Growing up in Hawaiʻi, Davin Carvalho was always drawn to the outdoors. He and his friends would skateboard, surf, and explore Oʻahu’s west side, enjoying the warm sun, breezy tradewinds, and cool waters around Mākaha Beach. As he grew older, he sought new hobbies that would keep him outside, and eventually discovered gardening. Today, Carvalho is known for his cannabonsai trees, which possess a Zen-like aesthetic and offer an enlightened high through the flower that they provide.

Carvalho’s journey as a gardener started early, when he began growing kalo as a kid. Kalo, or taro in Hawaiian, is a root vegetable that is inextricably linked to Hawaiian culture. According to mythology, the kalo plant represents the original ancestor and elder brother of all Hawaiians. For Carvalho, who is indigenous, growing kalo bound him to his familial roots. With around 100 plants in his garden, he could happily spend over an hour watering, fertilizing, and pruning on a daily basis.

For reasons unknown, in late 2020 Carvalho began to experience debilitating panic attacks. After two months of agony and countless emergency room visits, he discovered that gardening was a tool he could use to manage his anxiety. A friend sent him some traditional bonsai videos, which were relaxing and educational at the same time. Before long, Carvalho bought a couple ficus and juniper trees and began to seriously study Chinese and Japanese bonsai as a form of therapy.

During that same period, Carvalho decided to apply for official documentation with Hawaiʻi’s Medical Cannabis Registry, allowing him to grow marijuana for personal use. After realizing that traditional bonsai requires decades of devotion, he decided to adapt bonsai techniques to pakalolo which allowed him to grow beautiful, medicinal plants in a shorter period of time.

Through research on the topic, Carvalho learned that the bonsai “effect” comes as a result of training a plant. In the world of cannabis, training is nothing new. It’s common practice for growers to train plants for a higher yield and denser buds. By gently manipulating branches or tilting the pot the plant is in, Carvalho can create the bonsai effect as a result.

“My objective when I’m training my plants is to make it look like a replica of a full-size tree,” Carvalho said. “I try to think, ‘How many branches do I want? What do I want the canopy shape to look like? Do I want it to be a taller tree, a shorter tree? A bushier tree or a lankier tree?’ I keep all that in mind.”

Although he does not necessarily speak to his plants, Carvalho spends a lot of time in close proximity to them. Doing so promotes the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide, with both parties benefiting in the process. By providing for his plants and helping them thrive, he hopes that they will return the favor.

“Gardening itself is a language. I might not speak verbally to them, but there is nonverbal communication with the plants in my garden and myself,” Carvalho said. “It’s a constant sending and receiving of messages in order for us to achieve understanding and reach a common goal, which is for the plants to flower and produce beautiful buds.”

In his most recent run, Carvalho incorporated rose quartz and amethyst, a crystal that is said to promote calmness and relaxation. When preparing for a new harvest, he is intentional about the overall aesthetics the cannabonsai will have, from top to bottom of the plant.

“I’ve done a little bit of research, but I’m definitely no expert. I wanted to make sure that if I was gonna use crystals, I wanted to know which combinations of crystals can go together,” Carvalho said.

When it comes to cultivating a successful cannabonsai tree, genetics play a huge role. To capture the bonsai aesthetic, Carvalho grows indica-leaning strains as they are shorter, bushier, and have tighter internodal spacing than sativa-leaning strains.

After three years of research and experimentation, Carvalho believes that each cannabonsai run has improved from the previous one. As much as gardening is an outlet to relax, it also provides a challenge that keeps him wanting more. No matter how much knowledge and experience he gains while growing, there are inevitably hurdles that humble and teach him along the way.

“If it was as easy as putting a seed in the ground and watering it, it wouldn’t be as fulfilling to me,” Carvalho said. “Anybody could do that. But to really have the commitment, dedication, passion, and drive, that’s what really gets me. I like something that’s not so easy to obtain but is something that if I work hard at it, I can either get it, or get something close to it and have something that I am happy with.”

This article was originally published in the June 2024 issue of High Times Magazine.

