CANNABIS
Guam Legalizes Marijuana Use By Adults (NORML)
New Mexico Governor Signs Marijuana Decriminalization Bill (Forbes)
Los Angeles to Erase 50,000 Criminal Cannabis Convictions (Leafly)
States With Legal Marijuana Would Be Protected From Feds Under Newly Filed Bill (Marijuana Moment)
Legalization Bill Clears New Hampshire House, but Veto Expected (Leafly)
Federally Produced Marijuana Is Closer To Hemp Than Commercial Cannabis, Study Shows (Marijuana Moment)
Street cannabis 'contains dangerous amount of faecal matter' (BBC)
Wisconsin Voters Approve Multiple Marijuana Ballot Questions (Marijuana Moment)
Science Says: Better Orgasms Through Cannabis! (The Stranger)
Texas removing hemp from controlled substance list (The State)
The EPA Is Funding Research On Using Hemp As A Sustainable Alternative To Concrete (Marijuana Moment)
Medicinal use of cannabis based products and cannabinoids (The BMJ)
Using Marijuana With Your Partner Increases The Likelihood Of Intimacy, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)
Georgia on cusp of legalizing medical marijuana (CNN)
Medical Marijuana for Autism Law Approved on World Autism Day (The Fix)
Will Germany become the world's largest market for medicinal cannabis? (Deutsche Welle)
‘Weed Dip’ Could Help Curb A Smokeless Tobacco Addiction (NowThis News)
The Unique Challenges to Recycling Vapes in the Cannabis Industry (Civilized)
Legalizing pot is the new Democratic litmus test (Politico)
New York Governor Cuomo Leaves Marijuana Legalization Out of State Budget (NORML)
Why Is the Cannabis Industry Struggling to Build Social Equity in the City of Angels? An Interview with Kristen Lovell of the Social Impact Center, Los Angeles (Psychedelic Times)
PGA Issues Warning To Golfers Using CBD Products (Marijuana Moment)
Can marijuana help end the opioids crisis? (The Guardian)
The Feds Are Looking To Hire A Professional Marijuana Joint Roller (Marijuana Moment)
Oklahoma Medical Cannabis Patients Can Hold Open-Carry Gun Permits (Leafly)
“Our lawmakers don’t talk to their constituents.” An Interview with New Mexico Activist Monique Chavez on Why Pot Legalization Failed In Her State (Psychedelic Times)
One county’s take on medical marijuana makes some users criminals (Arizona Capitol Times)
Hemp Is At The Center Of Fashion, Politics, And Sustainability (NYLON)
Florida Lawmakers Want to Limit Medical Marijuana Potency (Leafly)
Cannabis stocks mixed ahead of bill proposing protections for weed companies (MarketWatch)
LSD
Police suspect LSD contributed to death of Springfield teen (KEZI)
Explainer: Can you die from LSD? (The Register-Guard)
Man spiked his co-workers' water with LSD because they were ‘too uptight’ (Her)
Scary Combination: A Navy Nuclear Powered Aircraft Carrier and LSD (The National Interest)
Bizarre true story of the UK military testing LSD on Royal Marines revealed in incredible footage that shows high soldiers stumbling and climbing (The Sun)
The acid test: Here's what LSD does to your brain (The Sydney Morning Herald)
From Hollywood to Silicon Beach, L.A. Professionals Are Using LSD to Amp Up Their Careers (LAmag)
MAGIC MUSHROOMS
Why Stop at One Campaign to Legalize Psychedelic Mushrooms? Oregon Has Two—and They Don’t Get Along. (Willamette Week)
Denver Will See Whether Voters Favor Decriminalizing Psychedelic Mushrooms (Weedmaps)
MDMA
Psychedelic drug MDMA may reawaken 'critical period' in brain to help treat PTSD (ScienceDaily)
Ecstasy use by Australian high school students doubles over three years (Stuff.co.nz)
GHB and MDMA are the best drugs for 'enhancing' sex, new study finds (Metro)
AYAHUASCA
Scientists studying psychedelic ayahuasca as a potential anti-depressant (CTV News)
Great Shamanic Deception: Using Ayahuasca as a Conduit for Sexual Fulfillment (Chacruna)
Am I a Sectarian Drug User? A Brief Legal Comment on the Religious Use of Ayahuasca in Brazil, Belgium and the Netherlands (Chacruna)
