Science

Spanish PP politician Eduardo Van den Eynde, who suffers from cancer, has posted a letter on Facebook in which he calls for the legalisation of medical cannabis, which he himself uses to ease the effects of chemotherapy. With the response and the signs of support received, also from fellow politicians, he hopes to reopen the debate on legalisation in Spain.

(HealthDay)—One-quarter of U.S. middle and high school students say they've been exposed to potentially dangerous secondhand e-cigarette vapors, a federal government study shows.

E-cigarette vapors can contain harmful substances such as nicotine, according to the U.S. Surgeon General. E-cigarette devices can also be used for marijuana and other illicit drugs.
Researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed data from the 2015 National Youth Tobacco Survey.

(HealthDay)—Cupcakes, brownies and candies containing marijuana can look irresistible to kids—but eating even one treat might poison them, a leading group of U.S. pediatricians warns.

With marijuana legal in recreational or medicinal form in more than half of U.S. states, edible forms are a popular alternative to smoking pot. But, parents must take steps to keep these potential temptations away from their children, says the American Academy of Pediatrics.
A single pot cookie or candy bar can contain several times the recommended adult dose of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.

As of 2017, the UK's MHRA officially recognises CBD as a medicine, on the basis of scientific evidence. To protect patients, it has established standards of safety, quality and efficacy for CBD products. Although this is a positive development for patients and the British cannabis community, the medicinal value of cannabis is not recognised. The United Kingdom’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has taken the decision this year (2017) to officially recognise and classify Cannabidiol, or CBD, as a medicinal ingredient. The agency justified its classification based on scientific evidence of CBD’s efficacy.

Today is International Women’s Day, and as we celebrate the successes of women around the globe as well as push forward with much needed reforms for greater equality, there is a woman in Ireland who is a fantastic example of commitment and dedication — a mother trying desperately to save her child’s life.
Vera Twomey has a daughter named Ava who suffers from Dravet Syndrome, a rare form of epilepsy that is often treatable using medical marijuana.

Teens should think twice if they believe the negative effects from misusing medication to treat ADHD are short-term. In fact, problems associated with prescription stimulant misuse can last through age 35, according to a new University of Michigan study.

But using medication to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder as prescribed by doctors does not show long-term negative effects.
However, high school students who use prescription stimulant medication on their own—without a doctor's orders—are less likely to obtain a four-year college degree and more likely to develop a substance use disorder as adults.

Credit: shutterstock.com/Rice University
A rise in the use of synthetic cannabinoids (syncans) in Houston has prompted law enforcement officials to target sellers and users of the drug. However, taking a public-health-based approach toward curbing the use of syncans, which have caused dangerous and sometimes fatal side effects in extreme cases, may be a more effective use of city resources, according to a new report from a drug policy expert at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy.

Marketed as "legal weed," syncans are not marijuana, according to the report's author, Katharine Neill, the Baker Institute's Alfred C.