Latest reporting
CDC Finds Cannabis in 1 of Every 5 Overdose Deaths — and Says the Real Story Is What It's Riding With
A new CDC surveillance report on 209,166 overdose deaths found cannabis showing up almost three times more often in dead teenagers than in dead retirees — but the agency's own scientists say cannabis is a passenger, not the driver.
Getting High With Friends Is the Riskier Choice — If You Already Have a Problem
A September 2026 Addiction study of 104 adults found that using cannabis around other people amplifies craving and continued use, but only for those with more severe cannabis problems.
Dispensary Weed Is a Different Drug Than the One D.A.R.E. Warned You About
Dispensary THC now routinely exceeds 40%, quadruple 1995 levels. The addiction and psychosis science on high-potency cannabis is real, dose-dependent, and almost nobody at the counter has to mention it.
Through eight lenses
Science
CB1/CB2 receptor system, THC partial agonist, CBD complex pharmacology, synthetic cannabinoids as full agonists.
Biology
Acute cognitive effects, cardiovascular risk underappreciated, cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, dose-response with potency.
Psychology
Cannabis Use Disorder is real (~9% lifetime risk among users, higher w/ daily use), psychosis risk in predisposed individuals with high-potency concentrates.
Policy
Federal schedule I, state-by-state patchwork, 2018 Farm Bill loophole birthing Delta-8/HHC/THC-O.
The House Majority Leader Called Cannabis a 'Gateway Drug.' The Federal Data Out the Same Week Told a Different Story.
Sep 10Congress Just Bought Delta-8 Another 29 Days. Nobody Selling It Thinks That's Enough.
Sep 2The Government's Own Lawyers Just Said Cannabis Can't Stay in Schedule I. The Judge Still Hasn't Ruled.
Aug 28
Trends
Potency has tripled since 2000; daily-use rates rising; vaping concentrates among youth.
CDC Finds Cannabis in 1 of Every 5 Overdose Deaths — and Says the Real Story Is What It's Riding With
Sep 15The House Majority Leader Called Cannabis a 'Gateway Drug.' The Federal Data Out the Same Week Told a Different Story.
Sep 10The Government's Own Lawyers Just Said Cannabis Can't Stay in Schedule I. The Judge Still Hasn't Ruled.
Aug 28
Treatment
No FDA-approved meds; CBT, MET, contingency management.
Harm Reduction
Start low/go slow, avoid mixing, be cautious with edibles (delayed onset → redosing), synthetic cannabinoid (K2) toxicity is qualitatively different and severe.
CDC Finds Cannabis in 1 of Every 5 Overdose Deaths — and Says the Real Story Is What It's Riding With
Sep 15Congress Just Bought Delta-8 Another 29 Days. Nobody Selling It Thinks That's Enough.
Sep 2Cannabis Isn't One Story Anymore. It's a Psychosis Risk, a Drinking Substitute, and a Treatment Gap — All at Once.
Aug 3