Catharsis through vomiting: My experiences with an ancient Amazonian drug at a Haryana farmhouse (Scroll.in)
Inside Chelsea Handler’s Shocking Psychedelic Drug Confession (Radar Online)
5-MEO-DMT
Could Bufo toad toxins be beneficial to humans? (NBC2 News)
NOVEL PSYCHOACTIVE SUBSTANCES
UAB research study finds that the majority of novel psychedelic drug users are white, college-educated men (Alabama Political Reporter)
SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS
This is what it's like to be a Spicehead (Manchester Evening News)
NITROUS OXIDE
How Medical Researchers Used to Party (JSTOR Daily)
Red Bluff hospital first in Northstate to offer laughing gas for child birth (KRCRTV)
KETAMINE
Immunosuppressant May Extend Ketamine's Antidepressant Effects (Medscape)
When Nothing Seems to Help Your CRPS, Ketamine Pain Treatments May Bring Relief (Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic)
Effect of Ketamine With Electroconvulsive Therapy for Depressive Symptoms (Psychiatry Advisor)
FDA Approves Ketamine-Derived Treatment for Depression, But How Are People Really Using It? A Conversation with Kellye Greene of New York DanceSafe (Psychedelic Times)
Esketamine and psychedelics will require restructuring mental health care visits (STAT)
Study: Alligators on ketamine and headphones to mimic dinosaurs (Digital Journal)
Boys rescued from Thai cave were sedated with ketamine (CNN)
OPIATES/OPIOIDS
China to Regulate All Fentanyl-Related Drugs as Controlled Substances (TIME)
“Nation’s Most Comprehensive Lawsuit”—Now NY Takes On Purdue and the Sacklers (Filter)
Fear, Loathing and Fentanyl Exposure (The New York Times)
“Tranq Dope”—The Heroin Combo That’s Been Putting Philly to Sleep (Filter)
Naloxone remains stable for at least 28 days after enduring extreme conditions: study (The Record)
As overdoses rise, New Jersey removes a barrier to treatment for opioid addiction (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
A single-dose antidote may help prevent fentanyl overdoses (Science News)
Philadelphia Department of Prisons will begin offering buprenorphine to male inmates again (WHYY)
How to stop the opioid crisis (The Washington Post)
Philly sees concerning increase in new HIV cases driven by opioid epidemic (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Study Finds Vast Differences In Ease-Of-Use For Naloxone Delivery Methods (PR Newswire)
Is Xi Jinping the New El Chapo? (The Trumpet)
Opium farming goes unchecked, difficult to locate plantation sites (The Kathmandu Post)
Narcan-resistant drug linked to suspected fatal OD, Montgomery County coroner warns (WHIO)
How Atlantic City is rethinking addiction amid opioid epidemic (The Press of Atlantic City)
Baby Born Prematurely, Addicted to Heroin Gets Second Chance at Life Thanks to Rare Adoption (Clay Center Dispatch)
Heroin Is Not Your Friend (Psychology Today)
COCAINE
Why Cocaine Turns People into Jerks, a Simple Explanation (VICE)
War on drugs has helped cocaine traffickers conquer swathes of Central America, study suggests (The Independent)
Man faces multiple felonies after alleged cocaine-fueled melee during concert (Aspen Daily News)
METHAMPHETAMINE
Messier Than Opioids, Meth Is Asia's Worst Narcotics Threat (Bloomberg)
Do you live near a meth lab? This interactive map will show you (KGUN)
Cheap, Nasty, Near You. How Crystal Meth Is Spreading (Bloomberg)
'Completely preventable': 50 young people killed by stroke after using meth, MDMA (The Sydney Morning Herald)
CAFFEINE
There May Be a Link Between Coffee and Lung Cancer, Study Suggests (Live Science)
Combining Caffeine With Alcohol Can Be A Problem (American Council on Science and Health)
Are You Overdosing on Caffeine? (Outside)
Here’s what happens to your body when you drink coffee (Health24)
TOBACCO