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Hallucinogenic compounds that activate multiple receptors, found in Colorado River toads, show “promising transdiagnostic therapeutic with rapid and lasting effects” for conditions such as depression and anxiety, new findings show, and you don’t necessarily need to hallucinate to therapeutically benefit from the compounds. 

While much is known about the serotonin 5-HT2A receptor, this study explored a serotonin receptor called 5-HT1A, which is activated by an altered compound made from toad secretions that’s believed to alleviate depression and anxiety without inducing hallucinations.

A new study, “Structural pharmacology and therapeutic potential of 5-methoxytryptamines,” was published last month in the journal Nature.

When sensing danger, Colorado River toads, sometimes native to the Sonoran Desert (Incilius alvarius or Bufo alvarius) release a hallucinogenic compound bufotenin that’s structurally similar to DMT from glands in their skin. The compound is also similar in structure and effects to psilocybin as well. The marine toad (Bufo marinus) and European green toad (Bufo viridis) release similar toxins that can sometimes be poisonous to the touch, but only the Colorado River toad releases compounds considered a true hallucinogen.

A team of researchers from Mount Sinai Hospital and Columbia University in New York explored the potential health benefits of psychedelic compounds from toad secretions, and created a new compound that doesn’t trigger hallucinations. 

“We became intrigued by numerous reports of powerful, unique and life-changing experiences associated with its ritualistic or experimental clinical use, which made us wonder about its therapeutic potential and the underlying mechanisms,” David Lankri, a neuropharmacologist at Columbia University and a co-author of the study, told Gizmodo.

Since it’s structurally similar to psilocybin, and based on evidence showing that psilocybin can treat depression in some people, researchers believe there is therapeutic potential with toad secretions as well. 

Most psychedelics research has explored the drug’s effects on a particular kind of serotonin receptor called 5-HT2A. But the team behind the new study focused on a more obscure serotonin receptor called 5-HT1A, which past studies suggest interacts with the toad toxin.

A New Compound Made from Toads

Smithsonian reports that by slightly modifying the 5-MeO-DMT compound, the researchers created another compound called 4-F,5-MeO-PyrT. This new compound interacts primarily with 5-HT1A, a pathway that appears to offer the same antidepressant and anti-anxiety effects without inducing hallucinogenic trips.

It turns out there are already pharmaceutical drugs that target the same receptor.

“Given that 5-HT is the primary target of approved anxiolytic and antidepressant medications, such as buspirone (BuSpar)  and vilazodone (Viibryd), this receptor may contribute to the reported therapeutic effects of 5-MeO-DMT.”

The effects from psychedelic toad secretion compounds suggest long-term effects in overcoming depression-like states.

“Recent preliminary clinical data suggest that 5-MeO-DMT is a promising transdiagnostic therapeutic with rapid and lasting effects. Our work and previous studies have shown that 5-MeO-DMT has comparable signaling potency and efficacy at 5-HT and 5-HT in vitro, and both receptors contribute to its in vivo pharmacology. In light of previous work showcasing 5-HT-selective agonists that alleviate anxiety-like and depression-like states in preclinical models, we wanted to investigate the role of 5-HT in both psychedelic and therapeutic effects of 5-MeO-tryptamines. Although 5-HT is a validated therapeutic target for several approved medications, including vilazodone and buspirone, the importance of 5-HT agonism to the therapeutic effects of tryptamine psychedelics has not been conclusively addressed.”

High Times reported on the toad using its other name, the Sonoran Desert toad, with glands secreting a venom rich in the hallucinogens 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenin, which invaded Arizona last year when monsoon conditions kicked in for the late summer. They can measure up to 7 inches long and have a low-pitched croak that inevitably serenades the night in multiple states during hot wetter months.

Local news stations in Arizona last year reported a surge in Sonoran Desert toad populations now that the rain has started. 

While some researchers aim to bypass the hallucinogenic effects of the toxin, others are trying to enhance it for recreational use. They are sought after so much, toad secretion harvesting has caused them to be endangered in some areas.

