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Tag: marijuana
Can cannabis save us from the apocalypse caused by antibiotics?
The world is on the brink of a new pandemic. This time, it won’t be caused by a new virus, but by an incurable infection. By 2050 , drug-resistant infections are projected to kill up to 10 million people annually, surpassing cancer deaths and exceeding the capacity of healthcare systems designed to combat infectious diseases. Pathogenic microorganisms have evolved like seasoned strategists, rewriting their genes to survive and evade drugs that were once easily effective.
For many years, antibiotics have been prescribed as a miracle drug for a wide range of ailments, from sore throats to runny noses. In agriculture, they are used mixed into animal feed to promote livestock growth and increase survival rates in overcrowded farm environments.
Doctors in the hospital wards are beginning to notice something disturbing. Infections that used to clear up in a few days are now lingering, and patients are being readmitted with the same symptoms as before, but the same treatments are no longer effective. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is spreading throughout the hospital and thriving in places where disinfectants are ineffective.
Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CREs) emerged in intensive care units (ICUs) and earned the nickname “nightmare bacteria” due to their ability to resist almost every antibiotic recorded.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa has corroded ventilators and surgical instruments, and drug-resistant tuberculosis has reappeared like a ghost from medical history, becoming more difficult to treat than ever before. Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) have emerged in intensive care units , defeating one of our most powerful antibiotics and turning routine infections into medical crises.
As the world faces the problem of antibiotic resistance, researchers are increasingly exploring the potential antimicrobial properties of plant-derived compounds. However, many of these plants remain heavily regulated, limiting research, clinical trials, and public access. Hemp is a prime example. Cannabinoids found in hemp have shown antimicrobial activity against certain bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms in laboratory studies.
Most of the findings described below are from laboratory (in vitro) or early preclinical studies. While these results are promising, they do not represent established treatments in humans. Clinical trials are needed to determine safety, dosage, and actual efficacy.
Cannabinoids as antibacterial agents
Cannabinoids can be described as nature’s quiet chemists. These plant-derived molecules, found in hemp and other hemp plants (including the lesser-known Trema micrantha ), are structurally different from conventional antibiotics, and this difference is significant. Instead of following the same biochemical mechanisms as common pharmaceuticals, cannabinoids interact with microorganisms in novel ways that science is only just beginning to understand.
We’ll take a closer look at cannabinoids that have been most frequently reported to have antibacterial properties and explain why they are attracting increasing attention in modern research .
CBDa and CBD
Cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabidiolic acid (CBDa) have been demonstrated to exhibit antibacterial activity in laboratory studies. Antibacterial assays using resistant strains of Acinetobacter baumannii with CBD suggest that CBD may disrupt bacterial membrane integrity under controlled conditions. Acinetobacter baumannii is a Gram-negative bacterium, well-known as a causative agent of hospital-acquired infections, and is also notorious for its multidrug resistance.
The same researchers observed that CBD synergistically interacts with gentamicin, meropenem, and colistin, lowering the concentrations needed to inhibit bacterial growth in vitro. While this may sound like a major breakthrough, further research is needed into the potential drug interactions and how they might affect users.
Another study revealed that CBDa inhibits biofilm formation in E. coli ATCC . Biofilms play a crucial role in bacterial antibiotic resistance. A biofilm is a structured bacterial community enclosed in the extracellular matrix, produced by bacteria themselves, protecting cells from environmental stress, immune responses, and antimicrobial agents.
Biofilms not only increase survival rates in harsh environments but also promote the transmission of resistance genes, making infection treatment difficult and increasing the risk of chronic and recurrent infections. The anti-biofilm effect of CBD has also been reported against MRSA and Candida albicans, a fungus that produces biofilms . In laboratory studies examining bacterial biofilms, CBD showed activity equivalent to or greater than certain antibiotics under specific experimental conditions . These findings were obtained in vitro and have not been validated in human clinical settings.
CBD and CBDa restrict intermicrobial communication that modulates resistance strategies and toxin release. This is known as quorum sensing . By disrupting these communication networks, CBD weakens the collective strength of bacterial colonies. Several studies have suggested synergistic effects between CBD and certain antibiotics, suggesting that CBD may enhance the effectiveness of conventional drugs by weakening microbial defenses. This could have significant implications for future research on difficult-to-treat infections, although clinical application has not yet been proven.
