)

• Patients rally in Ecuador for legal use of medical cannabis (San Francisco Chronicle)

LSD

• Microdosing LSD for Alzheimer’s proves safe in early human trial (New Atlas)

• Paul McCartney Disturbing Teen Drug Claim Revealed (Alternative Nation)

MAGIC MUSHROOMS

• Andrew Yang Says He’s ‘Very Open’ To Legalizing Magic Mushrooms (The Inquisitr)

• 'Magic mushroom' ingredient could be used to treat depression, study says (CNN)

• E. coli Could Produce a Popular Psychedelic for Therapeutic Use (Scientific American)

• Psilocybin: Four Important Takeaways from a Clinical Trial (Psychology Today)

• 5 Fast Facts About Magic Mushroom Compounds (Psychedelic Science Review)

MDMA

• MDMA Is Inches Away From Getting FDA Approval (MERRY JANE)

• Why MDMA must be reclassified as a Schedule 2 drug (Health Europa)

• MDMA-assisted couples therapy: How a psychedelic is enhancing intimacy and healing PTSD (The Conversation)

5-MEO-DMT

• Psychedelic drug 5-MeO-DMT induces rapid changes in inflammatory markers (PsyPost)

• Psychedelic Toad Makes People More Accepting and Less Depressed, Study Shows (MERRY JANE)

• Is the Juice Worth the Squeeze: The Impact of Climate Change, Development, and Psychonauts on the Sonoran Desert Toad (Psychedelics Today)

SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS

• More than a dozen children collapse after vaping fake cannabis oil laced with ‘spice’ (The Independent)

• DEA approves synthetic marijuana for big pharma company against legalization (Stock Daily Dish)

NITROUS OXIDE

• Doctors issue warning after 'whippits' misuse lands B.C. woman in hospital (CTV News)

KETAMINE

• Ketamine-like drug for depression gets UK licence (The Guardian)

• In 2019, a ketamine-based antidepressant raised hopes and concerns (ScienceNews)

OPIOIDS

• We have a solution for the opioid epidemic. It’s dramatically underused. (Vox)

• Purdue's Payments to the Sackler Family Grew Amid Scrutiny Over the Opioid Epidemic, Court Filing Shows (TIME)

• Naloxone Dispensing Sees Major Increase In Last Two Years (Indiana Public Media)

METHAMPHETAMINE

• A New Drug Scourge: Deaths Involving Meth Are Rising Fast (The New York Times)

CAFFEINE

• New insights into anti-obesity mechanisms of caffeine (New Atlas)

NICOTINE

• Congress Approves Raising Age to 21 for E-Cigarette and Tobacco Sales (The New York Times)

• Vaping Damages Your Lungs, But Is Still Safer Than Smoking, a Long-Term Study Suggests (TIME)

• WHO launches new report on global tobacco use trends (World Health Organization)

• Instagram bans influencers from getting paid to promote vaping and guns (CNBC)

• Plan to ban tobacco sales to anyone under 21 will hit the military too (Military Times)

• Addictive nicotine in Juul nearly identical to a Marlboro: study (Reuters)

• US permits sale of cigarettes with 95% less nicotine (The Seattle Times)

• Why is Texas throwing high schoolers in jail just for vaping? (Washington Examiner)

BENZODIAZEPINES

• Benzodiazepine Overdose Rates Increasing in Teens (MD Magazine)

• Problem Drinking Linked to Higher Benzo Use (Sleep Review)

• Are benzodiazepines the new opioids? (Medical Xpress)

ALCOHOL

• Two standard alcoholic drinks a day no longer safe, health officials say (The Guardian)

• The sale of alcohol at the University of South Carolina athletic events has been approved (ABC News 4)

• My Friends Serve Underage Kids Alcohol. Should I Speak Up? (The New York Times)

NOOTROPICS

• People Tell Us About Using ‘Smart Drugs’ to Max out Their Productivity (VICE)

KRATOM

• Justice minister says he’ll speed up kratom decriminalisation (The Thaiger)

• Five uses of mitragyna speciosa (The Leaf Online)

