THC

Authorities justify the ban, which mirrors mainland China's, by arguing that cannabidiol products could be converted into THC, the intoxicating compound in cannabis.

Hong Kong banned cannibidiol, also known as CBD, as a "dangerous drug" and imposed harsh penalties for possession on Wednesday, forcing fledging businesses to shut down and revamp.

HONG KONG — (AP) — Hong Kong banned CBD as a “dangerous drug” and imposed harsh penalties for its possession on Wednesday, forcing fledging businesses to shut down or revamp. The new rule reflects a zero-tolerance policy toward dangerous drugs in Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous southern Chinese business hub, as well as in mainland China, where CBD was banned in 2022. The city maintains several categories of “dangerous drugs,” which include “hard drugs” such as heroin and cocaine. Starting Wednesday, possession of CBD can result in up to seven years in jail and a 1 million Hong Kong dollar ($128,000) fine. Those convicted of importing, exporting or producing the substance can face up to life in prison and a 5 million Hong Kong dollar ($638,000) fine.

Hong Kong has banned CBD as a “dangerous drug” and imposed harsh penalties for its possession, forcing fledging businesses to shut down or revamp.

HONG KONG — (AP) — Hong Kong will ban CBD starting Wednesday, categorizing it as a “dangerous drug" and mandating harsh penalties for its smuggling, production and possession, customs authorities announced Friday. Supporters say CBD can treat a range of ailments including anxiety and that, unlike its more famous cousin THC — which is already illegal in Hong Kong — CBD doesn’t get users high. Cannabidiol, derived from the cannabis plant, was previously legal in Hong Kong, where bars and shops sold products containing it. But Hong Kong authorities decided last year to prohibit the marijuana-derived substance — a change that will soon go into effect. Possession of the substance can result in a sentence of up to seven years and Hong Kong $1 million ($128,000) in fines.

Hong Kong will ban CBD starting Wednesday, labeling it a “dangerous drug.”.

More children under 6 are accidentally ingesting cannabis edibles, according to a Pediatrics study of National Poison Data System data from 2017 to 2021.

A Texas preschool teacher was arrested and is facing charges after four students under 2 years of age became ill from THC gummies.

Florida health officials have released a highly anticipated rule setting THC dosage amounts and supply limits on products doctors can order for medical-marijuana patients.

The legislation would prevent workers from being punished from failing these types of drug tests. “Nothing in this bill would allow someone to come (to work) high,” said Assemblymember Bill Quirk, a Democrat from Hayward and the author of the bill. But the state has been slow to pass laws protecting workers who use marijuana on their own time. Six other states — Nevada, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Montana and Rhode Island — have laws protecting workers’ rights to use recreational marijuana, according to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Twenty-one states have laws protecting workers who use medical marijuana from discrimination.

State Sen. Jim Abeler told the Star Tribune that he hadn’t realized the bill broadly legalized products containing THC.

After Minnesota lawmakers approved a measure to legalize the sale of certain types of THC edibles, at least one Republican said he didn't realize what he was approving.

Though toxicology reports can show THC in a driver's system, no test exists to check if its levels are affecting their ability to drive.

There is little agreement or clarity on what the level of driving impairment is for marijuana, though the idea is mentioned by lawmakers.

Daycare owner accused of giving toddlers THC-infused goldfish crackers File photo. The children tested positive for the drug after they were taken to the hospital lethargic and uncoordinated, with glassy, bloodshot eyes. Detectives determined the connection between the three children was a day care, and upon searching the facility found goldfish-shaped crackers around the children’s high chairs that tested positive for THC, WRIC reported. She also surrendered the facility’s day care license, the station reported. Investigators did not say whether the crackers were given to the children intentionally or accidentally, WRIC reported.

Colorado officials are sounding the alarm on the rise of poly-impaired driving, which is leading to more wrecks and DUI arrests throughout the state.

Elias Theodorou is the first professional athlete in North America publicly known to receive a therapeutic use exemption for cannabis, but he is far from the only one calling for the rules to change.

Multiple state attorneys general cited a national trend of children accidentally consuming cannabis edibles.

Marijuana remains outlawed in Mexico. The best stuff now comes from north of the border.

The debate focuses on the legality of a substance known as Delta-8 THC, or “marijuana lite.”

NC senators approved a bill that would legalize medical marijuana in a committee vote. Here’s what the marijuana laws look like in the surrounding states.

Red White and Bloom has been growing relatively nonpsychoactive CBD and hemp flower at its Granville greenhouse for more than a year. It said it would need minimal changes to convert to producing cannabis, extracts and infused products with THC, the primary component of marijuana that gets users high.