Vice Media’s Hamilton Morris documented the Sonoran Desert toad in detail—calling the toads’ secretion the “most potent psychedelic toad venom on Earth,” which also makes it ideal for medical research. Sonoran Desert toad venom should only be vaped or smoked, InStyle reported. Toad venom is scraped from the glands on the animals and dried into a paste, which is later smoked. “The experience is going to start within 10 to 30 seconds and then you’re going to be physically incapacitated for 20 to 30 minutes,” Alan Davis, a Johns Hopkins psychedelics researcher, previously explained in Johns Hopkins Magazine. 

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THC test subjects with limonene aboard reported a smoother flight.

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When it comes to medical benefits, cannabis is often associated with its anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving and sedative properties. But given the versatile nature of the plant, researchers are looking beyond some of the more common qualifying medical conditions to uncover the full medicinal potential of cannabis. 

Though it’s largely under-researched, it’s possible that cannabis could work to help folks with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to better manage their symptoms.

A recent observational study published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology Reports found that, indeed, medical cannabis may be beneficial for people with ADHD — though not necessarily for reasons associated with focus and attention. Rather, researchers found that cannabis use led to observed improvements in the anxiety, sleep quality and health-related quality of life among participants.

While the results are not definitive, authors argue that the findings are substantial enough to hopefully prompt future research on cannabis and ADHD.

ADHD and Cannabis: A Largely Unexplored Potential Treatment Alternative

The team of UK-based researchers aimed to primarily assess the health-related quality of life and safety outcomes in ADHD patients treated with cannabis-based medicinal products (CBMPs).

ADHD has an estimated global prevalence of 5% in children and 2.5% in adults, with estimated incidences of ADHD diagnosis increasing by approximately 42% in children between 2003 and 2011 and 123% in adults between 2007 and 2016 in the U.S., according to the study.

ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition generally associated with issues with focus, hyperactivity, impulsivity and/or psychosocial differences in managing relationships. ADHD is also associated with a higher instance of sleep disturbance and co-morbidities like anxiety and depression. 

It falls under the neurodivergent umbrella, characterized as a natural variation in how the human brain processes information.

Researchers note that current treatment for ADHD consists of a combination of psychological therapies and both stimulant and non-stimulant medications. However, they note that stimulant medications may come with unwanted side effects, while non-stimulant medications can similarly result in adverse effects that may hinder people from taking them on a long-term basis.

They note that the endocannabinoid system, which cannabinoids like THC and CBD interact with directly, plays a vital role in cognitive function, motor coordination and homeostasis,” suggesting that medical cannabis could be useful in treating symptoms associated with ADHD.

Improvements in Anxiety, Sleep, Quality of Life as Push For Future Research

In order to examine how cannabis use can impact people with ADHD, researchers tracked data on 68 patients from the UK Medical Cannabis Registry (UKMCR) and patient-recorded outcome measures at one, three, six and 12 months from baseline. Eighty percent of the participants already consumed cannabis at the point of initiating treatment.

At each followup, patients answered surveys regarding severity of generalized anxiety disorder symptoms, sleep quality and health-related quality of life. Ultimately, researchers found that all three elements had improved over time.

Specifically, anxiety and sleep quality metrics showed improvement at each check-in over the observed year. Researchers also observed significant improvements in health-related quality of life during the first six months of the study, but by the 12th month there was no difference between those who were current consumers and those who were not.

Just 11 of the 68 participants reported negative effects, largely insomnia, concentration impairment, lethargy and dry mouth. Despite this, nine patients stopped using their other ADHD medication during treatment.

Researchers argue that future research should include comparative analysis on patients in the UKMCR while highlighting the need to conduct high-quality random controlled trials for the treatment of ADHD.

“This case series is the first of its kind in assessing the clinical outcome of patients from the UKMCR with a primary diagnosis of ADHD prescribed CBMPs for up to 12 months,” authors conclude, adding that the preliminary findings suggest that medical cannabis products may play a role in alleviating symptoms, comorbid anxiety and sleep disruption associated with ADHD. 