• Kratom for Chronic Pain? (WholeFoods Magazine)

KANNA

• Kanna: The Soothing Succulent of the San People (World of Lucid Dreaming)

KAVA

• Kava and anxiety: What science says about the popular plant supplement (Inverse)

• Increased Import Of Kava For Personal Consumption Allowed Into Australia (Fiji Sun)

• Welcome to Kava Culture: A Spreading Alternative to Reduce Anxiety (Filter)

DATURA

• Vet on call: Watch out for datura plant, an animal killer (Daily Nation)

MISCELLANEOUS

• Drug Prohibition Makes Illegal Drugs Cheaper and More Lethal, New Report Finds (MERRY JANE)

• On Drug Decriminalization in the United States (Playboy)

• The Vaping-Related Lung Disease Outbreak May Be Coming to an End (TIME)

• More Americans Facing Murder Charges in Drug Deaths (Truthdig)

• Call for pill tests as more than 50% of music festivalgoers say they take drugs (The Guardian)

• How to Rethink Drug Dealing and Punishment (The Appeal)

• Why Chronic Microdosing Might Break Your Heart (Chacruna)

• “The state only detains, beats and kills us”: Testimonies from women who use drugs in Mexico (Talking Drugs)

• How to Trip Sit (DoubleBlind)

• Why Doctors Are Turning to Psychedelics to Treat Depression and Addiction (Men's Journal)

• Could Micro-Dosing Psychedelics Lift Depression? (Psychology Today)

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 - 8.16.19

CANNABIS

• Scent of unburnt marijuana exclusively is not grounds to search warehouse, SJC rules (The Boston Globe)

• Vaping linked to marijuana use in young people, research says (CNN)

• Here Are The Top 20 Most And Least Marijuana-Friendly U.S. Colleges (Marijuana Moment)

• UC Davis Partners With DEA-Approved Company to Conduct Cannabis Research (UC Davis)

• Cannabis restaurants are coming to California, with 'budtenders' and 'flower' service (The Washington Post)

• Where Presidential Candidate Andrew Yang Stands On Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• Outside Lands Music Festival Raked in $1 Million in Legal Weed Sales (MERRY JANE)

• Adults who mix cannabis with opioids for pain report higher anxiety, depression (Science Daily)

• Medicinal cannabis: the hype is strong, but the evidence is weak (The Guardian)

• Lack of Patient Protection Gets Colorado a "B" Grade in Medical Marijuana (Westword)

• Is Your Weed Vegan? How Vegan Weed and Veganic Farming Avoids Fertilizers that Impact the Purity and Safety of Cannabis (Psychedelic Times)

MAGIC MUSHROOMS

• There’s Already a Company Developing Magic Mushroom Tea and Coffee in Denver (MERRY JANE)

• Oregon Activists Take Next Step To Legalize Psilocybin For Medical Use (Marijuana Moment)

MDMA

• Swingers Love Combining Ecstasy with Sex, Study Finds (MERRY JANE)

• Ecstasy 'too child-friendly' as deaths rise to record levels (BBC)

• Devastated mum of girl, 13, who died after taking ecstasy blames herself and wishes she’d told her ‘I love you’ (The Sun)

IBOGA

• What To Expect on an Ibogaine Trip (The Third Wave)

NOVEL PSYCHOACTIVE SUBSTANCES

• Synthetic MDMA-Like Drug Banned, Reportedly Linked to 125 Deaths (Your EDM)

SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS

• Synthetic Cannabinoids and the Developing Fetus (Advanced Science News)

NITROUS OXIDE

• No laughing matter: Netherlands considers ban of nitrous oxide (The Straits Times)

OPIOIDS

• Overdose survival rates high with naloxone, Stockton study finds (The Press of Atlantic City)

• How to get naloxone, the antidote for an opioid overdose, in Maryland (The Baltimore Sun)

• ETSU installs overdose drug Naloxone in every residence hall (WCYB)

CAFFEINE

• Drinking coffee before bed does not affect sleep quality, study finds (Fox17)