Health officials now blame vitamin E acetate for the vast majority of cases in the U.S. outbreak of vaping illnesses and have changed their advice to doctors about monitoring patients more closely after they go home from the hospital. The two-day follow-up after hospital discharge is shorter than the previous recommendation of one to two weeks. Those who died after hospital discharge were more likely to be 50 or older. Vitamin E acetate also has been found in vaping product samples. More than 2,500 cases of vaping illness have been reported by all 50 states.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - More than 20% of U.S. high school seniors reported vaping marijuana in 2019, the second largest single-year increase in any substance of abuse ever recorded in the annual study of national drug use trends, researchers reported on Wednesday. Among 12th graders, that amounted to a 7.7 percentage-point increase, the second-largest for any substance in the studys 45-year history. The number of 12th graders who said they had vaped marijuana in the past month doubled from the 2018 survey to 14%. The survey found 12.6% of 10th graders reported vaping THC in the past month, up 5.6%, while 3.9% of 8th graders, who are typically about 13-years-old, reported vaping THC in the past month, a 1.3% increase. The daily THC vaping question was added before the practice was tied to the nationwide lung injury outbreak.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - More than 20% of U.S. high school seniors reported vaping marijuana in 2019, the second largest single-year increase in any substance of abuse ever recorded in the annual study of national drug use trends, researchers reported on Wednesday. Among 12th graders, that amounted to a 7.7 percentage-point increase, the second-largest for any substance in the studys 45-year history. The number of 12th graders who said they had vaped marijuana in the past month doubled from the 2018 survey to 14%. The survey found 12.6% of 10th graders reported vaping THC in the past month, up 5.6%, while 3.9% of 8th graders, who are typically about 13-years-old, reported vaping THC in the past month, a 1.3% increase. The daily THC vaping question was added before the practice was tied to the nationwide lung injury outbreak.

NEW YORK (AP) Health officials investigating a nationwide outbreak of vaping illnesses have listed, for the first time, the vape brands most commonly linked to hospitalizations. Every state has reported cases, and 25 states and the District of Columbia have reported a total of 48 deaths. CDC officials have gradually come to focus their investigation on black-market THC cartridges. Vitamin E acetate is a thickening agent that's been added to illicit THC vaping liquids. CDC officials are continuing to look at nicotine-containing vapes, and to advise caution about all types of vaping products until the investigation is concluded, King said.

NEW YORK (AP) Health officials investigating a nationwide outbreak of vaping illnesses have listed, for the first time, the vape brands most commonly linked to hospitalizations. Every state has reported cases, and 25 states and the District of Columbia have reported a total of 48 deaths. CDC officials have gradually come to focus their investigation on black-market THC cartridges. Vitamin E acetate is a thickening agent that's been added to illicit THC vaping liquids. CDC officials are continuing to look at nicotine-containing vapes, and to advise caution about all types of vaping products until the investigation is concluded, King said.

NEW YORK (AP) Health officials investigating a nationwide outbreak of vaping illnesses have listed, for the first time, the vape brands most commonly linked to hospitalizations. Every state has reported cases, and 25 states and the District of Columbia have reported a total of 48 deaths. CDC officials have gradually come to focus their investigation on black-market THC cartridges. Vitamin E acetate is a thickening agent that's been added to illicit THC vaping liquids. CDC officials are continuing to look at nicotine-containing vapes, and to advise caution about all types of vaping products until the investigation is concluded, King said.

Health officials investigating a nationwide outbreak of vaping illnesses have listed, for the first time, the vape brands most commonly linked to hospitalizations. Every state has reported cases, and 25 states and the District of Columbia have reported a total of 48 deaths. CDC officials have gradually come to focus their investigation on black-market THC cartridges. Vitamin E acetate is a thickening agent that's been added to illicit THC vaping liquids. CDC officials are continuing to look at nicotine-containing vapes, and to advise caution about all types of vaping products until the investigation is concluded, King said.

Another 118 people have fallen ill and five more have died from a lethal vaping lung disease, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. Known as EVALI short for e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury the deadly disease hospitalizes nearly all patients. Most patients report vaping THC, according to the CDC. A minority of patients say they used just nicotine, though some doctors say people can be reluctant to admit what exactly they are actually using. The median patient age is 24, though patients' ages have ranged from 13 to 78 years old, the CDC said.

The deadly lung illness linked to vaping could prompt the United States and others to legalize marijuana, Tilray CEO Brendan Kennedy told CNBC on Tuesday. Most patients have reported vaping THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Canada is the first G-7 country to legalize recreational marijuana. Marijuana advocates, in recent months, have renewed calls for legal and regulated marijuana amid the vaping outbreak. Kennedy appeared on CNBC shortly after Tilray reported third-quarter financial results.

