cannabisnews.com: Smokeless Marijuana Delivery Device Works Smokeless Marijuana Delivery Device Works Posted by CN Staff on May 17, 2007 at 07:36:50 PT By UPI Source: United Press International San Francisco -- A smokeless marijuana-vaporizing device delivers the same active therapeutic chemical as smoking marijuana, but without the harmful toxins, says a U.S. study.A University of California, San Francisco research team looked at the effectiveness of a device that heats marijuana to a temperature of between 180 and 200 degrees C -- just short of combustion. Eighteen people were enrolled as inpatients for six days under supervision in the General Clinical Research Center at San Francisco General Hospital Medical Center. The plasma concentrations of the active ingredient delta-9-tertrahydrocannibinol, or THC, were comparable at all strengths of marijuana between smoking and vaporization, according to the study published in the online issue of the journal Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics."Using carbon monoxide as an indicator, there was virtually no exposure to harmful combustion products using the vaporizing device," study co-author Dr. Neal L. Benowitz, said in a statement. "Since it replicates smoking's efficiency at producing the desired THC effect using smaller amounts of THC, as opposed to pill forms, this device has great potential for improving the therapeutic utility of THC." Source: United Press International (Wire)Published: May 17, 2007Copyright 2007 United Press InternationalWebsite: http://www.upi.com/ Contact: consumerhealth upi.comRelated Articles: Inhaling Cannabis Without The Smokehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22965.shtmlVaporized Marijuana May Be Easier On The Lungshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22950.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #4 posted by afterburner on May 27, 2007 at 23:04:35 PT Canadians Fighting for the Right CN ON: Legalize Pot To Halt Violence, Group Urges, Packet & Times, (26 May 2007) http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v07/n651/a12.html?176Excerpt: { Frank Elbers, director of drug enforcement for the OPP, knows there are those who would like to see drugs, specifically marijuana, legalized. But, as long as marijuana remains an illegal substance, police will continue to uphold the laws surrounding it, he said. "If the government decides to change the laws, as they have for a number of other things, then we would change accordingly." } CN BC: Editorial: Sniffing Around, Maple Ridge News, (26 May 2007) http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v07/n650/a06.html?176Inspection teams following excess electrical usage suspect grow-op -- find website server.Excerpt: { The B.C. Civil Liberties Association claims that safety inspection teams are skirting the law by evading the search warrant process, which can be a lot of work. And for what when marijuana cultivators are rarely convicted or spend time in jail? That is an issue for the lawmakers. Law enforcers shouldn't be able to walk into just anybody's house under the guise of public safety and snoop for things that smell funny. According to the Canadian charter, "Everyone has the right to be secure against an unreasonable search or seizure." That should include in Pitt Meadows. }CN ON: Vaporizing The Threat Of A Weed Bust, Globe and Mail, (26 May 2007) http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v07/n649/a01.html?176Excerpt: { The device is called a vaporizer, and after five years on the market it's starting to move toward the mainstream. "People are starting to discover them now," says Adi Roach, owner of Roach-o-Rama and the Hot Box Cafe, which provides tester models for customers to use at their tables. "With no smoke, the stone is much nicer; you're not coughing." It also suits Toronto's no-smoking bylaw nicely. But, [Sergeant Mark Hayward] adds, there may be THC residue in the equipment, in which case, everyone around the table would be liable for possession charges. Though there's no word yet on any self-cleaning vaporizer making its way to market, it may only be a matter of time before the courts will be forced to revisit Canada's drug laws. } [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by FoM on May 21, 2007 at 12:58:06 PT Press Release from EurekAlert Marijuana Worsens COPD Symptoms in Current Cigarette Smokers***May 21, 2007ATS 2007, SAN FRANCISCO — Marijuana worsens breathing problems in current smokers with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society 2007 International Conference, on Tuesday, May 22. The study found that among people 40 and older, smokers were two-and-a-half times as likely as nonsmokers to develop COPD, while smoking cigarettes and marijuana together boosted the odds of developing COPD to three-and-a-half times the risk of someone who did not smoke either cigarettes or marijuana—in other words, adding marijuana smoking to cigarette smoking increased the risk by one-third, says Wan Tan, M.D., of St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia. The odds of cigarette smokers having any respiratory symptoms was 2.36 times that of nonsmokers, while the odds of someone who smoked both cigarettes and marijuana having respiratory symptoms was 18 times that of someone who smoked neither—an eightfold jump in risk, Dr. Tan says. “This study suggests an interaction between cigarettes and marijuana smoking. These findings have not been reported before, and they have a big public health implication,” Dr. Tan says. A majority of cigarette smokers in the study were also marijuana smokers. In both younger and older adults in the study, 30% smoked both cigarettes and marijuana. Among younger cigarette smokers, 76% also smoked marijuana, while 58% of older cigarette smokers also smoked marijuana. The findings come from a study of 648 adults ages 18 and older who answered questions on smoking, including their cigarette and marijuana use, and respiratory symptoms. Study subjects ages 40 and older had lung function tests. The Vancouver researchers decided to study both marijuana and cigarette smoking because both cigarette and marijuana smoking is prevalent in their area, says Dr. Tan. They found that 49% of participants ages 18 to 39 and 46% of those 40 and older had smoked marijuana at least once. Among 18-39 year-olds, 17% said they currently smoked marijuana, compared with 13% in the 40+ age group. In the younger group, 31% said they had ever smoked cigarettes, and 16% were current smokers. In the 40+ group, 52% were ever-smokers while 16% were current smokers.###“The Impact of Cigarette and Marijuana Smoking in Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease Study in Vancouver, Canada” (Session C38; Abstract # 681; Poster Board # L42) http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-05/ats-mwc051407.php [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Sam Adams on May 17, 2007 at 13:12:45 PT thanks UPI This would be a great article for medical patients to take to their doctors when they ask for a recommendation. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by Celaya on May 17, 2007 at 11:55:25 PT About Time!! I´ve been shouting about vaporizers for years! It's incredible how long it takes this information to become common knowledge. The 1999 Institute of Medicine report CRIMINALLY left out consideration of vaporizers even though they had received testimony from Dr. Lester Grinspoon about them. This malicious ommission was the very thing that allowed the Drug Czar and the government to latch onto the small blurb about ¨harm from smoke¨in the report to ignore the conclusion that marijuand DID indeed, have medical effectiveness.At least now, we are seeing widespread reporting of vaporization. Hopefully, this cut the feet off the resistance to medical marijuana. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment