Reefer MEDness

When you take a prescription medication, it goes into your body, does what it is supposed to and then leaves. Part of leaving the body often involves the medication getting broken down or metabolized by enzymes in the liver. One of the biggest medication metabolizing enzyme systems in the liver is called the Cytochrome P450 enzymes. Why should you care? Because cannabis can effect the Cytochrome P450 enzymes. That could cause there to be too much or too little of a prescription medication in your body to do its job properly. Dr. Lyndsey Anderson and her colleagues at the Lambert Initiative for Cannabinoid Therapeutics in Sydney, Australia have looked at how cannabis and the Cytochrome P450 enzymes interact. Let’s have a listen!Lambert Initiative for Cannabinoid Therapeutics - web siteLyndsey Anderson - LinkedInMusic by:Emre Cords-Before We Decided to Fall -YouTube(Yes we got a SOCAN membership to use this song all legal and proper like)Additional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Akeem Gardner and his team at Canurta are delving deep into the hidden corners of the cannabis plant. They want to know if we extract this cannflavin, this terpene, this cannabinoid, or one of the other thousands of molecules in the cannabis plant, can it treat a disease? Last year at CannMed 23, he talked to us about how cannflavins could be used to treat a particularly nasty brain tumour called glioblastoma. Since then, Akeem has hit the road and brought the gospel of cannabis plant medicine to conferences and other canna-curious folks across North America, Europe, and as far away as the United Arab Emirates.This year Team Canurta is looking at neurodegenerative diseases like ALS and even aging itself. They are using artificial intelligence to help screen where in the cannabis plant to focus their research. They are partnering with Universities to get academic papers turned into potential treatments. Akeem is one of the featured speakers at CannMed 24 again this year. We’d love to see you in Florida at CannMed 24 in person, and here is a preview of Akeem’s presentation!Canurta - canurta.comAkeem Gardner - LinkedInMusic by:Dead Bob - White Stone Eyes -YouTube(Yes we got a SOCAN membership to use this song all legal and proper like)Additional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

More than 200,000 Canadians are registered Medical Cannabis patients. Due to a cumbersome national system, many of these individuals discover the benefits of Cannabis alone, with little therapeutic expertise to guide them. Learning about your medicine or just trying to access your medicine, these tasks are made easier when engaged with a business like Tantus Health; a Medical Cannabis Dispensary. Their consultants design natural wellness plans to educate individuals and provide personal guides to alleviate those frustrating unknowns that come when using Cannabis as medicine. In this episode, Kirk and Trevor discover a Canadian licensed medical cannabis company who: provides quality medicine consistently, forms strong relationships with their patients, and helps west coast first responders suffering from PTSD. With Tantus Health, you are not alone with your prescribed cannabis.Tantus Health Co - tantushealthco.comMusic by:Powder Blues Band - Boppin’ with the Blues -YouTube(Yes we got a SOCAN membership to use this song all legal and proper like)Additional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

We’ve got another amazing group of attendees from CannMed 23!Joe ThompsonOne evening they said dinner was on Lanai Beach. In Manitoba, if you are at a conference and someone says dinner is on Lanai Beach, then Lanai Beach is the name of a room. But in Florida, they actually meant dinner was on a beach. That sounds like a lovely idea, unless it is over 30 C and there is no shade. Thankfully, I brought a ball cap for my bald head and I met Dr. Joe Thompson also looking for some shade beside a pole.Dr. Thompson trained is a pediatrician, but now is the President & CEO of the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement. They have a program where they are going to analyze the data of people who got medical cannabis in Arkansas and see what happened to Health Outcomes. You want to hear about how that study will be done.Leah JohnsonDr. Leah Johnson Pharm D is a pharmacist and we met her in the Poster Hallway. Her Poster was about palliative care patients in California. Her group believes that if patients have access to cannabinoid medicine during palliative care, that will promote a better quality of life for the patients. Dr. Leah helps patients with their cannabis therapy and is a Cannabis Speaker and Educator across the US. She is on the Executive of the Pharmacist Cannabis Coalition of California (PCCC).Akeem GardnerI met Akeem during the opening reception of CannMed 23. I didn’t know anyone at the conference yet, so thankfully, he came up to me, read my name tag and introduced himself. Soon we discovered we were both from Canada, and we laughed over the fact the sliders were taken away too quickly. He told me he was nervous about a main stage talk he was giving. Now I understand why. He was giving a very technical, science heavy talk to a room full of cannabis doctors and researchers. But he killed it during his talk. He even handled challenges from the audience. I got to collect some audio from Akeem right after his talk. He’s from Mississauga. He’s a huge basketball fan. He has a nephew who Uncle Akeem really wants to become the next Lebron James. But for our story, Akeem is a Canadian lawyer turned hemp farmer turned CEO of the BioTech company Canurta Inc.His talk was about cannaflavins and their potential to treat glioblastoma, a common and aggressive form of brain cancer.Bruce MacklerWas involved with Prairie Plant Systems in Flin Flon when all “legal” Canadian Government Cannabis was grown in a mine in 2000. That became Cannimed in Saskatoon. And that got bought out by Aurora. Former lawyer that fought cases against the FDA. Former immunologist. His company, Ethicann, is developing a sublingual tablet for Multiple Sclerosis as a competitor to Stativex.Joe Thompson -LinkedInLeah Johnson - LinkedInAkeem Gardener LinkedInAkeem’s CannMed23 TalkBruce Mackler - LinkedInMusic by: The Tragically Hip - So Hard Done ByAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Philippe Lucas, formerly of Tilray, comes on the discuss the TOPS study. It looked at around 2000 medical cannabis patients across Canada prospectively and gather tons of data. Some of the most interesting findings include medicating with cannabis seems to reduce opioid use and the use of prescription medications in general. Plus, there was no signal that the study participants wanted more and more cannabis which implies limited drug seeking and addition behaviors from medical cannabis. Numbers, data, cannabis, a great chat with Philippe, are you as excited as Trevor about this one? Have a listen.Philippe Lucas,PhD - LinkedInSABI Mind - sabimind.comTilray Observational Patient Study (TOPS) - articleMusic by:Emma Peterson - Hurt Like Hell -YouTubeFYI - Emma is also a nurse. Kirk just wants to point out nurses really do rule the world!(Yes we got a SOCAN membership to use this song all legal and proper like)Additional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Imagine being so good at your job that everyone knows you, but not by your face nor by your name. Jorge Cervantes (an alias) put on a disguise in 1983 and started sharing his plant knowledge with all people. In these forty years he has published more than 50 gardening books; many of which focus on growing that Schedule One drug we call cannabis. This is why he lived in the closest. During the DEA’s “War on Drug” years, many of Cervante’s friends were arrested while he kept on teaching. In 2010, George F. Van Patten dropped the pseudonym and disguise to travel the world openly exploring the cannabis plant. In this episode, we learn his back story and Jorge shares his preference with growing cannabis outside; in soil. He has also recently published a free online resource called the Cannabis Encyclopedia.Jorge Cervantes - jorges-cervantes.comMusic by:Cypress Hill -Yo Quiero Fumar- YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

