Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
For many baby boomers – a generation exposed to the transitory zap of an annealing, collective spirit steeped in '60s psychedelia – a reintroduction of wide-scale marijuana use in the modern age has struck a relatively familiar chord.
So says Charlotte Peyton, vice president of business development at Pueblo-based Stratos, maker of pharmaceutical-grade cannabis products, who along with a pair of doctors will hold a presentation about the benefits of contemporary cannabis use at Louisville's Balfour Senior Living in August – the first in a string of talks addressing how marijuana can help those among Colorado's 65-plus crowd.
It comes as the plant's stigma, one bound to it for decades when counterculture sensibilities dissipated after the "Summer of Love" soured, has slowly lifted in the years since Colorado's legalization of recreational marijuana.
Along with the reversal in attitude has come a renewed urgency for cannabis' medical benefits, advocates say.
"Education is always key," Peyton said, "in particular about the different uses of cannabis. We want the public to realize that you don't have to necessarily smoke to provide the benefits of the plants."
The August presentations will address the drug's health and wellness applications commonly associated with senior ailments, according to a description of the presentation, as well as various consumption methods that vary well beyond the traditional inhaling.
New consumption methods for cannabis – such as edibles or tablets (small capsules held under the tongue and then swallowed) – have ushered in an entirely new group of people to the plant, according to Dr. Joe Cohen with Holos Health, a holistic health organization that specializes in medical marijuana evaluations.
The latter methods have proven most effective in piquing the interest of seniors in Colorado's post-legalization era.
Balfour's presentations come not a moment too soon, at least according to recent studies mapping cannabis use across nationwide demographics.
Cannabis use among seniors, particularly those over 65, has skyrocketed, according to a survey of 47,140 respondents published by the Society for the Study of Addiction. Findings show that cannabis use has increased roughly 58 percent for adults ages 50 to 64 and 250 percent among adults over age 65.
Marijuana's increasing acceptance among older Americans is echoed on a smaller scale in Colorado, officials say, where the last several years of legalization have done wonders for attitudes toward marijuana use.
According to a BDS Analytics' study titled "Public Attitudes and Actions Toward Legal Cannabis in CO," Coloradans aged 55 and up make up at least 20 percent of cannabis consumers in Colorado. The study identifies "consumers" as those who have used cannabis during the past six months and support cannabis.
"When you're retired or older you don't have to worry about the social stigma that still exists with cannabis," Peyton said. "A lot of baby boomers are familiar with (cannabis); it's kind of like going back home for them. They haven't drank the Kool Aid and been indoctrinated by the pharmaceutical industry.
"When you have a cabinet full of pharmaceuticals that aren't so good for you, you may opt for a single plant that is better for you."
Marijuana can offer therapeutic effects toward – and in some cases even slow the progression of – certain neurogenic diseases, according to studies that have echoed similar results in the past several years.
In certain cases, doctors have seen cannabis prescription work on a range of levels: sometimes preventing spasms, reducing pain and even inflammation, according to Cohen, who said Friday that cannabis use "works in a variety of ways," all "accomplished with just one non-toxic plant."
"In the body we have a system where we make our own cannabinoids," he said, "so we're wired for this plant; it's basically the same compound that we produce in our body. It actually provides balance in our body."
How cannabis can be consumed in and around senior living facilities such as Balfour is somewhat murky. There are designated smoking areas outside, though it's unclear if residents are actually allowed to inhale marijuana in those premises; Balfour officials suggest edibles or tablet consumption.
But representatives suggest there's growing interest among the Louisville facility's roughly 300 members.
"More and more patients that we see – people that wanted to shy away from (cannabis), are hearing from friends that it can actually work," Cohen said. "Even people who have never used cannabis and who are opposed to using cannabis have begun to approach it.
