For the second time in two years, the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) has delayed a critical vote on the reclassification of cannabis. The CND met in Vienna, Austria from March 2-6. The vote is now expected to happen in December 2020. The discussion about reclassification of the plant, however, has been going on for a little longer than that.

A new meta-analysis on cannabis shows that cannabinoids are helpful to relieve acute pain in patients in comparison with placebo cases. Although the use of cannabis has been associated with undesirable effects but no such adversity was reported while testing a safe usage of cannabinoids for treating patients in acute pain, says the new study.

The complete findings of this study are published in the journal Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research as “Cannabinoids in the Management of Acute Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis”.

Across the globe, companies are racing to develop a cure for COVID-19. Some might be surprised to hear that technology from the cannabis industry could be useful in creating a vaccine or oral treatment. Several cannabis companies have recently come forward with ideas that could potentially help combat the virus and its transmission.

Enhanced drug delivery

For instance, Lexaria Bioscience Corporation recently announced they would be partnering with other leading laboratories in Canada and the U.S. to study the benefits of their DehydraTECH platform for administering antiretroviral drugs. According to their press release, the technology could be helpful for “enhancing delivery and effectiveness of certain antiretroviral drugs.”

A new policy directive from the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch will be welcome news for anyone who doesn’t want to linger inside a store waiting for their purchases.

Under the revised policy released Friday, the LCRB has clarified that retailers can now take online or phone reservations for non-medical cannabis products from customers; previously the regulator had only stipulated that online sales were banned.

Retailers still can’t sell their products online, but under the revised policy they can allow customers to reserve products online.

Customers must still go to the retail location to purchase and pick up their products.

A new analysis from Babylon Health shows cannabidiol (CBD) has a high ratio of Instagram posts to academic research articles, suggesting the compound may be more than just a fad.

The London-based remote healthcare provider analyzed the disparity between the number of Instagram posts tagged with its hashtag—for example, #CleanBeauty—to the number of Google Scholar articles about the subject.

Out of ten hashtags analyzed under the “Wellness” category, #CBD was the third-most tagged on Instagram with more than 8 million posts, following behind #Mindfulness with 15.7 million posts and #Meditation with 27.6 million posts.

New Frontier Data, the leading data provider in the cannabis industry, is hosting its first ever virtual cannabis town hall this April to discuss the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the marijuana business. 

The Global Cannabis Town Hall: New Economic Realities will be held virtually on April 2, 2020. Representing different parts of the world, partners of the upcoming town hall will be ExpoCannaBiz (Latin America), CannaTech (Middle East and Asia Pacific), New West Summit (North America), RASB Media (Europe) and CannabisBPO.

Edmonton police are taking their fight against illegal cannabis online, but some sellers are still evading the rules.

Police say they have begun taking over more than 100 domains for websites selling illegal cannabis this week. Websites display a message indicating the domain has been seized and asking visitors with information to contact police. Recreational cannabis can only be legally purchased online from Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) in this province.

At least one vendor seems to have circumvented the shutdown. Getkush.ca was seized by police this week, but a post on the company’s Facebook page indicates it changed its domain on Monday. The new website is still active.

The coronavirus has doctors on both sides of the border phoning it in.

Ontario’s Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care announced Saturday that patients can now use video and phone services to consult with doctors, an isolation-friendly measure the agency has been reluctant to implement in the past.

There are over 500,000 Google scholarly articles on CBD and millions of Instagram photos tagging the hyper-popular compound.

Social media is a hot spot for wellness trends and recommendations. According to new research, CBD is the most posted about trend with the most substantial amount of research behind it, at least according to the internet.