We are in an opioid crisis. Wouldn’t it be great if we had another tool to taper people to a lower opioid dose or off their opioids altogether? A group of almost 20 experts got together and drew up consensus guidelines on how to taper opioids with cannabis. We got Aaron Sihota - Pharmacist, Dr. Brennan K. Smith, PhD, and Dr. Colleen O’Connell MD from the consensus guidelines group together virtually to discuss how the guidelines were drawn up and how cannabis can help fight the opioid crisisMusic by:Desiree Dorion - Sometimes I Drink -YouTubeWatch the Video! You get to see Dauphin and a favorite local watering hole!(Yes we got a SOCAN membership to use this song all legal and proper like)Additional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Ahmed Labied – Morocco - At the opening reception of CannMed 23, there were all these people with green t-shirts that said Morocco. Trevor introduced himself and was told he had to talk to Ahmed Labied. Ahmed explained that in August 2023 there should be the first legal crop of cannabis coming off the field in Morocco and that they’re organizing a cannabis conference in Morocco in November 2023.Texas A&M - Everything is bigger in Texas. These tall gentlemen from Texas A&M are all about hemp. Russell Jessup is an Associate Professor Texas A&M. Clayton Moore is a Student Researcher at Texas A&M in AgriLife Soil & Crop Sciences. David Baltensperger is a Professor and the Head of Soil & Crop Sciences at Texas A&M. Listen to hear what Texas A&M has been doing with hemp. Cathie Hiegel - Hear Cathie’s winding road from cytotechnologist to writing the textbook, “A Microscopic View of Medicinal Cannabis”. It really is a very well referenced, easy to read text on Cannabis.Markus Roggen - Our Germany, American, Canadian chemist. Markus runs Delic labs at UBC in Vancouver, BC. Although it really has nothing to do with the high-powered chemistry his company does every day, Markus is a little obsessed with cannabis names. He found that every year when he gets new students, he has to re-explain cannabis nomenclature. He wondered if he could develop a new classification system for cannabis. Long time cannabis aficionados may hate this, but the rest of us might really like it.  Ahmed Labied - LinkedInClayton Moore -LinkedInDavid Baltensperger - LinkedInRussell Jessup - LinkedIn -his talk at CannMed 23 - YouTubeCathie Hiegel - websiteMarkus Roggen - LinkedIn - -his talk at CannMed 23 - YouTubeMusic by: CROSBY, STILLS & NASH - Marrakesh Express -YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - Facebook, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Terry O'Regan has spent his career in the pharmaceutical industry. He has worked for several Big Pharma companies including ones that have developed important treatments for neurological diseases like Multiple Sclerosis.Terry had heard there was a class of therapeutics for neurological conditions that pharmaceutical companies weren't working on, cannabinoids. Terry kept hearing from neurologists that cannabinoids held great promise for neurological conditions.Enter Brains Bioceutical. Brains is involved in trials around the world looking at phytochemicals including cannabinoids. Trevor and Terry discuss how cannabis medicine is moving into the pharmaceutical space and how all our "Brains" could be better with the right cannabinoids. Come have a listen.Brains Bioceutical - brainsbioceutical.comTerry O'Regan - LinkedInMusic by: The Sean Taylor Band - YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Bernardo Carreira the owner, and founder of 8000 Kicks believes hemp is the past and future of textile manufacturing. His business goal is to leave a legacy. In this legacy, hemp becomes mainstream and the most ubiquitous fiber available in the textile industry. This small European company creates shoes using the strongest canvas fiber available, with soles made of algal blooms. While continuously monitoring international sustainable manufacturing processes, 8000 Kicks produces shoes that are both waterproof and breathable guaranteeing no toxic substances are used. His business, started with his 77-year-old grandmother, builds running shoes, casual shoes, Chelsea Boots, back packs, belts, socks, and accessaries. In this episode, Kirk and Trevor learn how a small business created a durable Chelsea boot Kirk now wears as his casual winter shoe.8000 Kicks - 8000kicks.comAmbassador Program (Deal for you, Support for us) - HereMusic by:Portugal.The Man - Feel It Still- YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Canadians are changing their perspective of cannabis. People are using it as medicine and access has never been easier. Why is this bad? Why should anyone care how we access our medicinal cannabis? Canada is one of the few countries with federally legal cannabis. However, Canadians are not all benefiting from the creation of the Cannabis Act. There are barriers doing cannabis clinical research. Many prescribers and provincial health systems still refuse to help patients safely access medicinal cannabis despite legalization. This is just not good health care according to Dr. Lynda Balneaves. Her team set out to quantify patients’ hurdles with the Medical Cannabis Access and Experiences in Canada Study. In this episode, Kirk and Trevor explore how medical cannabis is different from recreational cannabis and how the status quo of lumping them together is just not good for patient care…Lynda Balneaves - LinkedInMusic by:Kid by The Revivalists - YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion - desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Living without alcohol contamination may be an oxymoronic assertion for a licensed producer, specializing in cannabinoids extraction, to make. Typically, alcohol is a common solvent used to extract cannabinoids from cannabis plants. Trevor and Kirk are introduced to a new business in Dauphin. It partners with local hemp farmers to create a cannabis oil. Master Extractor Richard Spatola shares his origin story while sharing a meal in a restaurant. Afterwards, he takes the listeners into his processing plant to explain how he pulls out individual cannabinoids from hemp and cannabis plants to make alcohol-free oils. He and his team believe their process is the future of medical cannabis oils. This episode goes deep into how time, pressure, and temperature are the key components to producing solventless cannabis oils for those consumers preferring products without residual solvents in their medicine.Music by:Cake - I Will Survive - YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