Early studies have investigated the potential activity of CBD against certain parasites, such as Echinococcus granulosus and Leishmania species.
The Archaeology of Marijuana
In June, monthly sales for recreational and medical marijuana in my hometown of Colorado reached a record high of $199 million .
The industry’s growth took eight years. In 2012, with the passage of the 64th Amendment, Colorado, along with Washington, became one of the first states in the U.S. where consenting adults could legally purchase and consume marijuana for recreational purposes.
Since then, Colorado’s tourism landscape has changed dramatically. Legalization of recreational marijuana has fueled six of the eight consecutive years of record growth in the tourism industry. In June 2019, the Colorado Department of Revenue announced that total marijuana-related revenue had reached $1 billion since sales began in 2014. This funding has generated hundreds of millions of dollars in new tax revenue for the state, which can be used for education, transportation, environmental protection, and other initiatives.
However, despite the clear economic benefits, many in the United States oppose marijuana legalization. Some of my friends dislike the smell of marijuana. Others are concerned about marijuana use among teenagers, the potential effects of secondhand smoke on children, or people driving under the influence.
I haven’t smoked cigarettes in years, and I’ve never tried edible marijuana. However, I’m very pleased that America is starting to move away from its long road of unnecessarily criminalizing mild recreational drugs.
I voted in favor of Amendment 64 because I oppose the double standards regarding alcohol in the United States. Studies show that alcohol is far more dangerous than marijuana. I also voted in favor because I oppose the systemic racism in the justice system that unfairly punishes people of color for drug-related crimes .
My perspective as an archaeologist is relevant to this matter. I pay close attention to what humanity has done in the past, and from the long-term perspective of human history, I know that not everything in the present is “normal.” The modern fear of marijuana is one of the concerns that seems particularly strange, because researchers estimate that humans have been using cannabis for at least 10,000 years.
What do scholars say about the long history of human use of cannabis? How did cannabis transform from a plant highly valued in many parts of the world to a notorious drug?
Seriously…
It’s almost 4/20…
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Governor Silent as Chinese Cannabis Cartels Swallow Rural Maine — Some With Her Brother’s Help
On April 1, 2025, Somerset County sheriff’s deputies executed a warrant at a South Road property in Harmony and arrested Wenfeng Chen, 51, of Malden, Massachusetts. Inside, they found 1,405 marijuana plants, approximately 100 pounds of processed cannabis, a 9mm pistol, ammunition, and $1,600 in drug proceeds. Chen and his co-defendant, Xinwen Zhang, 71, of Boston, now face Class B felony charges — unlawful cultivation and drug trafficking — the kind of charges that can put you in prison for ten years, or get you deported.
It was the second time law enforcement had hit the same Harmony property. Deputies raided it in May 2024 and seized more than 1,200 plants, but no one was home.
Law enforcement would have to wait another eleven months to find Wenfeng Chen on the premises.
But one year before Chen was arrested with illicit drugs, cash, and a firearm, the Maine Wire photographed a 2017 Mercedes-Benz sedan bearing Massachusetts plates registered in Chen’s name at his Charles St. address in Malden, Mass.
The vehicle was parked at the site of a separate illicit cannabis grow, 51 Cider Hill Road in Corinna, where the local code enforcement officer had repeatedly denied requests from the owners to upgrade the electrical capacity because large-scale cannabis cultivation is illegal in that town.
Chen happened to share an address with Xiling Ou, 44, the man who owned the Corinna property until he gave it away, allegedly to his mother, Xiaoyu Lu of Guangdong Province, China.
The attorney who made that gift happen was Paul H. Mills — better known as the brother of Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D), the woman currently vying for the Democratic U.S. Senate nomination and a chance to square off against Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins.
Judge Rejects Anti-Marijuana Groups’ Motion To Block CBD And THC Medicare Coverage Plan, Setting Hearing For 4/20
A federal judge has denied a request from a coalition of anti-marijuana organizations that sought to immediately block the Trump administration’s initiative to cover hemp-derived CBD and THC products through Medicare from launching on Wednesday.