A vaping-related lung disease has sickened at least 2,051 people and killed 39, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. Health officials are calling the disease EVALI, short for e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury. The CDC and Food and Drug Administration are still hunting for a cause or causes of the deadly illness. The agencies are focusing their investigations on vaping products that contain THC, the compound that produces a high in marijuana. Two top health officials will testify before Congress on the response to the outbreak next week.

CNNARVIN, Calif. - A tip about supposedly legal hemp production led California investigators to fields of marijuana plants. The Kern County Sheriff's Office -- with the help of the FBI and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife -- executed search warrants on 11 fields in the Arvin area, about 100 miles north of Los Angeles. From the 459 acres of land, authorities destroyed about 10 million marijuana plants --- a value of approximately $1 billion on the black market, the sheriff's office said. "These illicit marijuana gardens were grown under the guise of legitimate hemp production," the sheriff's office said. Tests showed THC levels in those fields were much higher than the legal limit, the sheriff's office said.

Mary Kerrie's death hasn't yet been counted in the CDC's total. Only after her death did the Davis family learn that Mary Kerrie had continued buying and using THC cartridges in Georgia. If and when it is announced, Mary Kerrie's death could be the fourth, potentially making Georgia's death count the highest in the United States. Mary Kerrie's legacyThe Davis family and Mary Kerrie's friends want her to be remembered for the good she brought into their lives. The Davis family attributes part of the blame for Mary Kerrie's death to a lack of regulation by the US Food and Drug Administration.

The number of cases of a deadly vaping illness continues to rise with 37 confirmed deaths and more than 1,800 sickened throughout the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. The total number of probable cases is now at 1,888, with 284 new cases diagnosed and three new fatalities over the last week, according to CDC data compiled through Tuesday. The CDC is tentatively calling the illness EVALI, short for e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury. Most patients have reported vaping THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, according to the CDC. However, public health officials say the long-term health risks are unknown.

Among 19 such deaths with data available on what substances had been vaped, 63% reported exclusive use of products containing THC, 84% reported any use of these products, 37% reported vaping products containing nicotine, and 16% said they'd only vaped nicotine-containing products. Of 29 deaths analyzed in the new report, the median age was 45, and 59% were male. According to the latest numbers, based on 867 patients with available data on what they had vaped, 86% reported using products containing THC, 64% reported using products containing nicotine, 52% said they had used both kinds of products, 34% said they used only THC-containing products, and 11% said they used only nicotine-containing products. The CDC is recommending "that you do not use e-cigarette or vaping products that contain THC," as the specific cause or substance implicated in the outbreak is still unknown. Adults addicted to nicotine using e-cigarettes should weigh all risks and benefits, and consider utilizing FDA approved nicotine replacement therapies.

The number of cases of a deadly lung illness linked to vaping appears to be "leveling off or even declining," a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official said Friday. Warnings from health officials about the dangers of vaping and actions by authorities on the product supply chain may be partly responsible for the ease in vaping lung cases, Schuchat said. Public health officials still don't know what's making people sick. Most patients have reported vaping THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, according to the CDC. The CDC is tentatively calling the illness EVALI, short for e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury.

A deadly lung illness linked to vaping has taken the lives of 34 people across 24 states as public health officials and regulators struggle to identify a precise cause of the outbreak, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. The CDC says data on age, sex, and substances used in vaping products will be released on Friday. Most patients have reported vaping THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, though health officials still have not identified what exactly in the vaping products is making people sick. Researchers at the Mayo Clinic published a study Oct. 2 that said a mix of "toxic chemical fumes," not oils, may be what's making patients sick. State and federal health officials are interviewing patients about what they're vaping.

A man uses a vape as he walks on Broadway in New York City, U.S., September 9, 2019. It's fatal or potentially fatal with half of the cases requiring intensive care," CDC Principal Deputy Director Anne Schuchat told House lawmakers at a hearing Wednesday. Almost all of the patients who get sick end up hospitalized, the CDC has previously said. Among the 1,358 patients where the CDC has age and gender data, 79% are under 35 years old with the median age of 23. Some 70% of the victims are men and the youngest one is 13 years old.

(CNN) - The federal investigation into what exactly is causing a peculiar outbreak of vaping-related lung injuries nationwide could continue for months. Last week, the FDA warned consumers to stop using THC vaping products as investigations into vaping-related lung injuries and deaths continue. The CDC on Friday released updated guidance for health workers caring for people with vaping-related lung injuries. In the guidance, the CDC refers to the e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury by a new acronym, EVALI. Schuchat said on Friday that a "handful" of lung injury patients have been readmitted to hospitals from five to 55 days after they were discharged.

