My experience with recreational marijuana
by Ask a Healer
Related:
what Hollywood taught me
by Ask a Healer Admin J. Howell unless otherwise noted
IMPORTANT NOTE: With the legalization of recreational cannabis, the greed associated with any kind of hot product soon followed. The result? A lot of cannabis tainted with pesticides. It is the strongest warning I have about using cannabis. Make sure you know your source because it can be dangerous. I am so sad that this is what is happening with this new and promising industry. There are several companies that have been selling marjiuana that has heavy pesticide residue and people are getting sick from it, even dying. This is NOT the result of consuming cannabis but the result of unethical growing practices that are not yet adequately regulated in some states. From what I understand, Oregon has stricter regulation than Colorado but know your grower! That’s my strongest advice. That, and start low. With new extraction processes, it’s now possible to get much stronger concentrations that non-users would be familiar with and I don’t think that’s such a good thing.
What about pesticides in cannabis?
It’s a definite concern for me, just like it is with my food. I was a little naive about it, thinking that growers of marijuana would somehow be more conscientious. Turns out, many are not and use the quickest, least expensive way to deal with pests, seemingly without regard to how that may affect the consumer.
Be very careful to investigate the companies that make the edibles or other forms of recreational cannabis you will be consuming. Ask if they are tested for not just chemical pesticides but also for neem, which is exempted for testing at the moment since it is a “natural” pesticide.
Since neem oil is often used to kill the spider mites that commonly like mj plants, education and testing need to be in place with all growers. From what I’ve read, neem can be safely used but it depends on several factors including being sure to rinse the neem off and not using it at all during flowering. If too much need is used and it is concentrated in the plant when harvested, it may cause health issues. In certain concentrations, neem oil has been linked with the new “disease” called CHS (Cannabinoid Hyperemis Syndrome). Propagandists are saying this proves using more mj (in legal states) to be harmful but the amount of pesticide must be ruled out in every case of CHS to be able to say that is true. That being said, the potential for abuse with any medicinal product is a real potential and I advocate starting low and staying with lowest dosage for benefit.
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