“CBMPs were well-tolerated throughout this study and the majority of patients (83.82%) did not report any adverse events,” they continue. “Due to limitations in study design, a causal relationship cannot be determined, thus, a definite conclusion cannot be drawn from these results. The findings from this study guide further investigation to assess the therapeutic efficacy and long-term safety profile of CBMPs.”

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As it turns out, researching the efficacy of MDMA to treat PTSD may be pretty complicated. The initial efforts to secure governmental sanction for a psychedelic substance for mental health care, in this case, MDMA, are facing some serious scrutiny over the clinical trial process, the Washington Post reports. 

MDMA has long been lauded as a treatment for PTSD, which affects 6% of the U.S. population. Per a Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Substances (MAPS) 2023 study on how the drug can treat PTSD, the researchers found that, as High Times reported, in the MDMA group, 86% showed improvement in their standard PTSD assessment. 69% of those in the placebo group also improved. A standard PTSD assessment evaluates the intensity of PTSD symptoms, which can include anxiety, phobias, insomnia, and emotional numbness, among others. When the study wrapped, 72% of people within the MDMA treatment group no longer matched the criteria for PTSD, compared to 48% of the placebo participants.

Given how awful PTSD can be and, to be honest, how fun (and effective) MDMA can be compared to other treatment methods, this research was generally met with enthusiasm. While SSRI antidepressants like Zoloft are FDA-approved to treat PTSD, research shows it’s not always effective. The study in question shows that it had a response rate of 60%, which is obviously lower than the 86% improvement rate that came with MDMA.

However, per an independent analysis into the reliability of patient studies that are backing the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) application for MDMA, apparently, it’s pretty tricky to discern how effective these results are. Compared to other treatments, there are some serious hurdles associated with studying and then implementing psychoactive substances such as MDMA. 

While the bliss that MDMA can bring is generally considered a plus, it may make it trickier to study. One of the biggest challenges that arose when looking at the MDMA trial is that participants in the placebo group, who received a fake version of MDMA, could tell they hadn’t received the real thing because they experienced no changes in perception or euphoria, so it was rather obvious that they were in the placebo group, as noted in a draft report by the nonprofit Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER). This lack of “blinding” in the trial, crucial for assessing the drug’s impact, potentially compromises the validity of the results.

The second hiccup when studying MDMA for PTSD came from the possibility that therapists were skewing the results. They basically thought that the therapists who were a part of the trial, there for mental health support, were biased in favor of MDMA, perhaps along with the participants, many of whom had previous positive experiences with the drug and, as a result, couldn’t provide the neutral ground required for a reliable study. 

The report also highlighted worries that participants who received MDMA felt “pressured to report good outcomes and suppress bad outcomes,” per the Washington Post. It also pointed to a documented instance of therapist misconduct that heightened safety concerns. While MDMA can be used to treat PTSD for sexual assault survivors, the psychedelic community may have some damage control of their own that needs a reckoning. Apparently, the ICER staff talked to folks who were part of a New York Magazine podcast investigating the MAPS’s clinical trial, in particular, patients who said they were victimized by therapists or coerced into reporting beneficial outcomes. According to one account, a woman in a MAPS trial states she was abused by her assigned therapists. 

ICER staffers, after speaking with several former patients and individuals associated with MAPS trials, observed that some adverse effects mentioned in the trial were not captured in the data they reviewed. While MDMA could help relieve horrid symptoms of PTSD, which include self-harm and thoughts of suicide, both of those were also included in the side effects (for both the MDMA group and those who got a placebo). People who have taken MDMA recreationally sometimes speak of “suicide Tuesday,” aka the crash after enjoying the spike of the drug on the weekend, and not only does this appear to roar its head within the trials, but those who spoke on the subject voiced concerns that there may be underreporting of such negative side effects. 

While some of this seems shocking when laid out in print, remember that none of the adverse claims or concerns are news to those in the psychedelic community. There is no medicine that exists without side effects; the silver bullet is a myth. If one finds healing through psychedelics, enjoy it while understanding the well-established risks (and benefits) that come with such a medicine. 

