Reefer MEDness

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...

In Canada, older adults represent a fast-growing demographic of cannabis users. As part of her graduate program, PhD student Madison Maynard did a national enquiry, within the USA, on how cannabis modulates the chronic pain, mental health symptoms, and sleep concerns of people between the ages of 55 and 74 years old. Although the evidence leaves questions of efficacy unanswered, the goals of the s...

Yes we are going waaaayyy back in the archives today. Pre-legalization back. But the discussion about taxes and addiction are still very relevant. Are we addicted to taxes? Trevor and Kirk talk to Dr. Jason Childs. He is an economist who says whether you want to reduce harm from cannabis or increase government coffers then keep taxes on cannabis low. In fact, having the government subsidize licens...

Do you know anyone with dementia? If you don’t, you will. We humans are living longer and healthier lives. There are more healthy 75 year old people alive now than there ever have been. However, the number of people with dementia is sky rocketing as well. Enter Dr. Mechtler… Dr. Lazslo Mechtler is the Medical Director of Dent Neurologic Institute, the Chief of Neuro-Oncology at Roswell Park Cancer...

Once again, VanHoot is traveling northern prairie highways and Kirk is stopping to make cold calls to recreational stores along the way. In this episode, he revisits some of the shops he visited in past trips to ask specific questions about how people are using Rec Shops to obtain their medicine. Have a listen as he also discovers what budtenders are selling in the 2025. Saskabuds Cannabis - Humbo...

Ryan Kocot was the in-house legal counsel and director of compliance for a multinational cannabis company. He now has his own practice in California, Massachusetts and New York. He helps operators scale into multiple States, do joint ventures, trademark, and other intellectual property license agreements. Listen as Trevor and Ryan discuss the weird and counter-intuitive land of multi-states operat...

Ontario entrepreneurs are solving a problem that Trevor confronts on a weekly basis. People going to recreational cannabis stores with health questions like, "Are these gummies okay with my seizure meds?" We know that a large percentage of customers at recreational cannabis stores are using their cannabis for health and wellness purposes. Yet, budtenders are limited in the health information that...

It is safe to say, Mr. Clayton Moore is a growing concern within the hemp industry of Southwestern United States. As an undergraduate within the Texas A&M Agricultural Soil and Crop Science Department, he has his fingers, hands, and mind buried deeply in growing a better understanding of hemp and cannabis. He is: a leader within a student lead initiative called CHIL, an advocate for decriminal...

Newton Zheng is a good Canadian guy. (That seems important to mention, lately). Listen to his rise in athletics (we're calling him the Rocky of Badminton now), to Newton taking a different career path than Elon Musk, to Newton becoming a digital marketing entrepreneur. Newton and his team at ePropel Digital has found a niche helping cannabis dispensaries and other cannabis businesses. Cannabis bus...

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 a...

We continue our discussion with Dr. Genester Wilson-King about the use of cannabis during pregnancy and breastfeeding. The episode starts with a discussion on the various routes of administration for cannabis, including inhalation, tinctures, edibles, and topicals. She discusses the use of cannabis for hyperemesis gravidarum, a severe form of morning sickness, and the potential risks and benefits....

In 2018, the Federal Cannabis Act was proclaimed. This federal act gave the provinces many of the responsibilities of managing the recreational use of cannabis. Although the recreational consumption of cannabis became legal throughout Canada, the Manitoba conservative government of 2018 placed several restrictions on cannabis, including not allowing Manitobans to grow cannabis at home. This despit...

Dr. Genester Wilson-King is an experienced OB-GYN and cannabis specialist practicing in Florida. In the first part of this two-part episode, Dr. Wislon-King explains how the endocannabinoid system (ECS) is present throughout the female reproductive system. The ECS plays a surprisingly large role in women's health. All health professions, including Dr. Wilson-King and Kirk & Trevor, agree that...