• Comparing different caffeine doses, as opposed to comparing to placebo alone, leads to robust sports nutrition conclusions, paper argues (NutraIngrediants-usa.com)

TOBACCO

• The World Health Organization Blithely Denies Vaping Science (Filter)

• FDA Rolls Out New Graphic Warnings For Cigarette Packages And Tobacco Ads (NPR)

• WHO statement urging governments to ban tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship at international expositions (World Health Organization)

ALCOHOL

• Religion and Drinking Alcohol in the U.S. (Gallup)

• Bud and Booze Make Bad Bedfellows, Study Says (MERRY JANE)

KRATOM

• Oxford becomes latest Mississippi government to ban kratom (Mississippi Business Journal)

MISCELLANEOUS

• All U.S. Adults Should Be Screened for Illicit Drug Use, National Panel Urges (U.S. News & World Report)

• Stay Off Your Phone While You're High, Study Says (MERRY JANE)

• Benefits and challenges of psychedelic microdosing – as reported by microdosers (BMC Blogs Network)

• The 40 Best Books About Shamanism and Plant Medicines (Chacruna)

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.

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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, which actually covers the past four weeks’ worth of news since I was away on vacation for a few weeks:

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This Week in Psychoactives - 2.8.19

CANNABIS

• World Health Organization Recommends Reclassifying Marijuana Under International Treaties (Forbes)

• The Most Efficient Way to Smoke Cannabis? Study Says Dabs (Leafly)

• Jury Convicts Church Of Cannabis Founder On Public Consumption Charges (Colorado Public Radio)

• Most Strains of Weed Are More Alike Than People Think (Men's Health)

• Hawaii Lawmakers Unanimously Approve Marijuana Legalization Bill In Committee (Marijuana Moment)

• Pennsylvania Lawmakers Introduce Bill To Legalize Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• A New Study Says Pot Smokers May Have Higher Sperm Counts. But There’s a Catch (TIME)

• Patients Frequently Substituting Cannabis For Anti-Anxiety Drugs (NORML)

• CBD-Infused Food Banned by Health Department at NYC Restaurant, Owner Says (Eater)

• After A Decade Of Testing, Israeli Medical Cannabis Comes To The US (Forbes)

• Republican Senator Pitches Weird Conspiracy Theory About Weed Legalization, Menthol Cigarettes, and the FDA (Reason)

• Science Backs Most Medical Cannabis Treatment, Study Finds (Leafly)

• Medicinal cannabis legalisation opens gateway for psychedelic research (Small Caps)

• Traffic fatalities on a high after cannabis legalisation (Medical Xpress)

• Nebraska Could Vote On This Medical Marijuana Ballot Measure In 2020 (Forbes)

• Congressional Democrats Plan Hearing And Vote On Marijuana Business Banking (Marijuana Moment)

• Pot for pets: Cannabis products for our furry friends increasing in popularity (The GrowthOp)

• A Hemp Company Sues After Police Mistake Their Product for Weed (Reason)

• Trump Allies Consider Using Hemp Concrete To Build Border Wall With Private Funds (Marijuana Moment)

• Here’s Where Ontario’s First Private Cannabis Stores Could Open (Leafly)

• More Seniors Are Using Marijuana and It May Decrease Their Opioid Use (Green Entrepreneur)

• New Hampshire Considers Legalization, but Gov. Sununu Vows to Veto It (Leafly)

• Maryland Lawmakers Introduce Marijuana Legalization Bills (Marijuana Moment)

• Latest Medical Marijuana Bill Proposes Full Use Of Cannabis Plant In Tennessee (WPLN)

• Reports Claim Bisexuals Smoke the Most Cannabis. Is There Any Truth to It? (Leafly)

• Why do so many Americans now support legalizing marijuana? (The Conversation)

• Study Reveals Little-Known Trick To Make Marijuana Plants Grow More Bud For Less (Marijuana Moment)

• Toronto Maple Leafs Suing Snoop’s Cannabis Brand Over Logo (Leafly)