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Leafly’s Dr. Nick Jikomes explains why weed gives some people The Fear—and why it’s sometimes beneficial to face it. Hip surgeries are painful. Patients require potent pain medication afterwards, often for extended periods. Some years ago, a woman named Jo Cameron had hip surgery but responded in a strange way: she reported a lack of […]

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Until about a year and a half ago, I always said that I didn’t like “loud” music. I didn’t mind if the volume was turned up, but too much noise made me uneasy; I preferred lullaby baby music at all times of the day, or songs about fuckin’ bitches and getting money because who doesn’t like being brainwashed? And then I heard Soul Glo.

I’m not entirely sure what it was about them that made me change my mind—perhaps the fact that they’re Black, but then again, the drummer TJ is white, so that couldn’t be it. Maybe it was because they allow the listener enough time to breathe before another auditory flogging. (I’m listening to Diaspora Problems now, and no, that can’t be it either; the entire album scares me.) More likely, it’s just because they’re really talented, and I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to chat with them.

Before we get to the good stuff, let me introduce the band: There’s TJ, whom you already met. GG, the guitarist, and Pierce on vocals.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

High Times: How’d you guys meet?

TJ: I met GG a while ago. I met GG, like, over a decade ago.

GG: I met TJ at a show in New York City at 538 Johnson. And I met Pierce through band stuff. Pierce actually booked my old band’s old show in Philadelphia.

Pierce: People had been coming in, coming out. And essentially, both TJ’s time and GG’s time just came to be in the band. I’ve been in this band from the beginning, but everybody else has joined.

HT: So how does a song start for you guys? What’s that look like, going into the studio?

Pierce: It really depends. Somebody usually comes with an idea. The idea might be a full song already ready to go. Or it might just require a few little flavorings from each of us. Or one of us will only have a couple riffs, and then we kinda just play things, play the ideas over and over, talk about how we want them to sound. Or, sometimes for the digital shit, GG’ll just be making beats and sometimes I’m there and I have ideas that GG will then translate into songs.

HT: Do you go in with a theme?

GG: Musically, nah. I don’t think so.

TJ: Kinda just happens a lot of the time.

Pierce: There was times where we’d ask each other, What do we want this next shit to sound like? One album I was like, I want this shit to sound like pain. And I feel like it did.

HT: I feel like there’s some comedy to the music videos. How do you feel that plays into the music itself?

TJ: I was just the subject of the music video. The music video was really a Pierce idea. I mean it is all sort of playing up minor themes in the existence of this band. Was my experience of joining the band as the drummer literally being flagellated on a rope? No. But it was painful. I got a call and it was like, do you want to play this fest with us in a week, and I was like sure. And then we practiced the set every day for a week, and I was like, I feel like I could sort of play this. And then I just had to do it. It beat me into shape, in a sense.

HT: What role does cannabis play in your music?

GG: Jesus Christ. 

(Laughter)

TJ: Well I mean, you heard the beginning of the album, right? I’ve been smoking weed every day for, like, over a decade so it has a role to play in virtually everything I do.

Pierce: The way other people drink coffee, I think, is how I smoke weed. The way other people smoke cigarettes is how I smoke weed. It really has helped me manage my anxiety and depression in a way that I needed for many years before I really discovered it. Smoking weed as a teen for the first time, I just didn’t know I could feel, like, good. I didn’t know I could not have a constant monologue that’s totally driven by anxiety. And that’s just really underrated for somebody like me. Obviously, I want to be a more well-rounded person, so I have to find other things in life that do that for me as well; and also weed helped me to realize that. They’re all, as GZA said, planets revolving around the same sun. The music, weed, and everything else that I love are the things that keep me tethered to this mortal coil.

GG: I was smoking weed as a baby.

HT: As a baby?!

GG: To join this band, one of the requirements, well not a requirement, but I was asked before I joined this band: Do you smoke weed? And I said, every day. Now I don’t do that every day anymore, because of a certain situation that I was a part of, but I did smoke weed last night and that shit was crazy.

HT: Do you smoke together, like in the studio?

Pierce: We used to a lot, like a lot a lot.

HT: What caused the change?

GG: For me, I got arrested. So it just fucked me up a little bit and I can’t do it all the time, because I get super anxious now.