The groups’ overall lawsuit challenging the policy is still under consideration, however, with a hearing on their separate motion for a preliminary injunction scheduled for April 20, which coincidentally is known as the unofficial cannabis cultural holiday 4/20.
Judge Trevor N. McFadden on Tuesday rejected the request from Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) and nine other drug prevention groups to issue a temporary restraining order to halt the federal cannabis initiative, which is being facilitated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), from taking effect.
McFadden, in his one-page order, quoted case law holding that a temporary restraining order is an “extraordinary and drastic remedy” that can only be granted if a party makes a “clear showing that four factors, taken together, warrant relief: likely success on the merits, likely irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary relief, a balance of the equities in its favor, and accord with the public interest.”
“Having considered the arguments in Plaintiffs’ motion and at a motions hearing, the Court finds that Plaintiffs have not met this high standard,” the judge wrote. “The motion for a temporary restraining order is thus denied. The Court will consider Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction and motion to stay upon the completion of briefing.”
Defendants in the lawsuit—CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.—now have until April 9 to file briefs responding to the prohibitionist groups’ motion for a preliminary injunction. The plaintiffs then have a reply brief due on April 13, a week ahead of the 4/20 hearing on the matter.
The lawsuit comes as CMS is set to start covering CBD and THC products under select federal health insurance programs as a Substance Access Beneficiary Engagement Incentive (BEI) beginning on Wednesday.
Under the BEI, patients enrolled in specific federal health insurance programs could have up to $500 worth of hemp-derived products covered each year. The CBD-focused plan will also allow a certain amount of THC in products, but the agency said that the rules are subject to change if federal hemp policy changes, as is currently expected under a law set to take effect later this year.
Republicans Are Twice As Likely As Democrats To See Marijuana Use As Morally Wrong, Poll Shows
Americans across every demographic—age, gender, religion and political affiliation—all agree that using marijuana is not morally wrong, according to a new polling report from the Pew Research Center. However, Republicans are still twice as likely as Democrats to say consuming cannabis is a moral no-no, the survey results show.
The analysis was based on a recent poll that asked Americans about their views on the morality of a variety of behaviors and policies. Overall, 76 percent of U.S. adults said using marijuana is either morally acceptable or not a moral issue at all, compared to 23 percent who said the activity is immoral.
That puts marijuana use in roughly the same moral standing as getting a divorce and spanking children, at least from the average American perspective.
More Americans believe using marijuana is not morally wrong than those who feel the same about gambling, watching pornography, having an abortion, being gay, the death penalty and more.
Cannabis is considered decidedly less moral than alcohol, however, with only 16 percent of respondents calling it morally wrong to drink.
That said, a closer look at the demographic data on the marijuana question shows that, by and large, the prevailing opinion is that smoking marijuana doesn’t make someone a bad person.
The age breakdown for those who said cannabis use isn’t morally wrong shows little deviation among younger and older adults: 18-29 (79 percent), 30-49 (76 percent), 50-64 (77 percent) and 65+ (73 percent).
There’s also general uniformity in the belief that cannabis use is not morally wrong among people who subscribe to different religious denominations: Christian (72 percent), Protestant (73 percent), Catholic (74 percent), Jewish (85 percent). Atheists and agnostics were even less likely to regard marijuana use as immoral, with 98 percent and 94 percent percent describing the activity as morally acceptable or not a moral issue, respectively.
Men and women were equally likely to say using cannabis isn’t immoral, at 76 percent.
Army raises enlistment age to 42, removes waiver for marijuana possession
A major update to Army recruiting regulations this week raises the maximum age a recruit can join to 42, and removes a barrier to joining for recruits with a single legal conviction for marijuana or drug paraphernalia possession.
The Army’s previous limit was 35, though exceptions are occasionally made. The higher age limit brings the Army in line with other services’ limits of 41 in the Navy and 42 in the Air Force and Space Force, Kate Kuzminski, who studies military recruiting for the Center for a New American Security, told Task & Purpose.
Army recruiting officials have noted in recent years that the average age of recruits is increasing, with officials telling reporters in 2024 that the average recruit was 22 years, 4 months, and that it was still “going up.”
Kuzminski said the change has positives and negatives. According to a report she authored for the RAND Corporation, many older recruits scored higher on enlistment qualification tests than recruits who joined before 20. Those older recruits were also more likely to reenlist and be promoted than their younger peers.