• Smoke without fire: Cannabis for the observant Jew (ynetnews)

• Where Presidential Candidate Cory Booker Stands On Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

• A Patient’s Guide to Using Cannabis for Cancer (Leafly)

• Cannabis in Small Commonwealth States: Turning a New Leaf? (Talking Drugs)

• How To Invest In Cannabis IPOs (Forbes)

• Why We Should Treat Cannabis like Organic Food or Fine Wine (Civilized)

LSD

• LSD allows more information to flood into the brain by altering activity in the thalamus (PsyPost)

MAGIC MUSHROOMS

• Denver Will Vote on Psilocybin Decriminalization in May (Westword)

• The Push to Legalize Magic Mushrooms for Depression and PTSD (WIRED)

• Shrooms Are the Safest Drug You Can Take (VICE)

• Oregon "Psilocybin Services" Ballot Measure Has Significant Support, Poll Shows (PR Newswire)

• 'Magic Mushrooms' May Soon Be Decriminalised in Parts of The US (Science Alert)

• Magic Truffles in Amsterdam and the Monastic Path: Interview with Chi of Truffles Therapy (Psychedelic Times)

MDMA

• MDMA users more empathetic than people who take other drugs, study finds (The Independent)

• Parents whose son died after taking ecstasy want to educate others on dangers of drug (WGN-TV)

• Antisocial Species Of Octopus Becomes Friendlier On MDMA, Study Finds (Study Finds)

DMT

• Why Do Jesters and Tricksters Appear in the DMT Experience? (Sam Woolfe)

NOVEL PSYCHOACTIVE SUBSTANCES

• Man filmed dying girlfriend at festival after taking 2C-P instead of helping her (Rave Jungle)

• First National Study on Flakka Finds Disturbing Trend Among Teens (Psychedelics Daily)

SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS

• Synthetic cannabis may stop colorectal cancer from growing, study suggests (Daily Mail)

• K2 Overdose Calls Reach Lowest Numbers since 2014 (Spectrum News)

• Natural and synthetic cannabinoids for agitation and aggression in Alzheimer’s disease: A meta-analysis (MDLinx)

• 'Spice turns you into a zombie': Battling an addiction with synthetic cannabis (Shropshire Star)

NITROUS OXIDE

• Longmont United Hospital Offers New Pain Management Option for Laboring Mothers (Longmont Observer)

• Laughing gas now available for women in labor (WGME)

KETAMINE

• Ketamine Could Be the Key to Reversing America’s Rising Suicide Rate (Bloomberg)

• New variation of ketamine to be approved by FDA for treatment of depression (Mixmag)

• Ketamine Noninferior to Fentanyl for Traumatic Injury Pain in Children (Clinical Pain Advisor)

• Kansas City woman credits controversial depression treatment with saving her life (Fox 4 Kansas City)

• Can ketamine help depression? (WTSP)

• Fears grow that Ketamine use by young is on the rise in England (The Guardian)

OPIATES/OPIOIDS

• U.S. Prosecutors Sue To Stop Nation's First Supervised Injection Site For Opioids (NPR)

• Family Behind OxyContin Made Billions By Pushing to Keep Patients on Drug Longer, Filing Shows (TIME)

• Study: Illicit opioid deaths to rise by 147 percent by 2025 (UPI.com)

• Fentanyl Overdoses Spike on Mexico’s Northern Border But Remain Invisible (Filter)

• #MSLeg: 'Parker's Law' would punish drug dealers for death or injuries (Clarion Ledger)

• Struggling to Compete with Fentanyl, Mexico’s Poppy Farmers Ask for Legalization (Filter)

• Naloxone boxes to be placed in Downtown Cincinnati in new bid to stem overdose deaths (Cincinnati.com)

• Ohio doctors must now offer overdose antidote naloxone to some pain patients (The Columbus Dispatch)

• Cops Claimed She Set Up A Drug Deal. Now She's Being Prosecuted for Manslaughter. (The Appeal)

• Alphabet's Verily is opening an opioid addiction center in Ohio (Engadget)

• Trump Decries Unjust Crack Sentences but Wants to Repeat the Mistake With Fentanyl (Reason)

• The Third Opium War (Manitoba Post)

• New bill clarifies who can dispense, administer Naloxone (KIVI-TV)

• Program trains high school officials to give naloxone (Tuscaloosa News)

• Myanmar's opium farmers cling on to lucrative crop (Mail and Guardian)

• IN PICTURES: Myanmar, the second biggest source of opium in the world (The Courier)

• Why we need to talk about take-home naloxone (Australian Journal of Pharmacy)

• How to Get and Use Fentanyl Testing Strips (Lifehacker)

• Let's define terms to understand the opioid crisis (Murfreesboro Post)

COCAINE

• This Is Why Cocaine Dealers Should Fear Venezuelan Unrest (OZY)

METHAMPHETAMINE

• DEA testing shows meth is running rampant in New Jersey (New Jersey 101.5 FM Radio)

• Iowa sees increase in methamphetamine use (Sioux City Journal)

ALCOHOL

• Richer, older men more likely to drink to excess, figures show (The Guardian)

• Heavy Drinking in Teens Causes Lasting Changes in Emotional Center of Brain (Neuroscience News)

• Utah lawmaker wants to scrap low-alcohol beer rule (KUTV)

• Some Super Bowl ads seem to suggest that some kinds of alcohol are better for you. Health officials say it's better to punt on the drinking altogether (Deseret News)

• Alcohol related deaths in England and Wales rocket in past decade (Yahoo! Sports)

• Know how alcohol is harming your teeth! (Times of India)

• 10 things that can happen to your body when you give up alcohol (INSIDER)

ABSINTHE

• This Maine-made absinthe won’t make you hallucinate (Bangor Daily News)

NOOTROPICS

• Nootropic spearmint extract may improve reactive agility, according to new study (Nutritional Outlook)

• The future's getting smarter (Mashable)

• Nootropics: A Necessary Mental Aid in Modern World? (The Frisky)

• Are ‘smart drugs’ all they claim to be? (ZME Science)

KRATOM

• Kratom Now Banned in Columbus (WCBI)

• Advocate: Kratom 'should be regulated,' not illegal (The Dispatch)

• Residents seek Kratom ban in Lowndes (The Dispatch)

MISCELLANEOUS

• Does microdosing improve your mood and performance? Here’s what the research say (The Conversation)

• GOP Lawmaker’s Bill Would Legalize Psychedelic Mushrooms And MDMA For Medical Use (Marijuana Moment)

• How the Drug War Eats the Poor (VICE)

• El Chapo Jury Begins Deliberation in Bombshell Drug Trafficking Trial (TIME)

• This is what psychedelic mainstreaming looks like…in Arizona (Psymposia)

• Houston Narcs Were 'Clearly Labeled' During Deadly Drug Raid, Police Spokesman Says (Reason)

• Why More and More People Are Leaning Toward Microdosing for Depression (Civilized)

• Are Electronic Cigarettes Facilitating Illicit Drug Use? (News-Medical.net)

• Is Permatripping Real? (Gizmodo)

• Should I Drug Test My Kids? Why the Experts Say No (Filter)

• Sri Lanka to begin hangings within months, ending 43-year stay on executions (The Guardian)

• Cory Booker Invites Former Drug War Prisoner To Trump’s State Of The Union (Marijuana Moment)

• Psychedelic Privilege: Report from the Women and Psychedelics Forum (Chacruna)

• The GOP Needs A Better Drug Policy to End HIV (Medium)

• Drug Reform Campaigner Calls For Legal MDMA, Cannabis & Pill Testing in Australia (Your EDM)

• Meet the Artists Designing Clothes For Businesswomen Who Micro-Dose LSD (Interview)

• Nine pill testing myths (Australia's Science Channel)

• This is why you should vote to make drugs safer (The Bristol Cable)

• I took daily doses of magic mushrooms to improve my performance and mental health. Here’s what happened (news.com.au)

• Psychedelics could treat mental disorders (4BC)

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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:

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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.