"The medical system has failed them and they become so desperate that they finally come in and make an appointment."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Louisville's Balfour Senior Living to hold cannabis talks amid growing interest - Boulder Daily Camera
Author: Anthony Hahn
Contact: Contact Us - Boulder Daily Camera
Photo Credit: Jeremy Papasso
Website: Louisville News - Boulder Daily Camera
So says Charlotte Peyton, vice president of business development at Pueblo-based Stratos, maker of pharmaceutical-grade cannabis products, who along with a pair of doctors will hold a presentation about the benefits of contemporary cannabis use at Louisville's Balfour Senior Living in August – the first in a string of talks addressing how marijuana can help those among Colorado's 65-plus crowd.
It comes as the plant's stigma, one bound to it for decades when counterculture sensibilities dissipated after the "Summer of Love" soured, has slowly lifted in the years since Colorado's legalization of recreational marijuana.
Along with the reversal in attitude has come a renewed urgency for cannabis' medical benefits, advocates say.
"Education is always key," Peyton said, "in particular about the different uses of cannabis. We want the public to realize that you don't have to necessarily smoke to provide the benefits of the plants."
The August presentations will address the drug's health and wellness applications commonly associated with senior ailments, according to a description of the presentation, as well as various consumption methods that vary well beyond the traditional inhaling.
New consumption methods for cannabis – such as edibles or tablets (small capsules held under the tongue and then swallowed) – have ushered in an entirely new group of people to the plant, according to Dr. Joe Cohen with Holos Health, a holistic health organization that specializes in medical marijuana evaluations.
The latter methods have proven most effective in piquing the interest of seniors in Colorado's post-legalization era.
Balfour's presentations come not a moment too soon, at least according to recent studies mapping cannabis use across nationwide demographics.
Cannabis use among seniors, particularly those over 65, has skyrocketed, according to a survey of 47,140 respondents published by the Society for the Study of Addiction. Findings show that cannabis use has increased roughly 58 percent for adults ages 50 to 64 and 250 percent among adults over age 65.
Marijuana's increasing acceptance among older Americans is echoed on a smaller scale in Colorado, officials say, where the last several years of legalization have done wonders for attitudes toward marijuana use.
According to a BDS Analytics' study titled "Public Attitudes and Actions Toward Legal Cannabis in CO," Coloradans aged 55 and up make up at least 20 percent of cannabis consumers in Colorado. The study identifies "consumers" as those who have used cannabis during the past six months and support cannabis.
"When you're retired or older you don't have to worry about the social stigma that still exists with cannabis," Peyton said. "A lot of baby boomers are familiar with (cannabis); it's kind of like going back home for them. They haven't drank the Kool Aid and been indoctrinated by the pharmaceutical industry.
"When you have a cabinet full of pharmaceuticals that aren't so good for you, you may opt for a single plant that is better for you."
Marijuana can offer therapeutic effects toward – and in some cases even slow the progression of – certain neurogenic diseases, according to studies that have echoed similar results in the past several years.
In certain cases, doctors have seen cannabis prescription work on a range of levels: sometimes preventing spasms, reducing pain and even inflammation, according to Cohen, who said Friday that cannabis use "works in a variety of ways," all "accomplished with just one non-toxic plant."
"In the body we have a system where we make our own cannabinoids," he said, "so we're wired for this plant; it's basically the same compound that we produce in our body. It actually provides balance in our body."
How cannabis can be consumed in and around senior living facilities such as Balfour is somewhat murky. There are designated smoking areas outside, though it's unclear if residents are actually allowed to inhale marijuana in those premises; Balfour officials suggest edibles or tablet consumption.
But representatives suggest there's growing interest among the Louisville facility's roughly 300 members.
"More and more patients that we see – people that wanted to shy away from (cannabis), are hearing from friends that it can actually work," Cohen said. "Even people who have never used cannabis and who are opposed to using cannabis have begun to approach it.
"The medical system has failed them and they become so desperate that they finally come in and make an appointment."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Louisville's Balfour Senior Living to hold cannabis talks amid growing interest - Boulder Daily Camera
Author: Anthony Hahn
Contact: Contact Us - Boulder Daily Camera
Photo Credit: Jeremy Papasso
Website: Louisville News - Boulder Daily Camera