Maryland approves raising age to 21 to buy tobacco (The Washington Post)
State lawmakers raise age to buy tobacco products, e-cigarettes to 21 (The Buffalo News)
Olmsted County raises tobacco age to 21 (Med City Beat)
With vaping under fire for potential links to seizures, tobacco-free snuff latest alternative to help smokers quit (USA Today)
Alabama Congressman aims to raise the age someone can buy tobacco (ABC 33/40)
Could smokers under 21 be barred from buying tobacco products? Texas takes a step closer to raising the age (Dallas News)
ALCOHOL
Alcohol, caffeine are common triggers of irregular heart rhythm (Reuters)
More adults seeking support for alcoholic parents (BBC)
To Combat Binge Drinking, a Search for Chemical Solutions (Undark)
Don’t Call Jessica Lareau an Alcoholic. To Her, Words Matter (Boston University)
Even low alcohol consumption is bad news for strokes – study (The Guardian)
Brain damage from alcohol lasts up to six weeks after quitting (New York Post)
Millennials Are Sick of Drinking (The Atlantic)
Hangover free alcohol? Scientist claims he’s created magic recipe (FOX 8)
ABSINTHE
Burning Question: Why was absinthe legal then illegal and now legal again? (Monterey County Weekly)
NOOTROPICS
What Are Nootropics? Your Guide To The Best Brain-Boosting Nutrients (mindbodygreen)
Nootropics You Need To Know About (The Epoch Times)
KRATOM
FDA Confirms 'Dangerous' Levels of Heavy Metals in Some Kratom Products (Medscape)
Drug task force lobbies county to ban sale of opioid-like Kratom (The St. Augustine Record)
Commissioners postpone move to ban kratom in St. Johns County (WJXT)
KAVA
Retired UFC fighter to open Island Kava tea bar in Patchogue (GreaterPatchogue)
KHAT
Woman Khat vendor killed in Banaadir region (Somalia Affairs)
MISCELLANEOUS
D.E.A. Secretly Collected Bulk Records of Money-Counter Purchases (The New York Times)
People who ‘microdose’ psychedelic drugs for a month say it increases positive emotions and productivity (PsyPost)
Drugs before sex more common in UK than in Europe or US – study (The Guardian)
Ralph Metzner, LSD and Consciousness Researcher, Dies at 82 (The New York Times)
Philly Councilman Mark Squilla moves to block supervised injection site (WHYY)
What Could a Conscious, Psychedelic #MeToo Look Like? (Chacruna)
Acetaminophen's Surprising Psychoactive Effects (RealClearScience)
On the Eve of the Great Psychedelic Debate (Quillette)
Drug Paraphernalia Laws: The “Swiss Army Knife” of the Drug War (Filter)
But The Drugs Keep Me Sober (The Small Bow)
Philippine Supreme Court Orders Release of Evidence From Duterte’s Drug War (TIME)
Supervised injection site supporters countersue feds, saying their Philly mission comes from religious and medical imperatives (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Presidential Candidate Andrew Yang Pledges To Pardon All Non-Violent Drug Offenders On 4/20 (Marijuana Moment)
Let’s Address Four Common Myths About Harm Reduction (Filter)
Drug trips, not broken hips: let later life be the age of irresponsibility (The Guardian)
In the Space of One Minute, Joe Biden Defends the Death Penalty for Drug Dealers, Asset Forfeiture, and Mandatory Minimums (Reason)
The New Science of Psychedelics: A Tool for Changing Our Minds (SingularityHub)
Two SOM students explore psychedelic investment opportunities (Yale Daily News)
Psychedelic therapy for depression (The Naked Scientists)
What's the deal with microdosing? (Stuff.co.nz)
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Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychoactives" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.
Image by Psychedelic Astronaut.
On the Monday following each edition of “This Week in Psychoactives,” I post a “Last Week in Psychoactives” video recap to my YouTube channel. After that is done, I retroactively add the video to the corresponding blog post. Here is this week’s video recap: