The synthetic cannabinoids often called "fake weed" are a mix of chemicals sprinkled on what looks like incense and sold in shiny packages, often to teens and young adults.

It produces sensations similar to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in the cannabis plant, yet many users report more powerful, often dangerous effects.

New research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says young people who use fake weed are also more likely to use other drugs or alcohol, to behave violently and to have high-risk sex, according to a study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics.

Students whose disabilities qualify them to use medical marijuana will soon be allowed to do so in Brick Township school, buses and school-sponsored events.

The Board of Education last week introduced a medical marijuana policy that will govern how students qualify and are administered medical marijuana. The policy is in response to a state law passed in 2015 that requires districts to enact policies that allow the administration of medical marijuana to students.

America’s marijuana industry isn't sure where President Trump and his attorney general stand on marijuana, but it is forging ahead with expansion plans anyway.

Cannabis businesses are hiring new workers, leasing new space and pushing across state borders. And regulators are drafting rules that will give access to legal recreational pot to tens of millions of adults.

The stakes are high: This is a job-generating industry that cannabis data firm New Frontier Data estimates may be worth $2.3 billion in taxes within three years.

“Far from the punchline of a joke, these are real people and real lives,” said Colorado Rep. Jared Polis, a Boulder Democrat who recently co-founded the pro-legalization Congressional Cannabis Caucus.

States with legalized marijuana are enjoying new tax revenues and decreased crime as customers move from back-alleys to well-lit shops. But conflict looms as Attorney General Jeff Sessions signals stronger anti-marijuana law enforcement.

Donald Trump wants to be a jobs president, so lawmakers in states where marijuana is legal, are trying to show that decriminalized, regulated, controlled cannabis does create jobs. And the economic impact is significant -- legalization pioneers Washington state and Colorado each saw $1 billion in marijuana sales in 2016, accompanied by hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue.

Although some of the latest comments from the Trump Administration seem to indicate that a federal crackdown is on the horizon with respect to the recreational marijuana industry, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently suggested that such action is simply “not possible.”

In an interview with national talk radio host Hugh Hewitt, Sessions said that while the Department of Justice will “enforce law in an appropriate way nationwide,” he admits that Uncle Sam just doesn’t have the necessary resources to close the doors on the legal cannabis community – at least not entirely.

Edible marijuana products such as candies and brownies need better labeling, a new study said.

Some labels on marijuana edibles contain so much information that consumers feel overwhelmed. Meanwhile, other labels do not even clearly indicate that a product contains marijuana, the researchers found.

If you look closely, the US government doesn’t seem as intent on thwarting marijuana development as the rhetoric espoused by some politicians would have you believe. In fact, cannabis seems to be slowly but surely gaining legitimacy, even in federal government circles, despite its Drug Enforcement Administration classification as a schedule 1 substance with no medical use.

2017 marks the first year a cannabis-related business has been an official sponsor of the South by Southwest (SXSW) music, film, and interactive media festival. Leafly will sponsor a three-part track of cannabis programming, including one keynote speaker and two panels, on March 14, 2017.

“I see a line in the Washington Post today that I remember from the ‘80s: ‘Marijuana is a cure for opiate abuse,’” said Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently. ”’Give me a break. This is the kind of argument that’s been made out there to just … [it’s] almost a desperate attempt to defend the harmlessness of marijuana or even its benefits. I doubt that’s true.’”

Shimadzu Scientific Instruments (SSI) announces the release of its new Cannabis Analyzer for Potency. This high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC) is the first-ever instrument designed specifically for quantitative determination of cannabinoid content. With the Cannabis Analyzer for Potency, operators are now able to produce accurate results with ease, regardless of cannabis testing knowledge or chromatography experience.