by Tom Henderson

Credit: AP

Just because the folks next door are drug dealers doesn’t mean they’re bad parents.
In fact, researchers at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children say the children of couples who operate marijuana grow rooms are often extremely healthy, physically and emotionally. And they rarely use illegal drugs.
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reports researchers question whether parents caught growing marijuana should automatically lose custody of their children.
“After examining 75 of the kids over several years, we came to very clear conclusions that a vast majority of these kids are doing well — well fed, well kept, doing well in school and developing well,” lead researcher Gideon Koren of the University of Toronto tells the CBC. “Taking a small child from his or her parents in a well-adapted environment causes fear, anxiety, confusion and sadness.”
 
Read complete article here:
http://www.parentdish.com/2011/07/27/the-kids-are-all-right-even-if-their-parents-grow-pot/

By Jonathan Walczak
 
 
It’s intended to help animals manage chronic pain, but you may be tempted to slip it on Fido when he gets a little too rambunctious.
 
A Seattle company is developing a medical marijuana patch for humans and animals, and intends to press for a change in state law that would allow veterinarians to prescribe medical pot for pets, something that isn’t currently allowed.

Jim Alekson, a spokesman for Medical Marijuana Delivery Systems, said in an e-mail that the company is in the process of perfecting the patch. “It is our intention, once the patch delivery system is perfected, to approach states for approval to use the patch for veterinary use,” he said.
MMDS, which will market its product under the name Tetracan, announced in February that it had acquired the patent for the patch, which was developed in 2000 by Walter Cristobal, a member of the Santa Ana Pueblo Tribe of New Mexico.
“In the 1990s, while seeking to alleviate his mother’s arthritis pain, Cristobal started developing a topical solution that could deliver the therapeutic benefits of marijuana through the skin,” writes Culture Magazine, which describes itself as the “#1 medical marijuana lifestyle magazine. Cristobal received a patent in 2000.
 
Read complete article here:
http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/dailyweekly/2011/07/coming_soon_a_medical_pot_patc.php

By Steve Elliott of Toke of the Town
 
A marijuana component helps mitigate cocaine addiction in mice, according to a new study, lending further evidence to the notion that marijuana is an “exit” drug and could become the next big anti-addiction therapy.
The discovery by researchers in China and Maryland was announced in the July 2011 issue of Nature Neuroscience magazine, reports Stephen C. Webster at The Raw Story.
Cannabidiol (CBD), a medically useful component of marijuana that does not produce a “high,” effectively turns down a receptor in the brain that is stimulated by cocaine, the study found.
Scientists used a synthetic version of cannabidiol, called JWH-133, to see how mice given regular doses of cocaine might respond. The found the mice dramatically reduced their intravenous cocaine intake — by up to 60 percent — after being given JWH-133.
“It’s a very significant reduction,” said Zheng-Xiong Xi, the lead author of the study and a researcher at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), reports Maia Szalavitz at Time.
“It’s extremely exciting,” said Antonello Bonci, scientific director for intramural research at NIDA.
 
 
Read complete article here:
http://www.theweedblog.com/new-study-shows-marijuana-derivative-fights-cocaine-addiction-in-mice/

Oil extracted from the marijuana plant has been shown to have extraordinary cancer-fighting properties.
By David Jay Brown

Valerie Corral, Santa Cruz Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM)

 
A number of recent studies have confirmed the cancer-fighting, tumor-shrinking value of medical marijuana. 
Although the first study to demonstrate that cannabis has anti-carcinogenic properties was done  back in 1974 by the U.S. National Institute of Health, more recent studies, which began abroad in 1999, have shown that cannabis can effectively and safely treat many forms of cancer. 
Since 1999, there have now been a number of studies that clearly demonstrate that cannabis has the ability to effectively shrink tumors, kill cancer cells, and safely treat many aggressive forms of cancer, including brain, breast, skin, prostate, and lung cancer. 
 
Read complete article here:
http://santacruz.patch.com/articles/cannabis-oil-fights-cancer

By Alexandra Swanberg | New Mexico Daily Lobo
 
The younger generation is blowing away the smoke screen used to incite the public’s disapproval of marijuana.
The New Mexico Medical Marijuana and Natural Healing Expo is the brainchild of Aaron Kushmor and Ben Marshall III. The plant’s natural healing benefits, Marshall said, are among its thousands of discovered uses.
“Hemp essentially could replace all paper needs, even protein,” he said. “They’re the best proteins for your body and easier to digest. Honestly, the applications go on. … We’re the 48th poorest state in the nation. Why not create some new jobs, give this industry a real chance here, really make it work and make some money? We all feel this industry could actually do that for this state.”
 
