Use CBD along with your THC. Get cannabis that has both CBD and THC in it or take the CBD separately—current research suggests this can help protect your brain. My one gripe is that at times it does feel somewhat like an extended advertorial for Drug Science, a UK based drugs advisory body and research organisation founded by Nutt in the aftermath of his infamous dismissal from the chairmanship of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs in 2009.

It is time to support balanced research and to forgo all the agendas and superstitions of the past. For the Cannatopians, no more reflexive belief in cannabis as a miracle cure, such as for cancer (until it is actually proven). For the Reefer Pessimists, no more adding derogatory air quotes when you mention the words “medical marijuana.” This book looks at four aspects of cannabis. It tells the history of cannabis, where it came from and how it became illegal. Then it talks about how cannabis works and what it does to the brain and body. Then it looks at how cannabis, which for thousands of years with the medicine, suddenly became illegal. The last section talks about how to minimise the harms of cannabis. It does carry risks, such as dependency, particularly if started young and he does state that one in ten can become dependent, but this is much less than tobacco, alcohol and opiates. When I was a child, I saw my great uncle, a physician, helping my cousin to clean and prepare his medicine – pot– so he could tolerate his chemotherapy treatments. Seeing through the Smoke clearly lays out the case for cannabis as a medicine while thoughtfully and calmly outlining its risks. Not only should everyone read this book, but they should share it with their loved ones, too.”– Julie Holland, MD , author of Good Chemistry: The Science of Connection, From Soul to Psychedelics

Grinspoon’s Harvard Health articles have reached tens of millions of readers, have been widely referenced in the national media, and have been cited in congressional testimony. His writing has been published in The Nation , the Los Angeles Times and Narrative Inquiry in Bioethics . However, if a patient is specifically taking a cannabis-based compound to treat a given ailment that has insufficient evidence for its use, the patient has the potential to cause more issues. As clinicians, we definitely have a responsibility to continue to educate our patients on best practices and preferred practice patterns. How would you describe the current research landscape for cannabis use and vision? Beyond this, there is perhaps the issue of classifying and enrolling subjects as regular users or abusers – which are a vulnerable population that some feel should not be enrolled in studies. The final issue is trying to standardize a form and dosage(s) that researchers can study; as an aside, the NIDA/NIH recently published a notice for researchers to measure and report research on cannabis using a “standard unit” defined as 5 mg of THC (6). What areas of research would you like to see covered by future studies? Dr. Peter Grinspoon breaks down the myths and misconceptions surrounding cannabis as only a true expert can. Drawing on his years of experience as a clinician and instructor, Dr. Grinspoon offers an informed and compassionate look at the science and medicine. With a wealth of evidence-based information, he provides an honest and authoritative guide to understanding the plant and its uses, making this book essential reading for anyone interested in the most up-to-date and reliable information about cannabis.” —Shaleen Title, Founder and Director, Parabola Center for Law and Policy Don’t smoke! (Unless you are a very occasional user). There’s no reason to expose yourself to combustion products, such as tar, benzene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, etc. (Even though cannabis has never been shown to cause lung cancer or COPD, there’s no reason to inhale all of this crap.) If you prefer to use cannabis inhalationally, use a dry herb vapor- izer, which doesn’t combust the cannabis, but instead heats it to a lower temperature (which is enough to extract the cannabinoids) and which produces a less irritating vapor. Or explore edibles, tinctures, inhalers, oils, suppositories, patches, and lotions—there are lots of options these days.

Figure out, once and for all, how to detect (if possible) and discourage stoned driving (without getting people who aren’t impaired in trouble). If you have a particularly good or bad reaction to a particular strain or chemovar, write it down. Journaling is good practice in any case—dosage, benefits, side effects, formulations, and delivery mechanism. Arnold JC, Boucher AA, Karl T. The Yin and Yang of Cannabis-induced Psychosis: the Actions of Delta 9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol in Rodent Models of Schizophrenia. Curr Pharm Des. 2012;18:5113–5130. Seeing Through the Smoke provides refreshing insights into the biases that have challenged cannabis research to date. Grinspoon presents both sides of the divisive issues polarizing society today, allowing the reader to reconsider what is and isn’t true about cannabis. Honest, personal, poignant, comprehensive, and totally current, this book emphatically reminds us that the absence of evidence is not the same as evidence of absence of effectiveness for this extremely therapeutic botanical.”– Donald I. Abrams, MD , professor emeritus of medicine, University of California San Francisco

