Cannabis is changing. Today’s marijuana is more potent than ever and there remain many questions about its benefits and risks. We still can’t meaningfully regulate driving while high. And growing cannabis – legally and not – has a staggering environmental footprint. In The weed of the future, the final episode […]
Cannabis
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Drug use among students has plunged to a decade low, with cannabis, hippy crack and ecstasy massively falling out of favour with Gen Z. Official figures released today show one in six 16-24-year-olds took any illegal substances in the year ending March 2023. For comparison, close to a third of Gen […]
Despite humans having used cannabis for thousands of years, it is only recently that we have started to work out why it affects us the way that it does. Chemicals in cannabis called cannabinoids activate receptors throughout our bodies that form the endocannabinoid system. This system is involved in regulating […]
Is cannabis an effective painkiller? SciePro/Shutterstock Cannabis has a long history as a pain-reliever – it is mentioned in 3500-year-old medical texts from ancient Egypt. But there is still active debate over the extent of the drug’s analgesic properties. On the one hand, there is some evidence that cannabis can […]
Cannabis edibles offer a different way to consume the drug Shutterstock/Brian Goodman For people who want their weed without the smoke, cannabis edibles provide an increasingly popular alternative. And it’s not just pot brownies, either. Gummies, tinctures and other products can be laced with cannabis. “The availability of different types […]
A femur, one of the bones that held traces of cannabis Gaia Giordano, Mirko Mattia, Michele Boracchi, et al. The first evidence of cannabis discovered in archaeological skeletal remains comes from bones of people buried under a hospital in Milan, Italy in the 17th century. “Molecules of medicinal plants can […]
Many people think cannabis products help them sleep Shutterstock/Aiman Dairabaeva Forget counting sheep and warm bubble baths. For millions of people who have problems falling and staying asleep, cannabis has become an increasingly popular sleep aid. But the evidence that the drug can help is limited. “The hype surrounding cannabis […]
Cannabis related items on display at Housing Works, New York’s first legal cannabis dispensary Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock Cannabis is having a moment. Half of Americans live in a state with legal marijuana and 9 in 10 people nationwide support legalisation in some form. This is a stark difference from mere decades […]