HT: How do you feel about mass incarceration in relation to cannabis?

GG: It’s bullshit, off top.

TJ: Especially when you have places that are rolling out legalization. That’s ridiculous. How can you get locked up for some shit that’s not even illegal anymore?

Pierce: It’s like the emancipation proclamation came out and niggas was still slaves because no one told them. It’s like niggas will really just steal your life away, and not tell you.

HT: Why do you make music?

Pierce: I don’t really feel like I’m that good at too much other shit, for real. So when this stuck for me as a kid, it stuck. I mean, the easy answer is because I can’t skate.

GG: My dad is a percussionist and he gave me some drums because he thought it was a good idea and ha ha. He probably kicked himself in the ass several times for doing that because of how I developed as an individual. It’s just something that I stuck with. Somebody left a guitar at my crib and I just picked it up, and I taught myself how to play it as a bass, then I was like, Yo bro, there’s two more strings on it. Then I started teaching myself guitar shortly afterward. I don’t know, I just felt like I should keep doing it because it made me feel good as I progressed with the instrument. And over time I just kept meeting cooler and cooler people, which made me feel a sense of belonging.

TJ: My dad got me into punk. It’s just something I’ve always been interested in and it’s something people have been encouraging me to do.

HT: Hmm. Do you come from a wealthy family? Punk music seems like something only wealthy parents would introduce to their kids. I don’t know why I feel like that.

TJ: Not broke, but not wealthy particularly. I think it’s just because my dad’s young, comparatively, to other people my age. [He’s] still in [his] mid-50s now and I’m going to be 30 next month. He was just into cool shit and it helped me. He just had this giant pile of CDs. It was either that or go to the library. I would just take shit from the library and burn it. My mom worked at a library.

Pierce: I was also burning a lot of CDs, for sure. I was just talking last night to somebody about how I listened to Metallica for the first time on a burned CD that they made for me. It was Metallica’s Ride the Lightning on one side, then Arch Enemy’s Doomsday [Machine] on the other side. I was already listening to a lot of rock music during that time… I was in middle school, so I was probably like 12, 13. My dad was really into music also, but he was into jazz fusion mostly, and a lot of weird pop. He doesn’t really listen to metal or anything at all; that was more so my own personality. But I feel like he definitely got me on the path of listening to very, very energetic and busy music. He worked for the Census Bureau; my mom was in the military, so we were, like, middle class. We could go on vacation, not every year. And it was always through timeshares.

HT: How would you say class influences music and the bands that come out? Do you think if they come from wealthy parents, they have a better shot at success?

Pierce: Yeah, I think it can definitely make a difference. Like, my parents paid for me to have lessons for a good seven years. And that honestly led to me having a mentor who changed my life and the way I look at music and everything. And GG very decidedly did not have that experience. So I feel like it doesn’t matter, but it also can just help when it’s there.

GG: I feel like it’s dependent on your interests. The resources can definitely help, but if you fuck with what you’re doing, then you’re gonna do it well.

HT: How do you feel about the categorization of Black art? Like Afropunk, for example. Or going to a bookstore and seeing the African American section.

Pierce: Well, Afropunk is a damn-near meaningless term. I feel like the conversation that we would need to have about Afropunk, and just that term, and the festival around it, is longer than ten minutes will allow. [That term] doesn’t really represent anything that it originally was meant to. I don’t know, that’s just what I have to say.

HT: Afterlife. Does it exist?

TJ: I feel like when you die, you’re done. I think this is all we got.

Pierce: I feel like the afterlife could exist, like energy is never destroyed, it’s only transferred type-beat. Heaven to me is kind of a selfish idea. We’re already given the chance of heaven here, and we’re fucking it up. But I do think hell is real.

TJ: Damn.

(Uncomfortable laughter)

Pierce: I think reincarnation is real. It could be real. You go back into the soil, come out a whole new nigga.

HT: If I like you guys, who else should I listen to?

GG: You ever listen to :3lon?