In Finland, children don't go to school until their seven years of age and before then they just play. Between 7 and 16, they are given almost no homework and they sit almost no tests until they graduate from high school. Free play is the beating heart of Finnish kids' lives and by law teachers have to give kids 15 minutes of free play for every 45 minutes they are teaching. And the outcome is that only 0.1% of their kids are diagnosed with attention problems and Finns are the most literate, numerate and happy people in the world. By focusing on the most critical purported harms—driving, pregnancy, addictiveness, memory—and by focusing on the most commonly cited medical benefits—relieving chronic pain, sleep, anxiety, PTSD, autism, and cancer—Seeing Through the Smoke will help patients, parents, doctors, health experts, regulators, and politicians move beyond biased perceptions and arrive at a shared reality towards cannabis.

Know the relevant laws in your area, and don’t get tangled up with law enforcement. You can’t (yet) legally fly with cannabis. Other states where the legality is different might not accept your medical cannabis card and could even arrest you if they don’t (yet) have legal medical cannabis. Of course, another worry that we hear about is that cannabis makes people become schizophrenic and leads to anxiety. Well, Nutt takes us through all the evidence and though there are a few reports that say that people who are prone to schizophrenia do take cannabis – they also take alcohol and smoke cigarettes. And does being schizophrenic make you more likely to take cannabis than the other way round. Certainly, some people have a genetic blueprint that does have some possible link. However, since being illegal, this has meant cannabis has become skunk (much stronger form of cannabis) and also led to spice. Prohibition always leads to stronger forms of a substance – in prohibition US they didn’t make more beer, they made gin. Drug prohibition and the war on drugs has just made cannabis stronger. Isn’t it strange that the fear mongering about cannabis and mental illness led to stronger forms of cannabis - but not a surprise..A very useful book. Professor Nutt starts with telling us the history of cannabis use and then its tortured political history, both around the world but especially in the UK. This culminates in his own extensive involvement in the attempt to get a rational risk/benefit attitude in UK policy. This is very much an ongoing job with the UK currently one of the most behind and restrictive in its laws on the use of cannabis, both medically and recreationally. Professor Nutt is much more interested in the medical uses and the harm that is being done to many UK citizens through the establishment's over-cautious approach. He includes a number of illustrative real life stories, some of which would make you grind your teeth with frustration at the suffering that is not being prevented by this over-caution. He's not so much interested in the recreational use of cannabis, except to point out that it is overall much less dangerous than tobacco or alcohol, but that the current predominance of skunk (largely home grown) is likely to mean that street cannabis is more harmful than it need be. S Miller et al., “Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol Differentially Regulate Intraocular Pressure,” Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci, 59, 5904 (2018). PMID: 30550613. Pursue research that isn’t based on any corporate or political agenda and which isn’t biased in either direction. Ask your doctor, or a cannabis specialist, about any potential reactions there may be between THC, CBD, and any medications you are taking. This is particularly true if you are on blood thinners or other medications that need to be kept within a narrow range (e.g., antiepileptics, immunosuppressants, chemotherapeutic agents). Also, if you use cannabis frequently, make sure the anesthesiologist knows, before surgery, as you might have higher anesthesia requirements. Confession. I did not read one-quarter of the book. Its scope is too encyclopedic and some discussions too detailed for even this omnivorous reader to consume in its entirety. I did read the chapters whose subjects interested me. Those on topics outside the orbit of my small world I omitted, just as I would not read from cover-to-cover any single volume of a thirty-volume encyclopedia. Hence, I skipped the chapters on use during pregnancy (I’m male), on use by teenagers (I’m already old), and on any link with psychosis (I’m already looney). Likewise, I dropped from my reading syllabus the chapters on using medical marijuana to treat for insomnia (I’m a sound sleeper), for autism (I’m childless), and for symptoms from cancer and for side effects from chemo (I’m planning on dying, just not of cancer).