Since its inception, America’s cannabis industry has been in a precarious position. Although 37 states have legalized medical marijuana, the federal government still classifies marijuana as a Schedule I controlled substance. This has essentially shackled the state-legal cannabis industry and has been especially detrimental to cannabis research. While cannabis is said to be effective against a wide range of medical issues, there isn’t a lot of scientific data backing up these claims. Since cannabis companies aren’t allowed to test their products on people before releasing them to the market, they essentially rely on customer feedback to tweak and improve products. According to Rick Scarpello, CEO of Medically Correct LLC, a pioneer in the Colorado cannabis space, the only way the business could test its products without running afoul of federal law during its first years was to put them on the market and then go buy them. Despite being limited by federal law, Scarpello believes that cannabis heals and that his company provides help to sick people who need it. Still, he acknowledges that the cannabis industry is in dire need of scientific research. As such, he cannot, for instance, declare that cannabis can reduce pain as there have been few if any, clinical studies and double-blind trials to definitively prove that the substance has pain-relieving capabilities. Some scientists have found ways to collect the data they need without breaking federal law. Instead of bringing cannabis to the lab, which is outlawed, researchers from the University of Boulder’s Center for Health, Neuroscience, Genes, and Environment (CUChange) used specialized vans to go to participants’ homes and collect data before and after they consumed cannabis.
CannabisNewsWire, 08/04/2021 16:20:00