However, older recruits were also less likely to graduate from basic training and had higher attrition rates.
The older enlistment cap is the latest in the military’s multi-billion-dollar overhaul of recruiting, launched after years of missed recruiting goals. The Army, the largest branch in the military, failed to meet annual recruiting goals in 2022 and 2023. Changes in recent years to the Army’s recruiting enterprise include installing a pre-boot camp prep course for recruits who do not initially meet fitness and academic standards and creating marketing schemes to move the Army’s messaging past the post-9/11 wars and appeal to Gen Z.
The changes also reflect a changing Army workforce with more education and job skills. In 2024, then-Army Secretary Christine Wormuth announced that the Army’s goal was to have one-third of the entire force to hold college degrees. For officers, the service has expanded its direct commissioning program for professionals who have worked in the tech sector for a few years and have expertise in artificial intelligence and space, in order to help bolster the Army’s technical knowledge across its formations.
Col. Angela Chipman, chief military personnel accessions & retention division said the enlistment age increase reflects the need for technical talent, even in the enlisted force.
“We’re kind of looking at a more mature audience that might have experience in technical fields,” Chipman said. “We need warrant officers with extreme technical capabilities, and those will come from the enlisted ranks.”
Marijuana laws vary between states
The Army also changed a specification in its waiver process for drug offenses. According to the regulation, recruits no longer need a waiver for a single conviction of possession of marijuana or possession of drug paraphernalia like bongs, roach clips, miniature spoons, and various pipes.
Under the previous regulation, a recruit with one conviction for possession of marijuana or drug paraphernalia required a waiver from officials in the Pentagon. Recruits previously had to wait 24 months to enlist, and would have to pass a drug test at a Military Entrance Processing Stations facility before their waiver could be approved.
Kuzminski said the waiver modification “accounts for changes in society.” She noted that the change is for a single offense but that recruits with a “pattern” of convictions or behavior would still need a waiver.
“The updated regulation allows for one mistake, which likely represents the bulk of potential recruits considering service in the Army,” Kuzminski said. “Reducing the number of characteristics that need to be reviewed for waivers frees up capacity for other candidates who need waivers, thus speeding up the process across the board and helping to ensure that the Army does not lose interested candidates.”
The looser approach to marijuana use comes as the broader military tightens its drug policies for troops currently serving. In recent years, the military added psychedelic mushrooms and products with kratom and related substances to its list of banned substances. Earlier this week, the Army said it will begin flagging all soldiers with positive drug tests — not just those with security clearances — to the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency.
And both Republican and Democratic in Congress have signaled a more lenient approach to recruits’ marijuana use — which is legal for recreational use in almost half of the U.S. and legal for medical use in the majority of states.
“It’s just us looking at, as the states continue to legalize marijuana versus those that don’t, and the federal government not yet legalizing,” Chipman said, “at what point are we hindering ourselves by holding people to this type of conviction that in some states is okay and some states isn’t?”
Cannabis compounds could reverse disease affecting one-third of adults
Compounds found in cannabis could provide a new roadmap for treating the world’s most common chronic liver disorder, according to a study released by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The research, published in the British Journal of Pharmacology, found that cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabigerol (CBG) significantly reduced liver fat and improved metabolic health in experimental models.
CBD is the more widely studied non-intoxicating cannabinoid, while CBG is a less common “precursor” cannabinoid from which CBD is formed.
Unlike THC, the primary psychoactive component in cannabis, these compounds do not produce a “high,” making them viable candidates for long-term medical treatment, the study suggests.
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) currently affects approximately one-third of the global adult population, according to health data.
The condition, which is closely linked to obesity and insulin resistance, has few approved pharmaceutical treatments, the researchers said, leaving patients to rely largely on lifestyle changes that can be difficult to maintain.
“Our findings identify a new mechanism by which CBD and CBG enhance hepatic energy and lysosomal function,” said lead study author Joseph Tam, director of the Multidisciplinary Center for Cannabinoid Research at Hebrew University, in a press release.
The study highlights a process called “metabolic remodeling,” in which the cannabis compounds created a “backup battery” for the liver by increasing levels of phosphocreatine, a high-energy molecule stored in muscle cells.
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