Fall is football season which means it is time for tailgate parties! Maybe you should add hemp to the buffet!
Football season is here – and whether college or professional, tailgating is a thing. It takes place around sporting events, festivals and concerts. There is usually food, drinks, music and a good time. But, should you add hemp beverages to your tailgating? While marijuana is slowly becoming legal across the national, some big football states aren’t there. But hemp is legal and even some deep anti-marijuana states are embracing it. Texas, a huge football state, has hemp beverages sold at local and national chains. Hemp beverage can be seen as taking a bite out of the White Claw market, yet a bit healthier.
The nemesis of marijuana, Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is proud of his blocking federal progress, but he has ensured hemp has a green light. Hemp beverage have become a billion dollar market. Wana Brands, a leader in the cannabis industry, has rolled out 3 beverages. Bayou Beverages out of Texas has taken the state by storm with products in Total Wine and convenience stores around the state. Hemp is sold like alcohol with restrictions on age and how it is sold.
Hemp or CBD drinks are created by infusing hemp extract, derived from the cannabis plant, into a liquid base. The most popular hemp-infused drinks include water, juice, tea, and coffee. One of the big differences between marijuana and hemp drinks is the “high”. With Delta-9 hemp, consumers tend to have a more intense experience and comes on faster than THC. It is a euphoric high when altered sensory perception and a sense of relaxation.
California Governor Newsom is supporting emergency rules to curb sale of hemp products with potent high. The state is struggling with their cannabis industry, high taxes and allowing the black market to run free have hurt mom and pop businesses. While consumers have been high, the states oversight has been driving them to hemp and to the marijuana black market.
Alcohol and mixers are always a bit a wild card if you are a diabetic, maybe cannabis can help.
Being a diabetic can be tough and you always must be aware of your blood sugar. Today, there are programs which monitor the levels and gives alerts if things are too bad. Cocktails and some other alcohol and can be full of sugar, which can play havoc with a body. Additionally, alcohol consumption can worsen diabetes-related medical complications, such as disturbances in fat metabolism, nerve damage, and eye disease. But cannabis, well, that is a different story – and it seems the knowledge it catching on. So is marijuana a diabetes answer to alcohol?
Marijuana use is becoming more common for diabetics. A recent study estimated that 9% adults with diabetes used cannabis in the last month, a 33.7% increase with nearly half (48.9%) of users were younger than 50 years. Cannabis use is also increasing among Boomer (65 and older), many of whom have diabetes and other chronic conditions.
Alcohol consumption is taking a hit as more people consume marijuana. Gen Z is drifting from alcohol and consuming more. California sober has become a trend. The AARP has said cannabis has medical benefits, but what about using it as a full or partial replacement of alcohol? Cannabis is
For diabetic, drinking alcohol can cause low or high blood sugar, affect diabetes medicines, and cause other possible problems. The liver releases glucose into your blood stream as needed to help keep blood sugar at normal levels. The liver releases glucose into the blood stream help keep blood sugar at normal levels. When drinking alcohol, the liver needs to break down the alcohol. While the liver is processing alcohol, it stops releasing glucose. As a result, blood sugar levels can drop quickly, making a risks for low blood sugar (hypoglycemia).
While over indulging is never good, moderate vaping can avoid the sugar and carb intake received from alcohol and especially cocktails. Microdosing has also become popular.
Two important notes, there needs to be more research on dosage and use. Also, cannabis could use could increase the risk for diabetic ketoacidosis for people with type 1 diabetes. Research showed it was primarily due to worse management of diabetes, including increased intake of high-carb foods and forgetting to take medications.
Arkansas is moving forward with increasing medical marijuana – despite the state government!
Akansas is home to the Ozarks and to the famous Crystal Bridges Museum. It is a study of down home America and the future. Bentonville is home of Walmart, the largest physical retailer in North America. Found on their shelves is CBD from the cannabis plant. And now the citizens of the state want expanded medical marijuana. While recreational is far down the rode, Arkansans have a win with the marijuana ballot today.
The state approved medical marijuana in 2016. In the last couple of years, the has been a grassroots effort to expanded the program. And recently The medical marijuana proposal was aimed at expanding a measure that the state’s voters approved in 2016. It would have broadened the definition of medical professionals who can certify patients for medical cannabis, expanded qualifying conditions and made medical cannabis cards valid for three years.
In 2023, the state legislature approved and Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a bill protecting Arkansas medical cannabis patients’ right to concealed carry of a firearm. The governor leans conservative and has made it clear she is not supportive of the mission.
The Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment would relax regulations. It would allow like medical professionals other than doctors to sign off on medical marijuana cards, allow patients ages 21 and up to grow and process marijuana plants at home. Additionally it would and open up eligibility for any medical conditions a health care practitioner considers debilitating instead of the existing qualifying conditions.
Proponents needed to have 90,704 verified votes. Arkansans for Patient Access submitted more than 150,000 signatures.. The state told the group in July it had fallen short of the required number, but had qualified for an additional 30 days to circulate petitions.
The group said rejecting 20,000 of its signatures was due to an “arbitrary,” last-minute rule change. The state decided to toss enough votes to leave them short 2,664.
But the The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled Wednesday Secretary of State John Thurston must continue verifying signatures to put an amendment loosening medical marijuana laws on the November ballot. It seems at least 25% will be verified, securing the ballot initiative.
Arkansas joins states like Florida where Governor DeSantis is working hard to defeats another ballot initiative popular with voters. November will yield some interesting outcomes.
It is a jaw dropping scandal flooding the news…but the cannabis industry is avoiding it because the big investment deal fell through.
The entertainment industry and the public is general have been shocked by the scandal around Diddy (formerly Puff Daddy, Sean Combs, etc). The tentacles of his being charged at a federal level is making causing X in the music, entertainment, fashion, alcohol and monied worlds…but one industry is breathing a sigh of relief. There is a flood of celebrates who worried they will be pulled down including Ashton Kutcher, actor and Silicon Valley investor, Kevin Hart, Usher, Jay-Z, and more. But Diddy’s failed cannabis investment saves industry a scandal, right as it seems to waiting for good news.
Combs was arrested on Sept. 16 and charged with sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution charges. He is depicted as the leader of an alleged criminal enterprise, subjecting women and men to a pattern of physical and sexual abuse, according to federal prosecutors.
Investigators allege over a span of years, Combs would ply victims with narcotics and even resort to violence and intimidation during days-long sex sessions in events called “freak offs”. Big names were at these events and it has people running scared.
Diddy deeply dove into being part of the merge of cannabis companies Cresco Labs Inc. and Columbia Care Inc. They are currently two of the largest cannabis companies and were exploring a joint operations while adding additional investors. Diddy’s $155 million part would have given him a huge foothold into the growing market. His reach, wealth, and connections could have helped the industry. Luckily, in August 2023, the $ merger was terminated, canceling and voiding his deal with them.
But what next? Other people near him have a role in the industry including Jay-Z. He Jay-Z started a $10 million investment for minority-owned cannabis startups. He is the Chief Visionary Officer of TPCO Holding.
Wiz Khalifa, Method Man, and Snoop Dog all have fingers in marijuana. Time will tell how the Diddy indictments plays out for all the players.