The number of cases of a deadly vaping illness continues to rise "at a brisk pace" with 18 confirmed deaths and more than 1,000 cases throughout the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC has identified 275 new cases over the last week and is investigating several other deaths that are suspected of being caused by vaping, Dr. Anne Schuchat, the CDC's principle deputy director, told reporters on a conference call Thursday. Schuchat called it a "very concerning outbreak" with no signs of abating. "We haven't seen a measurable drop in the occurrences of new cases," she said. "The data that we've seen doesn't suggest it has peaked, it doesn't suggest this is declining."

While the U.S. scrambles to crack down on vaping, Britain has embraced electronic cigarettes as a powerful tool to help smokers kick the habit. Public Health England's advice is that vaping carries a small fraction of the risk of smoking. "The reality with smoking is, if you tell people to stop vaping, they will go back to tobacco and tobacco kills." Many European countries including Austria, Belgium, Germany and Italy classify e-cigarettes as tobacco products, subjecting them to strict controls. In Britain, a review by Public Health England, an agency similar to the CDC, concluded that vaping is about 95% less dangerous than smoking.

U.S. health officials said Friday that their investigation into an outbreak of severe vaping-related illnesses is increasingly focused on products that contain the marijuana compound THC. Most of the 800 people who got sick vaped THC, the ingredient in marijuana that causes a high, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . Many of the people who got sick in Illinois and Wisconsin said they used prefilled THC cartridges sold in Dank Vapes packaging. Until a cause is pinned down, the CDC continues to advise Americans to consider avoiding all vaping products, though the agency on Friday added the phrase "particularly those containing THC." But there is no FDA review of THC products, which are illegal under federal law.

On Wednesday, the Georgia Department of Public Health also reported one death. The person in Georgia had a history of "heavy nicotine vaping," but did not report a history of vaping other substances, such as THC, the Georgia Department of Public Health announced on Wednesday. Gina Raimondo signed an executive order directing the state's health department to establish "emergency regulations" forbidding the sale of flavored vaping products in the state. Earlier this month, Michigan banned the sale of flavored e-cigarettes and New York banned most flavored e-cigarettes. On the national front, the FDA has been working on a compliance policy related to enforcing premarket authorization requirements for flavored e-cigarettes, excluding tobacco flavored.

The Food and Drug Administration has asked the Drug Enforcement Administration to assist in its investigation of a vaping illness that's caused hundreds of people to fall ill in recent weeks, killing at least nine patients. The health regulator also said it will pursue criminal charges against anyone who makes or sells e-cigarettes that have been tampered with and cause anyone to get sick. He said the FDA's probe is focused on vaping manufacturers, "following the supply chain to its source," not on individuals who've used the products. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told consumers to avoid all vaping products as health officials work to figure out what's making people sick. Correction: This article was updated to reflect the correct name of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

As more parents consume edibles, emergency rooms see more children exposed to marijuana. - When Massachusetts legalized marijuana, edibles immediately became a fan favorite. Doctors say calls to the state's poison control centers have doubled since marijuana was legalized. The emergency room at South Shore Hospital has seen a dramatic increase in pediatric cases, often because parents did not secure their edibles and kids ingested them. The Commission recently proposed draft regulations that marijuana products that appeal to children shall not be placed in a package easily opened with scissors.

We ask because these days, it seems to be everywhere: major companies are making and carrying CBD products, and its even showing up in beauty products, muscle rubs, supplements and food. Analysts project the CBD industry will be worth more than $20 billion by 2022, according to Time magazine. CBD and THC are both extracted from cannabis sativa, but they have different effects, McGeorge pointed out in a recent report. Experience and research with CBD is many decades behind compounds that were identified at a similar time. A 2017 study found that 26% and 43% of CBD products that were tested had lower and higher amounts of the compound, respectively, than were listed on their labels, the article said.

Ron DeSantis has 10 business days to decide whether he'll sign legislation that will allow epileptic children in Florida to have access to a drug that contains CBD, the non-euphoric chemical derived from cannabis.The bill HB 7107 pertains to the drug Epidiolex, which was approved by the Food and Drug Administration earlier this week. The FDA describes the drug as an "oral solution for the treatment of seizures associated with two rare and sever forms of epilepsy, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome , syndrome in patients 2 years of age and older. "The drug would be covered by insurance and is made by GW Pharmaceuticals. A quick synopsis: THC gets you high when you consume it and CBD doesn't.De Santis has until July 11 to sign the bill. If approved, it would take effect immediately.