By: Cody Merritt Lyman
Cannabis has taken a front row seat in recent years in a hot debate over medicine. And with the unfolding work of Dr. Joseph Tuscano and George Thompson, the professor of microbiology at UC Davis, it’s sure to take center stage.
The research began two years ago when Tuscano noticed a high rate of fungal pneumonia in patients with leukemia. One man in particular, who was undergoing chemotherapy, stem cell therapy, and using medical cannabis died from pneumonia caused by a rare type of mold.
Surprised by how fast the infections were appearing in the patients, Dr. Tuscano became suspicious when he realized a link between patients succumbing to these infections of the lungs: They were medical cannabis users.
After Tuscano employed the help of Thompson, and Thompson employed the help of laboratories at UC Berkley, samples were collected from twenty dispensaries from all around Northern California. Ninety-percent of the samples were contaminated by bacteria, mold, and other impurities.
“The cannabis was contaminated with many bacteria and fungi, some of which was compatible with the infections that I saw in my patients,” Dr. Tuscano said.
“Klebsiella, E.coli, Pseudomonas, Acinetobacter,” Thompson added, “these are all very serious infections for anybody in the hospital, but particularly in the [cancer] population.”
Although the evidence is not entirely conclusive––more like a loose correlation––it shines a light on an obvious issue in the cannabis industry. And it serves as a reminder that, when it comes to medicine, better safe than sorry.
Contaminants found in the smallest dose of un-pure medicine, especially under conspiring conditions, can do serious harm, rather than good, for health.
This, of course, is why there are governmental organizations like the FDA in place. We want the pure stuff, to know that what we’re supposed to be getting is what we’re actually getting. For that reason, every prescription medication comes with a ten-foot-long scroll of side effects because the drug in the bottle, vial, or syringe has been scrutinized thoroughly.
(The effects of capitalism on the scientific, medical and pharmacological communities would require its own article. Here we will simply look at regulations regarding the medicine itself, free of political implications.)
Regulation, or lack thereof, is the reason for a hot debate between Big Pharma, with its arm-and-a-leg medical costs, and naturopathic medicine, with its herbal supplements and new age, formerly forbidden medicines and lack of oversight.
The presence of mold in cannabis––medical or recreational––is a problem by itself. It’s important to keep in perspective that most of these molds and bacteria are relatively common. You breathe them in with the air every day. But, for an individual whose immune system is in no shape to fight off even mild infections, the amount that can occur in improperly cured cannabis flowers can prove fatal.
It would be impossible to consume enough cannabis by itself for it to be toxic. Like most things in nature, however, it will readily harbor noxious elements, some pernicious, be it in trace or significant amounts.
The other appendage of this, then, is to ask: How many immunocompromised patients get their medical cannabis from dispensaries that carry tainted product? Is there a dispensary whose entire selection is untainted by bacterias, molds, pesticides?
There is a general assumption that the cannabis flowers are tested for contaminants, along with potencies, and so on. And they are tested––or, as is the case in Washington, a two-gram sample from each strain is sent to the lab, and the results from that two-gram sampling––often the topmost, crystalist bud of the bunch––are then stamped on the containers for the entire crop. Not the most accurate indicator of what’s in your jar––or what’s in what’s in your jar.
Short of getting into the politics of it and talking more regulations––which comes with a whole barrel of monkeys––what can be done? What might the individual do to ensure the whole plant medicine is pure? After all, cannabis doesn’t have manufacturers that can be Googled into trustability like the supplement industry does.
- You might imagine you can cook the cannabis into edibles, thus killing off any harmful bacteria and molds. And you’d be right. If not cooked well enough, though, and there remains, harmful bacteria in the butter and brownie, ingesting some of these can be more harmful than inhaling (smoking) them.
- In my experience with marijuana growers (who were often much less medical than they claimed, and they didn’t claim to be very pharmacist-esque, anyway), I’ve heard of large crops being “saved” from powdery mildew infestations by making the crop into extracts, butane honey oil, and such––but not water hash. The idea was that the extraction of oils left bacteria and mold behind. Not true. Don’t do this.
- However, doing an alcohol extraction could provide the solution. Alcohol may be a way to effectively sterilize whilst extracting the good stuff. Another possibility would be to make an alcohol-based suspension, such as a tincture. Do some research. Be shrewd.
- Make sure the cannabis was grown organically: Meh––not really. It’s another common misconception that organic means higher quality. It depends very much on many factors, and although the best organic anything is as good as it gets, organic is not always synonymous with better.
- The best thing a susceptible patient or caregiver can do, aside from growing the cannabis themselves and curing it correctly, is to make sure they are getting their medicine from somebody who takes a genuine interest in them and their medical condition. They should seem intelligent, and be able to answer questions with no less efficacy than a pharmacist––or at the very least, a Super Supplements employee. If they aren’t, the chances their motive is tainted by the profit margin is about as likely as it is that their weed is tainted with potentially poisonous fungi.
- Inspect your medicine. At first glance, mold might appear like resin crystals. Get yourself a diamond scope.
Choose wisely. Breathe easy. Take care.