There are very few, if any, reliable methods of measuring cannabis impairment. Road-side sobriety tests done by trained Drug Recognition Experts are very subjective and workplaces are limited with how they assess employees with safety sensitive jobs. Back by video evidence, Gaize offers real-time impairment screening within 6 minutes. This portable AV device is considered accurate, providing objec...

Sharing stories is how we learn and connect. Kirk travels westward from Dauphin along North American’s most northern provincially connected highway system. Listen to the quirky, cool Bud Tenders stories he brought back from the road. Additional Music: Desiree Dorion desireedorion.com Marc Clement - Facebook Transcripts, papers and so much more at: reefermed.ca

Kirk and Trevor once again chat with Owen Smith, a key figure in the Canadian Cannabis movement. Owen has recently written a book chronicling his Cannabis experiences and is also on social media advocating for a "Buy Canadian" movement within the Cannabis industry. This episode is a catch up with both Owen and the Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club exploring their collective legal battles establishing...

Don't kink-shame the promiscuous CBD. It's okay that in a world of orthosteric normative binding, CBD is into allosteric binding. In fact, CBD is not just into any allosteric binding. CBD is into negative allosteric binding. If none of that makes any sense to you, don't worry. We are going to take a deep dive into how the famous cannabinoid, CBD, interacts with the cannabinoid receptor CB1. And it...

Kirk and Owen continued discussion moves into a more personal realm as they share their views of the current state of Medical Cannabis industry. Kirk sees a disconnect with federal verses provincial government system management whereas Owen wants more services for individuals needing cannabis as medicine. As he continues his advocacy of medical cannabis, Owen also speaks to current projects to hel...

In this episode, Kirk learns how the law was on the side of righteousness when Owen Smith found himself in front of the Supreme Court of Canada defending a desire to help the Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club, a longstanding compassion club. In the first part of a longer discussion, listeners gain insights to his six-year legal journey which ends with him becoming a medical cannabis industry advocate...

Kirk and Trevor meet Sean Boyd, a member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation and discuss the operations of Little Beach Harvest, a cannabis dispensary owned and operated by the Shinnecock tribe. The key to this episode is the community leverages its sovereign status to create its own cannabis regulations, allowing for indoor cultivation and a more customer-centric approach. The community has created a...

At the beginning of the Pandemic, we met Eric Greening. He wanted to start a craft cannabis operation just outside our hometown of Dauphin. We check in with Eric and see how pandemic construction has been going, and as a preview for our eventual facility tour! Trevor and Kirk also discuss what Trevor is and is not allowed to tell patients about cannabis as a pharmacist. Our My Cannabis story is Hi...

How do we define “Craft Cannabis” in Canada? Greencraft Cannabis, a local Manitoba grow operation, is out to answer this question. Eric Greening discusses the process of obtaining his Health Canada micro cultivation licence and how his new company will grow smaller batches putting the plant first. Not only has Health Canada created opportunity for smaller craft growers to finally legally enter the...

The conversation with BioSource Botanicals continues. In Part 2 Kirk and Trevor look deeper into the use of cannabis and cannabis-derived products offered by BioSource Botanicals. The expert panel discuss the differences in absorption and bioavailability between topical, sublingual, and edible cannabis products. They emphasize the importance of using whole plant extracts rather than isolated compo...

Bald, gloved, masked up and looking for drug dealer in New York. This is not a recent COVID-19 story. This is a story of former pro soccer player Ethan Zohn. Ethan didn’t do drugs in his youth because he was an elite athlete. Now in his thirties, Ethan had cancer, and cannabis helped his symptoms. As a chemotherapy patient, he had to go to the illegal market to get his cannabis. Ethan Zohn is a wo...

This episode of Reefer Medness - The Podcast features a discussion with a team of experts from BioSource Botanicals, including a pharmaceutical microbiologist, a cannabis clinician, and a pre-clinical research chemist. Kirk and Trevor discuss the importance of mitochondrial health and how the endocannabinoid system plays a crucial role in maintaining it. The experts explain the benefits of using w...