Read complete article here:
http://www.dailylobo.com/index.php/article/2011/07/organizers_say_marijuana_has_natural_healing_power

Cannabis’ active components show promise in halting the progression of certain neurodegerative disorders and should be evaluated in clinical trials, according to a review published online in theBritish Journal of Pharmacology.
An international team of researchers from Spain and Israel assessed the potential of cannabinoids to moderate Huntington’s disease (HD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD), two degenerative brain disorders that are mostly unresponsive to conventional treatment therapies.
“Cannabinoids are promising medicines to slow down disease progression in neurodegenerative disorders including Parkinson’s disease (PD) and Huntington’s disease (HD), two of the most important disorders affecting the basal ganglia,” authors reported.
 
Read complete article here:
http://www.theweedblog.com/marijuana-compounds-offer-promising-treatment-option-for-neurodegenerative-disorders/

The FINANCIAL — The Young Hollywood Studio, the celebrity-centric hub where stars stop by to “dish ” on their latest projects, has inspired the latest dish at Windows Lounge at Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills.
Bursting with the freshest farmer’s market ingredients to keep young stars and starlets glowing and beautiful, the Young Hollywood Salad also spotlights the season’s hottest health trend – the hemp seed.
 
Read complete article here:
http://finchannel.com/news_flash/Restaurants/91241_Four_Seasons_Hotel_Los_Angeles_at_Beverly_Hills_Debuts_the_Young_Hollywood_Salad/

Scott Morgan

Associate Editor, StoptheDrugWar.org
 
One of the most deeply imbedded ideas in our political culture is the notion that the public supports harsh drug laws and will punish politicians who deviate from the tough-on-drugs script. Unfortunately, that’s precisely why a lot of good ideas never make it out of the conference room. It goes something like this:

INDIANAPOLIS — When state Sen. Karen Tallian first floated the idea of introducing a bill to look at legalizing marijuana, her Statehouse colleagues warned the Portage Democrat that it could kill her chances for re-election. [Herald Bulletin]

One could hardly begin to imagine how many times this exact exchange has taken place in political circles, but what makes this story unique is that Sen. Tallian understood something her colleagues did not:

But the 60-year-old mother of three thought there might be some public support for taking the crime out of pot, so she sent out an informal survey, via email, to constituents in her northwest Indiana district. Within 72 hours of sending the email, she received more than 2,000 responses. Almost all of them were supportive, and most of the supportive ones said the state should treat marijuana like alcohol: Control its sale and tax it as a revenue enhancer.
“I was floored by the response,” Tallian said. Emboldened by the support, Tallian filed a bill last January to begin a serious conversation…

 
In so many ways, all it takes to move this issue forward is a willingness to ignore the people who don’t know how to have a serious conversation about marijuana. They will tell you that it’s not important, even though it obviously is. They will tell you that no one cares, even though almost everyone does. And they will tell you that you’ll make thousands of enemies, when new allies and friends are waiting around every corner to pledge their support and stand alongside any political leader wise enough to know that the time for change is at hand.
If there exists a political price to be paid in the marijuana debate, it will not befall those who’ve leant their voices to the movement for reform. Rather, it is those who’ve ignored the polls, ignored the headlines, and ignored the message sent by voters on one ballot measure after another who will one day find themselves struggling to adapt to the new politics of marijuana in America.
 
Read complete article here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-morgan/if-you-think-supporting-m_b_902208.html?ref=fb&src=sp

By: Pamela Jayne
At 70 years old, Joe is a large and outspoken man who is a passionate advocate of the Rick Simpson method of using highly concentrated cannabis oil to cure (yes, CURE!) cancer. He is the owner of a successful towing company, a husband of 30 years, a father and grandfather. He is also a veteran of the Vietnam War having served 23 years in the U.S. Navy. He now serves as a deacon in a Baptist church in National City and as an advocate for the miraculous healing power of the cannabis plant. Before being diagnosed with two different types of cancer, Joe had never even experimented with cannabis – not even once.
It was during a routine blood work before having surgery for an old shoulder injury when doctors discovered Joe had a form of cancer called Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. Fortunately, it was caught very early. Insistent upon going the natural, holistic route to ensure that the CLL didn’t, in his words, “get out of hand,” Joe turned to the internet for information that the modern medical establishment is sadly lacking. He soon came across Rick Simpson’s website, www.phoenixtears.ca, which proved to be, quite literally, a lifesaver. For those who are not familiar with Rick Simpson and his cannabis oil, you should know that it may soon be the cornerstone of alternative medicine, especially in the treatment of cancer and diabetes.
 
Read complete article here:
http://nugmag.com/2011/07/patient-profile-joe/