Tag: marijuana

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A private high school in Kentucky signed off on randomly drug testing their students on July 4th, this past week. The board at Trinity High School has been attempting to officially implement this for years with 2 years of testing under their belt.

How long have they been doing it?

Six hundred students were tested during their initial year of drug-testing, with 24 students (4 percent) testing positive. During the just-completed school year, they tested 800 students – with just 3 percent testing positive (24 students). While the rates are low, the school considers one positive test a test too high, and is doing everything they can to enforce their stance on drugs and binge drinking.

What’s it costing?

Including using a hair drug test, which can detect any drug use of up to 90 days prior. The standard in the industry is a urine 5 panel drug test, which can test for up to a week prior. Adopting a hair test as the random test of choice is very expensive, one test usually goes for $139.99. This price will be covered by the tuition the families are paying for their students to attend Trinity, at $13,700 a year when paid in full and the price goes up for payment plans.

When a student tests positive, their first reaction is not punitive. The school meets with the parent(s) and student, review the results and encourage them to use community counseling resources to interrupt this risky behavior. During this phase of drug testing, no school consequences occur. School counselors are available for support and guidance. If a student tests positive, he will be tested every 100 days until further notice. If he tests positive again school consequences begin. This has been rare so far.

Parents love it!

Parents support the program because, the school says, they understand it empowers their kids to make better decisions. At parties or in unsupervised homes, teens often are pressured or forget good advice from parents, school and church. A parent told us “we hear frequently that it really does help in peer situations to be able to say, “I can’t. My school tests.””

 Though Trinity wasn’t the first school to test in this area, several other schools have visited them to learn more and adopted their policy as their own.

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Medical and recreational use of marijuana has become a growing trend in America. It is an extremely hot topic and has become the center of many biased discussions among US politicians.

Where is Marijuana Legal?

The use, possession, trade, cultivation, and transportation of marijuana is still illegal under federal law in the United States. Because of this, some states are have implemented their own regulations with regards to marijuana use.

 

States with legal recreational marijuana: 

1. Alaska

2. California

3. Colorado

4. Oregon

5.Massachusets

6. Nevada

7. Washington

States with medical marijuana: 

1. Alaska 2. Arizona 3. Arkansas
4. California 5. Colorado 6. Connecticut
7. Delaware 8. Florida 9. Hawaii
10. Illinois 11. Maine 12. Maryland
13. Massachusetts 14. Michigan 15. Minnesota
16. Montana 17. Nevada 18. New Hampshire
19. New Jersey 20. New Mexico 21. New York
22. North Dakota 23. Oregon 24. Pennsylvania
25. Rhode Island 26. Vermont 27. Washington

 

Cannabis is categorized under Schedule 1 substance under the Controlled Substance Act of 1970. It is because of this reason that cannabis remains illegal at the federal level.

Marijuana in the workplace

Image result for Marijuana in the workplace

While some point out advantages of marijuana use and its effectiveness treating medical issues, others point out the high-risk effects marijuana may have. Some proven effects of medical marijuana in the workplace include

1.Loss of productivity
2.Absenteeism
3.Increased risks of workplace injuries and accidents.

Loss of Productivity

Scientists have confirmed cannabis really does make people lose motivation. Research has confirmed long-term use of the drug affects the dopamine levels in the brain. Dopamine, also known as the “happy” “feel-good” chemical of the brain is what inspires a person to get up and go. Levels of dopamine in a part of the brain called the striatum – found towards the side of the brain and involved in motivation – were lower in regular cannabis users. A recent study has suggested that individuals who have participated in long-term marijuana usage became more withdrawn, lethargic, and apathetic.

Absenteeism

Cannabis contains at least 60 types of cannabinoids, chemical compounds that act on receptors throughout our brain. THC, or Tetrahydrocannabinol, is the chemical responsible for most of marijuanas effects, including the euphoric high. THC resembles another cannabinoid naturally produced in our brains, anandamide, which regulates our mood, sleep, memory, and appetite.

Injuries and Accidents

Marijuana impairs attentiveness, motor coordination, and reaction time. It also impacts the perception of time and speed. A study from the National Institute on Drug Abuse has found that marijuana negatively impacts driving performance, and other researchers have found that acute use of the drug increases the risk of crashes and fatal collisions. The drug has also been known to alter decision making, creating a disillusion of one’s morality, and knowing right from wrong.

Whats Next?

The legality of medical marijuana in the workplace continues to be an endless debate. Although the medical, or recreational use of marijuana is legal- most workplaces are still upholding their Drug-Free Workplace Policies. The most common reason for this being the safety aspect of allowing the use of marijuana among employees, knowing the potential risks.Policy makers are developing new regulations to uphold company values while new state laws are put into effect.

If you are interested in becoming a Drug-Free Workplace or need help writing a Company Substance Abuse Policy, visit us at www.accrediteddrugtesting.net.

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Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, a new illness only recently acknowledged by the medical community has been seen more commonly since new states have been legalizing medical and recreational marijuana.

medical marijuana

It affects a small population — mostly, a subset of marijuana users who smoke multiple times a day for months, years or even decades.

Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome is characterized by cyclic episodes of nausea and vomiting and frequent hot bathing. Image result for cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome

Chalfonte LeNee Queen suffered periodic episodes of violent retching and abdominal pain that would knock her off her feet for days, sometimes leaving her writhing on the floor in pain.

“I’ve screamed out for death,” says Queen, 48, who lives in San Diego. “I’ve cried out for my mom, who’s been dead for 20 years, mentally not realizing she can’t come to me.”

Diagnosing Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome can be frustrating and expensive.

There is no blood test to link the stomach ailment with marijuana use, so physicians often order pricey CT scans and lab tests to rule out other medical problems.

One way doctors have been diagnosing the illness is when a patient says that hot baths subside the symptoms. For whatever reason, unknown, patients who develop this disease find a significant relief in hot showers and baths. Toxicologists say the heat may distract the brain from pain receptors in the abdomen but, like  Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome itself, is still very misunderstood.

cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome

The exact cause and onset of  Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome remain much of a mystery today in the medical field. The first diagnosis of this illness can be dated back to 2004 by an Australian doctor.  Since  Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome is a newly recognized illness, only been seen more commonly throughout the US due to the recent passings of Marijuana laws, it is often mistaken for something else.

Toxicologists say the chemical compounds in marijuana may throw off the normal function of the body’s cannabinoid receptors, which help regulate the nervous system. Some people may be genetically predisposed to the syndrome, or marijuana’s potency or chemical makeup may have changed over time, says Dr. Craig Smollin, medical director of the San Francisco division of the California Poison Control System and an ER doctor at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital.

endocannabinoid system

Since most people, especially cancer patients are told that marijuana is known to aid in nausea and vomiting, it seems hard for a patient to believe that the link to their aggressive and chronic vomiting spells is due to marijuana.  19-year-old student Cameron Nicole Beard, of East Moline, Ill., said she struggled to believe her doctors about the link between pot and severe vomiting.

“Who wants to be told you can’t smoke marijuana when you think marijuana can help?” says Beard, while recovering from a marijuana-related vomiting episode at a University of Iowa hospital in Iowa City, Iowa, last month. She said she had lost 20 pounds in 10 days.

There is still no direct cure for Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, although doctors are getting better at treating the symptoms. They have been using old anti-psychotic medications and cream for muscle aches.

For questions on detecting marijuana use, please visit Accredited Drug Testing, or call 1-800-221-4291.