“David Crosby, I read your chart man” is how Kirk starts his long-awaited chat with one of pop-culture’s most notorious Cannabis influencers. In 50-years, David Crosby has had a very public relationship with cannabis, addictions, incarceration, and relationships, which he willingly discusses. With thoughtful understanding that these past behaviours are well reported elsewhere, Kirk digs into current events asking his guest to speak to his new relationship with legal and medicinal cannabis. They discuss his involvement with NORML, his “Mighty Croz” branding, focusing mostly on his medical uses of cannabis; they even exchange their wives’ cookie recipe and how cannabis has become a very calculated element of David Crosby’s day-to-day creative life-style.David Crosby - WikipediaMighty Croz Additional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

A short intro for the eminent Dr. Ethan Russo is challenging. Ethan Russo is a neurologist who explored the Amazon rain forest in the 90's to explore medicinal plants with aboriginal tribes. He returned to the USA and became interested in medicinal cannabis. He quickly became an expert in the field, and worked as a consultant for GW Pharmaceuticals. Later, as a Senior Medical Advisor for GW, he was involved with the development of Sativex and Epidiolex.Dr. Russo founded CReDO Science, who create innovative products and services related to cannabis and the endocannabinoid system. Trevor and Dr. Russo discuss Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome (CHS). It is a relatively rare, but very unpleasant condition that causes some heavy users of cannabis to be very nauseous and vomit a lot. Dr. Russo and collaborators have developed a genetic test that may be able to predict who will get CHS and thus who might want to avoid THC containing cannabis altogether.Then Trevor and Dr. Russo discuss THCV. Come hear about all the potential indications for this lesser known cannabinoid.Make sure you listen to the very, very end of this episode for a hidden my cannabis story.Ethan Russo Website - ethanrusso.orgCannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome Survey and Genomic Investigation - articleCHS DNA test - what-is-chs.comMusic by: Nelson Little - High Road - YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

The fact marijuana heightens the musical experience is no secret. We know both listeners and players have enhanced their musical experiences through the use of this plant for over 100 years. This episode links cannabis to music through the stories told by acclaimed musicologist John Einarson. We follow a path of early jazz players influencing Canadian singer-song-writer Ian Tyson, who in turn influenced Bob Dylan, who in turn influenced The Beatles, to produce their iconic cannabis inspired album Rubber Soul. Einarson, author of 14 biographies of various musicians, tells stories with weed-inspired songs weaving through his deep narrative, as we learn how musicians created some of our most iconic songs under the influence of cannabis. Some very important pot smoking entertainers are discussed, such as Barbara Streisand sharing reefer with Peter Sellers and Neil Young testifying for his brother during a marijuana trial. Although cannabis is a very popular mind-altering substance used by musicians, Einarson believes it may actually pale compared to other psychedelic substances used in the industry. But that is another story for another episode. For now, this is a highly-entertaining episode produced, unlike any other from the ReeferMEDness team.Music:Steppenwolf - The PusherLinks:John Einarson Remembers Facebook Group Winnipeg Free Press Bio Books Topographic EEG Changes Accompanying Cannabis-Induced Alteration of Music Perception— Cannabis as a Hearing Aid? The Space between the Notes Research on Cannabis and Music Perception Additional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Did Jesus die on the cross? Was Moses influenced by cannabis when speaking to the Lord? Are Christian Churches embracing Cannabis? First up we meet the founding member of Christian Cannabis, Craig Gross. Once known as the “Porn Pastor,” Gross has a new message for Christian leaders. We learn how cannabis facilitated his personal journey and how he came to a cross roads. Gross once focused on helping porn-addicted Christians kick their habit. Now he is focused on how Christians can be healed by this ancient plant. Next we explore the origins of cannabis. Researcher Chris Bennett connects cannabis to world religion and how it spread from one culture to another. He speaks to how biblical Prophets, Knights Templars, and the Messiah himself, were connected to cannabis by reframing our trusted biblical stories. Bennett says cannabis has been part of human history from the beginning. The legalization of cannabis demands philosophical discussions and these two guests bring a deep conversion to what may be our most controversial episode yet.Music:The Drifting Cossackshttps://www.facebook.com/thedriftingcossacks/ (Yes we got a SOCAN membership to use this song all legal and proper like) Links:Craig Gross - Christian Cannabis - www.christiancannabis.comInstagram - @christian.cannabis Chris Bennet - Urban Shaman - www.urbanshaman.netAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

