It’s been 88 years since the first showing of the exploitation Reefer Madness, a lurid depiction of the evils of cannabis addiction by drug-crazed teens. The cult-classic film has long been a contender for designation as the worst movie ever made.
The legalization of recreational cannabis has opened up possibilities for those who were unable to use this plant as medicine under New York State medical marijuana laws passed in 2016. Those rules, among the most restrictive in the country at that time, were relaxed in 2021. They now include a longer list of qualifying conditions.
Any adult 21 years of age or older can now purchase cannabis at a dispensary for the purpose of medicating themselves without a doctor’s involvement, as they might use any over-the-counter drug.
The recently opened adult-use Big Gas Dispensary in New Paltz, owned by Zymia Lewis and Kareem Haynsworth, is part of a state program to promote social and economic equity in the legal cannabis industry by helping qualifying applicants with the upfront capital costs of starting a business.
Several of the rules around medical marijuana were relaxed as a result of the Marihuana Regulation & Taxation Act (including a new tendency to change that antiquated spelling). Under current state law, any person who can legally prescribe controlled substances need only take a two-hour class for certification to prescribe cannabis.
The list of qualifying conditions has been expanded. In 2016, it included cancer, HIV/AIDS, ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease), Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, intractable spasticity caused by damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord, epilepsy, inflammatory bowel disease, neuropathies and Huntington’s disease. In 2021 the list added “post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), pain that degrades health and functional capability where the use of medical cannabis is an alternative to opioid use, substance use disorder, Alzheimer’s, muscular dystrphy, dystonia, rheumatoid arthritis, autism or any other condition certified by the practitioner,” according to information provided on the Office of Cannabis Maagement website.
These changes make it easier to obtain cannabis for a medical reason. Additionally, medical marijuana methods have also been liberalized in light of the recreational rules. Patients can smoke cannabis, and they can grow it at home as well.
Getting that medical advice can be challenging. A doctor at one local clinic whose institution was a federally qualified health center, “All we can say is that marijuana and THC are illegal drugs of abuse.”
A New Paltz professional certified to prescribe marijuana did not respond to a request for an interview. Nor did anyone at a Kingston-area medical marijuana dispensary.
“It works for me personally”
Lagusta Yearwood, a New Paltz chocolatier who has created a cannabis brand called Soft Power Sweets, was willing to offer offered some personal insights, but stressed that “even though there are a billion studies backing up the health effects of cannabis, I believe that license holders are advised to shy away from specific health claims” for any particular product.
Processed cannabis purchased at dispensaries includes the amount of THC and CBD on the label. THC is the chemical compound that produces the high of mrijuana, as well as increasing heart rate and appetite. CBD has no psychoactive effects, and is associated with relaxation, pain relief, and a reduction in both sezures and inflammation.
“I’m a huge CBD proponent because I’ve found it to work for me personally so well in terms of calming anxiety and focusing my mind, as well as for pain relief,” said Yearwood. At Soft Power Sweets, “we use a full-spectrum CBD distillate that is less processed and contains many cannabinoids, not just CBD, which I feel helps my body process the CBD most efficiently because of the ‘entourage effect’ where various cannabinoids work together efficiently instead of stripping them into components. Similarly to eating local produce and foraged ingredients to help with allergy symptoms as a sort of immunization, I feel that local cannabis is most beneficial to keep my personal microbiome as tied to my local ecosystem as possible.”
While the ratio of THC and CBD can give a broad idea of the effects of a particlar cannabis product, zeroing in on treating specific symptoms requires rsearch and experimentation. Every product legally sold in New York has a QR code that links to more information, including a laboratory report.
The primary purpose of this report is to ensure that toxins didn’t get introduced into the product, but it can also provide insight into the active chemicals. The broadest difference among cannabis products is whether they are sativa, indica, or hybrid. Sativa tends to have a higher THC content, indica is heavier on CBD, and hybrid chemovars are intended to create a balanced effect. These are also sometimes called type I (high THC), type II (mix of CBD and THC), and type III (high CBD). THC increases the heart rate and creates an energizing effect, while CBD induces relaxation and pain relief.
Some lab reports, such as the ones for Soft Power Sweets, also include a terpene profile. Terpenes are fragrant oils found in many plants; over 2,000 different kinds have been discovered, and at least 200 of them have been identified in cannabis. These chemicals do not create the primary effects of cannabis in the body, but how these chemicals interact makes a difference in the results. For example myrcene, a terpene that’s also present in mangoes, has been associated with the entourage effect that Yearwood referenced, the way that cannabinoids interact with and are processed in the body.
The need for intense research would be eased if more doctors felt that they could become certified to prescribe cannabis without running afoul of federal regulators. Even if that were the case, the wording of state regulations suggests that not every doctor would be willing to treat with cannabis for every possible condition. For the time being, medical patients must bear most of the responsibility if they wish to treat their conditions using cannabis.
Quality is important
“In terms of quality,” advised Yearwood, “it’s just like any other ingredient: finding high-quality cannabis products has huge implications on your local economy and small businesses, the local ecosystem (in terms of farms and farming practices) and your own health. When you buy a full-spectrum CBD product or a live rosin THC product you’re getting a minimally-processed cannabis edible from cannabis that you know is grown in New York state and subject to the [state] regulations. You’re ensuring that you’re getting a cannabis experience that is better than something from an illegal dispensary that isn’t properly dosed and regulated and that can have huge bodily effects.
“As someone who tries to eat a whole-foods diet, I want my cannabis to be minimally processed without harsh solvents or intense chemical processes. What I’ve noticed working in the cannabis world is that the variances in quality are huge and super-poorly understood, particularly with CBD, which I find to be a powerful product that is very misunderstood because of the illegal marketplace being flooded with very low-quality product.”
Once a patient has zeroed in on a chemovar that seems well-suited to one’s symptoms, and is satisfied with the quality of a product, it’s time for experimentation. One should start with a very low dose of the product, and keep track of the results. Slowly increasing the dose over time will help pinpoint how much it will take to get the desired improvement in symptoms. This should also minimize undesirable effects, such as snoozing the day away or overeating due to an unexpected spike in appetite.
Anyone taking cannabis, whether for recreation or as medicine, should advise their doctor and pharmacist in order to avoid doing more harm than good. Even professionals who are not certified to treat with cannabis can do a better job if they are kept apprised of a patient’s full health picture.
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