Pierce: That shit will change your life. Spellling. Meshuggah. Cloud Rat. El Alfa. Tokischa. Tupac. Dance With the Devil by Immortal Technique. I was by myself in the middle of the night when I heard that song for the first time. I heard that shit and I just looked at the computer screen and stared in silence after that shit played. Like what the fuck did I just hear?!

HT: What do you think the future of music looks like?

GG: Spotify.

TJ: They’re just gonna start running software to generate jingles and shit. It’s gonna be an AI world.

GG: We’re gonna be able to Airdrop with our minds.

Pierce: I think everything will be… Like, genres will become much more merged together, and I think Black music will simply be a single genre that artists just do different traditions simultaneously within the same song.

HT: Will white people be able to make Black music?

Pierce: They already are.

Find Soul Glo below:
Website
Instagram
Twitter
Facebook

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A new report from New Frontier Data explores the necessity of understanding what medical cannabis patients are currently looking for and require in cannabis medicine. Entitled “From Doctor to Dispensary: A Complete Picture of Medical Cannabis Consumers,” the report analyzes data from a recently published consumer survey, which includes input from 1,874 medical cannabis patients.

New Frontier Data argues that insurance companies could benefit the most from better understanding medical patients. “The Federal Schedule 1 status of cannabis means that it has no recognized medical value. At the same time, almost every state in the U.S. allows for some form of medical cannabis use,” the report states. “This contradiction has resulted in millions of medical cannabis patients with the approval to use cannabis by their state and their doctor, but no access to insurance reimbursement for this medicine, which is usually highly taxed.”

Among the most common conditions that medical patients treat with cannabis is pain (47% of surveyed participants), followed by anxiety/panic attacks (22%), depression (9%), sleep disorders (9%), PTSD (7%), neurological disorders (6%). Additionally, 93% of medical cannabis consumers say that cannabis has helped them, with 57% saying that it significantly improved their medical conditions (while only 36% say that it only slightly improved their condition).

Fifty percent of patients reported that they were currently using prescription drugs, mainly antidepressants (45%), muscle relaxers (27%), arthritis (23%), sleep (20%), and opioids for pain (17%). Over half of the patients also said that they have replaced some or all of their prescription medications with cannabis as well.

The federally illegal status of cannabis is a roadblock for many parts of the industry, but opinions about cannabis are rapidly changing. “This information is especially useful to insurance companies who might view cannabis as a medicine with less potential harm and therefore less cost to them than other medications,” the report explained. “Less harm may also be a driver for the medical cannabis consumer as only 40% say that saving money is a reason for the substitution.”

New Frontier Data also advises how brands can best cater to medical cannabis patients versus average recreational consumers. Both medical and recreational consumers prefer to consume cannabis on their own, or without others. In products with a hybrid of cannabinoid content, only 43% of medical consumers chose products with more THC than CBD, compared to 57% of recreational consumers. However, medical cannabis consumers led with 54% for products that had “slightly more CBD than THC,” and 57% with products that contained “much more CBD than THC.”

Overall, the report found that 55% of medical consumers believe it’s very important to consider minor cannabinoids or terpenes when making a purchase (with 23% saying “I don’t know what that is.”)

Retailers also stand to update their approach to serving medical cannabis patients, as they usually have strong loyalty to strains that they know are effective. Fifty-nine percent usually or always pick the same strain, while only 34% will alternate between options they are familiar with. Most consumers, both medical (52%) and recreational (50%), tend to spend around $50-$200 on cannabis products per month, while a lower percentage will spend more than $200 (30% for medical and 33% for recreational).

“With all the focus on adult use legalization and the recreational consumer, it can be easy to forget that there is a large population of consumers who rely on cannabis for their physical and mental health,” the report concluded. “And while some may argue that all cannabis use is medical, there are certainly distinguishing factors for medical consumers as evidenced above. As cannabis continues its march towards federal medical acceptance, insurance companies, brands and retailers should be aware of the needs of this group and how to meet them.”

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All your CBD news of the month in one spot.

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Enter Anti-Toke, a new product aimed at letting you enjoy getting high without the dreaded paranoia or anxiety that affects some people.

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