Examines marijuana use in the workplace, schools, and Armed Forces, describes marijuana's affect on the human body, and looks at the current efforts to reduce marijuana use

Significant changes have taken place in the policy landscape surrounding cannabis legalization, production, and use. During the past 20 years, 25 states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis and/or cannabidiol (a component of cannabis) for medical conditions or retail sales at the state level and 4 states have legalized both the medical and recreational use of cannabis. These landmark changes in policy have impacted cannabis use patterns and perceived levels of risk. However, despite this changing landscape, evidence regarding the short- and long-term health effects of cannabis use remains elusive. While a myriad of studies have examined cannabis use in all its various forms, often these research conclusions are not appropriately synthesized, translated for, or communicated to policy makers, health care providers, state health officials, or other stakeholders who have been charged with influencing and enacting policies, procedures, and laws related to cannabis use. Unlike other controlled substances such as alcohol or tobacco, no accepted standards for safe use or appropriate dose are available to help guide individuals as they make choices regarding the issues of if, when, where, and how to use cannabis safely and, in regard to therapeutic uses, effectively. Shifting public sentiment, conflicting and impeded scientific research, and legislative battles have fueled the debate about what, if any, harms or benefits can be attributed to the use of cannabis or its derivatives, and this lack of aggregated knowledge has broad public health implications. The Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids provides a comprehensive review of scientific evidence related to the health effects and potential therapeutic benefits of cannabis. This report provides a research agendaâ€"outlining gaps in current knowledge and opportunities for providing additional insight into these issuesâ€"that summarizes and prioritizes pressing research needs.

Written by experienced clinicians for practicing physicians and other health care providers, this timely handbook presents today’s available information on cannabis and its uses in all areas of patient care. Medical Marijuana: A Clinical Handbook summarizes what is currently known about the positive and negative health impacts of cannabis, detailed pharmacological profiles of both THC and CBD, considerations for each medical specialty, treatment approaches used by practicing clinicians, and insights into the history of cannabis and the current regulatory environment in the United States. This concise, easy-to-navigate guide is an invaluable resource for physicians and residents, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, and other clinicians who seek reliable clinical guidelines in this growing area of health care.

With full legalization seeming inevitable, it's time to shift the conversation—from whether recreational cannabis should be legalized to how. Weed Rules argues that it's time for states to abandon their "grudging tolerance" approach to legal weed and to embrace "careful exuberance." In this thorough and witty book, law professor Jay Wexler invites policy makers to responsibly embrace the enormous benefits of cannabis, including the joy and euphoria it brings to those who use it. The "grudging tolerance" approach has led to restrictions that are too strict in some cases—limiting how and where cannabis can be used, cultivated, marketed, and sold—and far too loose in others, allowing employers and police to discriminate against users. This book shows how focusing on joy and community can lead us to an equitable marijuana policy in which minority communities, most harmed by the war on drugs, play a leading role in the industry. Centering pleasure and fun as legitimate policy goals, Weed Rules puts forth specific policies to advocate for a more just, sensible, and joyous post-legalization society.

In “a brilliant antidote to all the…false narratives about pot” (American Thinker), an award-winning author and former New York Times reporter reveals the link between teenage marijuana use and mental illness, and a hidden epidemic of violence caused by the drug—facts the media have ignored as the United States rushes to legalize cannabis. Recreational marijuana is now legal in nine states. Advocates argue cannabis can help everyone from veterans to cancer sufferers. But legalization has been built on myths—that marijuana arrests fill prisons; that most doctors want to use cannabis as medicine; that it can somehow stem the opiate epidemic; that it is beneficial for mental health. In this meticulously reported book, Alex Berenson, a former New York Times reporter, explodes those myths, explaining that almost no one is in prison for marijuana; a tiny fraction of doctors write most authorizations for medical marijuana, mostly for people who have already used; and marijuana use is linked to opiate and cocaine use. Most of all, THC—the chemical in marijuana responsible for the drug’s high—can cause psychotic episodes. “Alex Berenson has a reporter’s tenacity, a novelist’s imagination, and an outsider’s knack for asking intemperate questions” (Malcolm Gladwell, The New Yorker), as he ranges from the London institute that is home to the scientists who helped prove the cannabis-psychosis link to the Colorado prison where a man now serves a thirty-year sentence after eating a THC-laced candy bar and killing his wife. He sticks to the facts, and they are devastating. With the US already gripped by one drug epidemic, Tell Your Children is a “well-written treatise” (Publishers Weekly) that “takes a sledgehammer to the promised benefits of marijuana legalization, and cannabis enthusiasts are not going to like it one bit” (Mother Jones).

Marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in Amer ica. Some 40% of the adult population has tried mari juana at least once. It is the third largest agricultural commodity in the nation and a $10 billion industry. In many areas of the country, marijuana production or sale is the largest moneymaker by far. In Florida, for ex ample, it ranks ahead of every business except tourism. It is also a widely misunderstood substance. An en tire generation of Americans grew up believing that marijuana was virtually risk-free. This belief persists, despite growing evidence of physical, psychological, and social harm that is caused by the drug. The worst victims of this misinformation are young people. They, of all groups, are the least equipped to uncover and objectively evaluate the evidence regarding marijuana. At the same time, they are the most at risk for long-term problems resulting from marijuana use. v PREFACE vi As physicians we must make every effort to guide young people away from this drug. There are very significant dangers in young people experimenting with marijuana. The drug detoxification center at our hospital-and centers throughout the country-are packed with middle-class young people who started out smoking pot. None of them intended to become addicted, but the fact is that young people are more vulnerable to the influence of the drugs and become dependent easily. They may escalate usage, and progress to use of other drugs.

The trend toward liberalizing medical and recreational marijuana use is increasing the obligation on clinicians to provide useful information to the public. This book summarizes the science all healthcare professionals need to know in order to provide objective and relevant information to a variety of patients, from recreational and medicinal users to those who use regularly, and to adolescents and worried parents. The author brings two and a half decades of studying cannabinoid research, and over forty years' experience in psychiatric and addiction medicine practice, to shed light on the interaction between marijuana and the brain. Topics range from how marijuana produces pleasurable sensations, relaxation and novelty (the 'high'), to emerging medical uses, effects of regular use, addiction, and policy. Principles of motivational interviewing are outlined to help clinicians engage patients in meaningful, non-judgmental conversations about their experiences with marijuana. An invaluable guide for physicians, nurses, psychologists, therapists, and counsellors.

With relatable clinical vignettes that illustrate the applicability of each chapter’s content, as well as key chapter points that summarize major themes, Marijuana and Mental Health is the definitive, single source of comprehensive information on marijuana and mental health in modern American society. Balanced, focused, and highly readable, chapters address topics such as the effects of marijuana on the brain and mind, marijuana-related policy and legislation, the complex link between marijuana use and psychotic disorders, synthetic cannabinoids, and the treatment and prevention of marijuana misuse. Beyond offering clinical and research psychiatrists, psychiatric residents and fellows, clinical psychologists, and psychiatric nurses a comprehensive but concise compilation of research in this area, this reference informs clinical mental health practice as well as policy decisions by articulating the connection between marijuana and mental health, particularly in the United States.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the psychiatry and neuroscience of Cannabis sativa (marijuana), with particular emphasis on psychotic disorders. It outlines developments in our understanding of the human cannabinoid system, and links this knowledge to clinical and epidemiological facts about the impact of cannabis on mental health. Clinically focused chapters review not only the direct psychomimetic properties of cannabis, but also the impact consumption has on the courses of evolving or established mental illness such as schizophrenia. A number of controversial issues are critically explored, including whether a discrete 'cannabis psychosis' exists, and whether cannabis can actually cause schizophrenia. Effects of cannabis on mood, notably depression, are reviewed, as are its effects on cognition. This book will be of interest to all members of the mental health team, as well as to neuroscientists and those involved in drug and alcohol research.

Handbook of Cannabis and Related Pathologies: Biology, Pharmacology, Diagnosis, and Treatment is the first book to take an interdisciplinary approach to the understanding of cannabis use and misuse. Recent worldwide trends toward decriminalizing marijuana for medical use have increased legal use of the drug and recreational use remains high, making cannabis one of the most commonly used drugs. Cannabis has a wide range of adverse neurological effects, and use and abuse can lead to physical, social, and psychopathological issues that are multifarious and complex. Effective understanding and treatment requires knowledge of the drug's effects from across scientific disciplines. This book provides an overview of the biological and pharmacological components of the cannabis plant, outlines its neurological, social, and psychopathological effects, assists in the diagnosis and screening for use and dependency, and aids researchers in developing effective treatments for cannabis-related issues and disorders. Fully illustrated, with contributions from internationally recognized experts, it is the go-to resource for neuroscientists, pharmacologists, pathologists, public-health workers, and any other researcher who needs an in-depth and cross-disciplinary understanding of cannabis and its effects. - Comprehensive chapters include an abstract, key facts, mini dictionary of terms, and summary points - Presents illustrations with at least six figures, tables, and diagrams per chapter - Provides a one-stop-shopping synopsis of everything to do with cannabis and its related pathology, from chemicals and cells, individuals and communities, and diagnosis and treatment - Offers an integrated and informed synopsis of the complex issues surrounding cannabis as a substance, its use, and its misuse