In this episode, Kirk and Trevor review “The Cannabis Cancer Connection” by Dr. Joe D. Goldstrich. Dr. Joe is a cardiologist who, in his retirement, became a self-descripted “cannabis oncologist”. He now applies pre-clinical cannabis research and his years of expertise and patient experience to his clinical cannabis practice. In his book, Dr. Joe discusses the “Art” of practicing medicine within an evidence-based system. He discusses the limitations of the available science behind medicinal cannabis, while at the same time challenging the medical system to recognize the plant’s potential. He has had successes and failures using cannabis as a therapeutic in cancer care and offers a balanced view of both. This book offers a good introduction to both cannabis and cancer, and will help individuals and families to better understand how cannabis can help those suffering from the disease. Dr. Joe also takes the reader deeper by applying the available knowledge and connecting it to his clinical practice making this a valuable resource to those practicing in the field of oncology.Dr. Joe Goldstrich - The Cannabis Cancer Connection AmazonAnd although it had nothing to do with our discussion, but it is immensely cool that Dr. Joe was in the hospital when JFK was being treated post-Dealey Plaza. He is even in a documentary about that! - JFK: What the Doctors Saw (Amazon) Music by:John Lennon - Imagine - YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

With a film credits in Dr. Strangelove, Conan the Barbarian, Coming to America, Field of Dreams and The Hunt for Red October and off-screen credits in many Shakespearean stage roles, two Tony awards, military service, Ranger School and his Ranger Tab, there would be so many conversations to have with James Earl Jones. But over and over, fans just clamored for the catch phrase, “Luke. I am your Father.” Peter Su’s “catch phrase” is writing for Rolling Stone. He loves the gig. But as a banker with over 24 years experience, who can paper a wall with his credentials, he is occasionally annoyed that is all people want to talk to him is the Rolling Stone. So, of course, we ask him about writing for Rolling Stone.Also listen for why Trevor’s fictitious New York State licensed, legal cannabis dispensary could be laundering money, how your Mandarin speaking parents have a literal language barrier to understanding why you want to start that cannabis business and the Asian Cannabis Roundtable.Peter Su - LinkedInRolling StoneAsian Cannabis RoundtableMusic by:Taiwan MC - Let the Weed Bun - YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Short introduction to the project

While traveling the Saskatchewan highways, Kirk sees a sign in the ditch directing him to a unique recreational cannabis shop. He takes a hard left to visit a First Nations Reserve looking for a simple and short Road Story. Instead, he finds Montana, a caring individual who manages his reserve’s recreational cannabis store with a harm reductionist approach. This simple short Road Story became an entire episode. Listen to how one individual can help a community with cannabis.Music by:Aerosmith - Dream On - YouTubeAdditional Music:Desiree Dorion desireedorion.comMarc Clement - FacebookTranscripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca