This episode we look at how our language has changed between marijuana and cannabis around the world, another European country considers steps for legalizing cannabis, some are not happy about a Yukon cannabis store relocating, a new survey on cannabis use in Quebec and a look at cannabis and brain activity. We stop on Cultivar Corner, brought to you by Up In Smoke, we finish up with visit to Rocky Mountain Cannabis for their version of Sudz.
This episode we look at how our language has changed between marijuana and cannabis around the world, another European country considers steps for legalizing cannabis, some are not happy about a Yukon cannabis store relocating, a new survey on cannabis use in Quebec and a look at cannabis and brain activity. We stop on Cultivar Corner, brought to you by Up In Smoke, we finish up with visit to Rocky Mountain Cannabis for their version of Sudz.
Rocky Mountain Cannabis Sudz at Up in Smoke
00;00;01;22 - 00;00;08;29
Ian
From a studio high above the clouds of the Okanagan Valley. This is the cannabis potcast.
00;00;09;01 - 00;00;19;05
Ian
Exploring the world of Canadian cannabis culture. One toke at a time. Here is your host and Bud tender Gary Johnson.
00;00;19;08 - 00;00;42;17
Gary Johnston
And let me welcome you to the Cannabis potcast. We are heading off for 30 or 40 minutes of information about a plant that I am absolutely passionate about. I suspect you may have some interest as well. And that is cannabis. Now of course, before we get too much further, let me remind you this podcast is intended for those who have legal consumption age in your jurisdiction and is intended purely for entertainment and perhaps educational purposes.
00;00;42;19 - 00;01;04;14
Gary Johnston
You should always consume your cannabis responsibly. In this episode, we're going to look at how our language has changed between marijuana and cannabis around the world. Another European country is considering steps for legalizing cannabis. Some are not happy about a Yukon cannabis store and where they're relocating to. A new survey on cannabis use is happening in Quebec. And we're going to stop on Cultivar Corner.
00;01;04;17 - 00;01;18;27
Gary Johnston
Brought to you by Up in Smoke, where we finish up with a visit to Rocky Mountain Cannabis for their version of suds. All of that and more on episode 196 of the Cannabis potcast.
00;01;19;00 - 00;01;35;13
Gary Johnston
And of course, before we get too much further, let me thank you for being here. I appreciate the fact that you are a listener. The Cannabis potcast. I also want to thank those who are supporting me at Patreon. So let me thank my patrons Tony, Rob, Gage, Lloyd, Roger, and Justin. Thank you so much. I truly appreciate that.
00;01;35;20 - 00;02;03;26
Gary Johnston
And now let's get to our first story and we go to Dhaka for some quick hits this week. Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis claims it has saved the cannabis industry an estimated $4 billion by reducing listing fees. Alberta Gaming liquor and Cannabis the GLC has successfully reduced regulatory red tape by over 51%, making it easier and cheaper for liquor, cannabis and gaming industries to do business in Alberta, the regulator said in a news release.
00;02;03;29 - 00;02;30;00
Gary Johnston
Anglesea estimated the reduction initiatives have resulted in over $89.2 million in cost savings and revenue generation since 2019. In November, the regulator revamped policies to give cannabis retailers more flexibility around the use of cannabis storage rooms, the sale of organic solvents, and offsite sales of non cannabis products. Rules on advertising and cannabis product promotions were also relaxed in May.
00;02;30;06 - 00;02;54;07
Gary Johnston
Cannabis producers were permitted to produce private label products for licensed retailers, and this month producers were permitted to produce private label products for multiple retailers. Last January, regulations were eased, allowing producers to provide samples to retailers. A Montreal cannabis company has picked a more serious sounding corporate name. The Good Shroom Company has changed his name to Mercato Holdings.
00;02;54;09 - 00;03;18;24
Gary Johnston
The change was approved by shareholders at the annual general meeting. TSX approval was also required and granted. The company mainly sells in Quebec but is eyeing national expansion. The company received preliminary approval to sell four new products in Quebec two products, one infused joint and one CBD capsule product. It said in a news release. This brings the Good Shroom Company's portfolio in Quebec to approximately 30 products.
00;03;18;27 - 00;03;44;07
Gary Johnston
The company continues to expand its THC infused pouch offerings under the Dippy and Dickies brands. Dips Alberta launch has been met with strong demand, with multiple purchase orders fulfilled to date and increasing sales velocity. Dickies launched in Ontario last week, receiving positive feedback from consumers and retailers alike. The company is awaiting approval to sell products in New Brunswick and is growing its medical cannabis business, the release concluded.
00;03;44;10 - 00;04;11;03
Gary Johnston
Tilray will grow an additional 60 tonnes of cannabis in Canada this year. The new growth will increase tilray's Canadian cannabis cultivation capacity to 210 tonnes per year. Tilray is reviving facilities that had been idled during the Covid 19 pandemic, including an outdoor cultivation site in Cayuga, Ontario. Tilray operates eight state of the art cannabis cultivation and manufacturing facilities across Canada and Europe in Canada.
00;04;11;07 - 00;04;36;13
Gary Johnston
Those include two sites in Leamington, Ontario Broken Coast in Anaheim, OBC Radicand in force, Ontario, the outdoor site in Cayuga, and a greenhouse in Mason, Quebec that currently grows cucumbers but can be converted to cannabis when needed. The Canadian American Cannabis and Brewing Company supplies 20 legal markets worldwide, so there's some quick hits on some changes in the cannabis industry as we look at them from the outset.
00;04;36;14 - 00;04;39;01
Gary Johnston
Here.
00;04;39;04 - 00;04;43;10
Ian
The cannabis infused studio In the Clouds, this is the cannabis potcast.
00;04;43;12 - 00;05;05;06
Gary Johnston
And a story from DragonCon is one written by David Brown about a health committee in Switzerland has given its approval to a preliminary draft of a federal law to regulate non-medical cannabis products for adult use. The draft, created by the National Council's Social Security and Public Health Committee, passed 14 to 9 in a vote on Friday, with two abstentions.
00;05;05;09 - 00;05;34;28
Gary Johnston
The proposal is to regulate cannabis for non-medical purposes through a new legal carve out that keeps it defined as a narcotic through a lens of public health and safety. Similar to Canada's approach to cannabis legalization, the proposal says law should regulate the cultivation, manufacture and trade of cannabis without encouraging its consumption. The proposal includes these key points. Adults residing in Switzerland 18 or older would be permitted to cultivate, purchase, possess and consume cannabis.
00;05;35;01 - 00;06;04;01
Gary Johnston
Rules for protection against passive smoking would apply. The distribution and sale of cannabis to minors would be prohibited. A person would be allowed to grow a maximum of three female cannabis plants in the flowering phase. For self supply purposes, maximum quantities for private and public possession would apply. Commercial production for profit would be permitted. Person to cultivate cannabis and manufacture of cannabis products would be required to meet strict conditions to obtain a permit for the confederation.
00;06;04;03 - 00;06;27;18
Gary Johnston
Import or export may be permitted for specific purposes. Strict quality requirements would apply. Cannabis products would be sold in neutral packaging without specific branding elements. Child resistant and with a warning and leaflet. Sales would be subject to a state monopoly. Cannabis products would be purchased at a limited number of licensed sales outlets and from the sole licensee for online sales.
00;06;27;21 - 00;06;52;02
Gary Johnston
Sales must not be for profit. Any profits would need to be allocated to prevention, harm reduction and addiction support. Nonsmoker products and products with a low THC content would need to be included for sale to enable consumption with reduced risk, in accordance with the prohibition on vertical integration, holders of a cultivation or manufacturing permit would not be allowed to sell cannabis and vice versa.
00;06;52;04 - 00;07;17;28
Gary Johnston
An electronic tracking system will monitor the entire supply chain from the committee report. The committee is unanimous in its view that cannabis consumption is a social reality. The majority of the committee considers that the current situation is unsatisfactory and that the prohibitive approach is wrong. Strictly regulated access to cannabis and a controlled market better protect public health strengthens tooth protection and improve safety.
00;07;18;00 - 00;07;44;24
Gary Johnston
Prevention messages could thus reach consumers more effectively and direct them toward less harmful forms of consumption. The population would be better protected against the harmful effects of cannabis, and young people would be dissuaded from consuming it. The illegal market must be curbed. In 2021, the season and its counterpart in the Swiss Council of States followed up on a document titled Regulating the Cannabis Market to Better Protect Young People and Consumers.
00;07;44;26 - 00;08;18;29
Gary Johnston
The subcommittee has been working on implementing this initiative and the regulation of cannabis since the summer of 2022. The goals of that pilot project included taking money away from the black market, introducing a tax, regulating advertising, and regulating production intended for personal use. While the cultivation, manufacture, trade and consumption of cannabis for non-medical purposes are still prohibited. The country has also had a part time pilot program in place since 2023, allowing people who already consume cannabis to be able to acquire it in a controlled manner.
00;08;19;01 - 00;08;43;02
Gary Johnston
In Switzerland, 300,000 people regularly consume cannabis, according to a 2022 Swiss Health survey. 4% of 15 to 64 year olds have consumed cannabis in the last month. The population of Switzerland is about 8.85 million. The next step for the proposal will be to draw up an explanatory report on this preliminary draft, and allow the committee to examine these documents over the summer.
00;08;43;04 - 00;09;18;06
Gary Johnston
Interested parties and stakeholders will then have the opportunity to participate in consultation. Interesting perspective on another country around the world looking at making cannabis more accessible. And for this story, we get it from the NCA. This is written by Pat. Over cannabis and other illicit goodies were seized from Canadian prisons recently. On January 29th, staff at the medium security Drummond Institution in Quebec confiscated a package containing hashish, cannabis chatter and tobacco valued at $97,000.
00;09;18;08 - 00;09;43;06
Gary Johnston
The Correctional Service of Canada uses a number of tools to prevent drugs from entering its institutions, the CSC said in a news release. These tools include ion scanners and drug detector dogs to search buildings, personal property, inmates and visitors. On January 31st, a package with methamphetamine, cannabis concentrates, cellphones and chargers and USB adapters was intercepted at the Grand Cache medium security institution in Alberta.
00;09;43;09 - 00;10;17;09
Gary Johnston
The estimated value was about $60,000. In other crimes involved, the unauthorized form of cannabis. RCMP in Alberta arrested a B.C. man for his role in a $47 million Western Canadian money laundering scheme. Harry Seale, 30, of Burnaby, is one of seven people charged for being part of a plot to launder money through online transactions of cannabis. The accused is also alleged to have been financially compensated by the criminal organization for laundering the proceeds of crime, and for concealing its origins from law enforcement, regulatory authorities and financial institutions.
00;10;17;11 - 00;10;31;28
Gary Johnston
Additionally, the accused also operated two illicit cannabis related businesses in the Edmonton and Burnaby areas, RCMP said in a news release. The five people have already been convicted, and that story from the here.
00;10;32;01 - 00;10;36;23
Ian
From studio high above the clouds of the Okanagan Valley. This is the cannabis potcast.
00;10;36;25 - 00;11;04;12
Gary Johnston
And from Strack and Com. This one's written. This story written by staff. Quebec has begun an outreach for an annual survey to understand the perceptions of and experiences with cannabis among people in the province. The Quebec Cannabis Study is managed by the Institute to Statistic de Quebec. The 2025 survey is the sixth year the survey has been held since 2018, targeting people aged 15 and over living in Quebec.
00;11;04;15 - 00;11;31;18
Gary Johnston
The questionnaire will ask about prevalence and frequency of cannabis use, forms and methods of consumption, reasons and context of use, sources of supply and risk of problematic use. It will also examine social norms and perceptions toward cannabis driving in use and cannabis consumption during the Covid 19 pandemic. Several different publications will be published based on the results of these annual surveys in the Institut de la statistic, the Quebec website.
00;11;31;20 - 00;11;51;03
Gary Johnston
The first result of the 2025 study will be published in the form of highlights in October of 2025, while a more detailed results will then be released in a full report in April of 2026. So interesting to see what happens in the review of cannabis consumption and use in Quebec. We'll keep our eye on that one.
00;11;51;04 - 00;12;01;26
Speaker 3
To see CBD tipping profiles. What to me? Oh, please explain to me. Go to Vancouver.
00;12;01;28 - 00;12;07;03
Unknown
Or go to Oklahoma and go to the corner.
00;12;07;03 - 00;12;11;10
Ian
Please explain this stuff to me.
00;12;11;12 - 00;12;38;24
Gary Johnston
Welcome to Cultivar Corner, brought to you by Up in Smoke at 258 West Broadway Cooper. And online at its Up and smoke.com. Check them out today for some direct delivery exclusives like we're sampling today from Rocky Mountain Cannabis, The Suds, the Soap and runts 27% THC and Turps at 2.67. And of course, if you are 19 years of age or older and live in B.C., you can check it out at it's up in smoke.com.
00;12;38;28 - 00;13;06;27
Gary Johnston
Have it sent to you. My apologies again if you're in a different country or a different province. As a true Canadian, I will say. I'm sorry. Now let's start with some confusion because first of all, we go to the up and smoke menu and we hear that this cultivar has been released by four different micros in 2024 and 2025, and MSI decided to make it five, the first time available from Tyler's backyard right here and up in smoke.
00;13;06;27 - 00;13;34;04
Gary Johnston
This is suds. The other suds. So there are two suds that are making noise out there. The first is that, the cross between Lemon Haze and Dosey Doe and the more important one, the one we're talking about, which is a cross between sativa dominant, the soap and cookies farms runs. So this variety is an indica dominant hybrid with a chemical forward profile and uplifting high.
00;13;34;06 - 00;14;02;16
Gary Johnston
And we're going to pull open the bag seven grams of the runs. We seven grams of the suds. We picked up all my buys that have a unique profile on the flavor. Oh, just just delicious. Kind of soapy. Oh, yeah. Oh, that is really, really nice. So, a couple of good buds inside of my bag here.
00;14;02;19 - 00;14;31;16
Gary Johnston
Always impressed with that. Let me find my jeweler's loop, and let's take a look at what we got inside the suds. So again, this is a one of the two variations on the suds. And I'm not sure why we're calling it the same thing, but just trying to present more confusion for us, I guess. Let's look at it on the jeweler's loop and, very dark green and, lots of orange pistols that are popping up in here.
00;14;31;22 - 00;15;04;17
Gary Johnston
Oh, yeah. There they are. And we are so nicely capped off with some trichomes. Lovely fields in there, delicious aromas coming out of that bag today. And these flowers are absolutely gorgeous. What a unique smell they have. And as I was preparing my joints and getting my dosing capsules ready, my fingers got really sticky. Oh, and I pulled apart one of those balls and just stick my nose into it.
00;15;04;19 - 00;15;24;12
Gary Johnston
Some sour grapes. I'm picking up some grape and yeah, so sour grapes, some gas. Wow. You really stick your nose in there and you really get a sense of what the grape, the sour grape is going to be. And there's going to be some gas on this too. Oh my, my, my, I've got two dosing capsules ready.
00;15;24;14 - 00;15;46;12
Gary Johnston
One is in the monkey and the other is in my joint, and it's just about all ready to go. So, excited to try this one. The last one we have from Rocky Mountain Cannabis just we tried some really fine weed from them over the last month or so. Really enjoying this one. This is a new variety coming through.
00;15;46;12 - 00;16;04;29
Gary Johnston
And again, this is a different from the other suds. So some candy notes, some sour gas notes. And again when I break up that bottle and I stick that right in my nose, the sour gas is really coming out of there. So sour grape. Really an interesting smell. What's have a taste and see where this takes me.
00;16;04;29 - 00;16;17;02
Gary Johnston
So this is the suds we started in the joint.
00;16;17;04 - 00;16;27;22
Gary Johnston
Oh, and not only is it an interesting taste or an interesting smell, it's an interesting taste that comes through as well.
00;16;27;24 - 00;16;39;15
Gary Johnston
Really unique. So some there's some definitely some sour grapes there, some gassy notes. A lot of gas coming through in the room today.
00;16;39;18 - 00;16;58;03
Gary Johnston
Oh that is very, very sweet. Just delicious on the taste in that one. So now let's move on to the vaporizer. We'll try the mighty and let's see what kind of notes we get when we are tasting it through the mighty.
00;16;58;05 - 00;17;11;09
Gary Johnston
Oh wow. That sour grape notes just comes sinking through there when you put it in the vaporizer.
00;17;11;12 - 00;17;31;00
Gary Johnston
Oh, that's very nice. And then there's some candy notes to kind of compensate that to add a little bit to the environment. So not only am I getting that gas, my sour grape, my gassy. There's so lots of that gas coming through.
00;17;31;02 - 00;18;03;00
Gary Johnston
Oh very sweet. Very nice. Really an interesting taste. The other thing I find interesting here, of course, there's two versions of the suds. And the interesting part of that, the first version of the suds is one that leans to a, sativa. So Lemon haze and dosey doe, this one is the soap and cook and runs. And so it's an indica dominant hybrid with notes like berry citrus, lemon flowers, pine, and mint.
00;18;03;03 - 00;18;26;26
Gary Johnston
You're going to feel like you just take it into a spa, complete with aroma therapy. There's a little truth to that. Let me get the joint relayed here. So it's no wonder users are reporting feeling relaxed, euphoric, happy and all around stress free after smoking the suns. The minty green buds are dense and full bodied, each nug polished with the kind of oily resin, giving them a shiny and clean appearance.
00;18;26;29 - 00;18;48;03
Gary Johnston
Little Orange Pistol's top off the suds, giving the flower a fresh and vibrant finish. And that's a delicious taste to that and the delicious effect on that as well. Oh, nice. Let me get one more of the vaporizer.
00;18;48;05 - 00;19;00;09
Gary Johnston
Oh yeah. So there's a bit of the mindfulness in there. There's some of that sour grape. There's some gassy ness as well. So peeling some of the gas that's there.
00;19;00;11 - 00;19;20;17
Gary Johnston
And now we start to feel it. And this is my favorite part. And gold of our core as I've been smoking. Enough of this as I start to feel the effects and now I can feel it heading into my endocannabinoid system, I got a power of my mighty back up again. So we get into the second one of those.
00;19;20;19 - 00;19;49;21
Gary Johnston
As I look at the ash coming off of my joint today. Then I got a nice half inch, almost three quarters of an inch, and there is not a hint of blackness there that's completely clear. So really nice on that and a nice taste in terms of the smoke. It's smooth. Yeah, it's not harsh. And I'm getting some of those sour grapes, some of those minty notes.
00;19;49;24 - 00;20;16;01
Gary Johnston
Oh, and here we go. So on the indica side, heavy or dominant on the indica. Now, this may have been my fault as well for doing the indica early in the day, and we'll see where that one goes. But so far, I'm quite enjoying it. Lots of had some happy eyes showing up here. I got some euphoria rolling around my brain.
00;20;16;03 - 00;20;37;10
Gary Johnston
A little bit of a body storm that's creeping in here too. So there's a bit of that which makes sense with an indica dominant down the side of it. So the crosses the soap and runs. This is from Tyler at Rocky Mountain Cannabis, the first of their new strain, which they came out with just a little while ago.
00;20;37;13 - 00;20;56;16
Gary Johnston
It is available. Again, remember that Cultivar Corner is brought to you by Up in Smoke at 258 West Broadway in Vancouver and online at It's Up in smoke.com. If you are 19 years of age or older and live in B.C., you can check out the menu for yourself. And in fact, you can pick up some of the suds and have it sent to you.
00;20;56;18 - 00;21;18;04
Gary Johnston
Now, in full disclosure, as soon as I started that section, my furnace came on, which meant that I couldn't record for probably a good five minutes. I continued to imbibe, through the vaporizer and through the joint, and, I continued to get higher. And I have reached a nice level of happiness right now, definitely on the India side.
00;21;18;04 - 00;21;45;12
Gary Johnston
So I've got some euphoria happening that in my head, still fairly clear in my head, but nice body stone feel and some real nice stuff in my body right now where it's kind of just moving through and let me relax a little bit and feeling just a little bit better. Really enjoying this. And let's give you a couple more details of what we've got inside the suds here.
00;21;45;12 - 00;22;17;03
Gary Johnston
This, of course, is the soap and runs tighter control the grower and the cultivator, Golden where it comes from, hand trimmed, hang dried and my total turps a 2.67 a THC at 27. And I've got de limonene Mersin and carry ethylene are the dominant herbs thc sitting at 27%. It's making my mind buzz right now and feeling really nice and the head really nice, and the body stone as well.
00;22;17;05 - 00;22;39;04
Gary Johnston
Once more, Rocky Mountain cannabis comes through. This is a pretty fine weed. I am enjoying the experience. And then again, of course we come back after a while and let's rolled around in our brain for a little bit. I really, really love the taste. Oh. Love the high, love the experience. I love my job.
00;22;39;06 - 00;22;41;21
Ian
Sharing stories about good weed while trying.
00;22;41;21 - 00;22;46;02
Speaker 3
Good weed. This is the cannabis potcast.
00;22;46;05 - 00;23;18;03
Gary Johnston
In this story we're picking up from CBC news dossier written by Chris McIntyre, the owners of Dawson City, the Yukon's first and only cannabis shop are moving their store from its Second Avenue location to a larger space on Front Street. But some residents are pushing back against the idea. Dawson City Cannabis has been operating from a small shop above the CIBC bank for the past five years, and it rents Meerschaert, who co-owns the store with Sarah Cook, said the business has done very well and continues to grow, so they need a bigger space to serve its customers.
00;23;18;06 - 00;23;35;06
Gary Johnston
The new location of the store will be at 990 from Street, across from the general store, where the former Klondike Nugget and Ivory jewelry shop was until it closed permanently last summer. These kind of opportunities in Dawson don't come up very often, Reds, Mirsky said. It's a beautiful little building right next door to the strips of all the little shops.
00;23;35;12 - 00;23;53;16
Gary Johnston
So not only is it really a prime location right on Front Street, but it's ground level. So much more easily accessible for our clients. I read somewhere, she said. A large percentage of customers are elders, seniors and people with mobility issues, which is a large reason for wanting to relocate once more. She said the new space will also come with a new look and a new name.
00;23;53;22 - 00;24;12;22
Gary Johnston
The new store will be called High North and since the store has large windows facing the street, she plans to install frosted windows with scenes of what Front Street used to look like during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Part of the regulation is that people that are passing by are not able to look inside the shop, so we really wanted to keep to that, she said.
00;24;12;29 - 00;24;34;01
Gary Johnston
And just to make it as subtle as possible so it's comfortable for people, it's not like this flashy pot shop Red Mirsky said the store will also be offering other non cannabis related products to customers, including art and products made by other local businesses. She said she wants to create a welcoming space for everyone, but says people must bring and show their ID if they want to buy any cannabis.
00;24;34;04 - 00;24;53;24
Gary Johnston
Dawson resident Laurie Berglund says she doesn't think it's appropriate to have the cannabis shop on one of the town's busiest streets. She was among a handful of residents who spoke out against the move during a retail license hearing before the territory's cannabis licensing board last month. Berglund said she objected to the new location as there's a daycare just a few buildings away.
00;24;53;25 - 00;25;16;11
Gary Johnston
She's also concerned because it's close to a green space across the street where people, including kids, often gather. Putting it in that primary location, we're giving this message that that's something our town is about, Berglund said. Berglund said having a cannabis among the other stores on Front Street normalizes the idea of cannabis use. To the extent that people think it's just a normal part of life.
00;25;16;13 - 00;25;32;12
Gary Johnston
She believes that will have a negative impact on young people, in particular, whether they going to buy a souvenir or whether they go in to buy cannabis. That's beside the point. Young children see a lot of people going in and out of that store, and they assume they're going in there to buy cannabis, and that normalizes that for them.
00;25;32;14 - 00;26;01;20
Gary Johnston
And I have to add a sidebar to this. That is the whole point of normalizing cannabis. So it's not something that people think there's anything different about. But clearly, based on the thoughts of Lori Berglund, she doesn't want to be normalized in terms of cannabis. She wants it to be still a nasty little thing that people stay away from harm.
00;26;01;22 - 00;26;07;01
Gary Johnston
And that's the end of my sidebar.
00;26;07;04 - 00;26;33;04
Gary Johnston
In this story, we're picking up from the outcry, and it was special to the ozone, and it was contributed. A new study published today in the Jama Network Open, explores the effects of both recent and lifetime cannabis use on brain function during cognitive tasks. The study, the largest of its kind ever to be completed, examined the average of cannabis use in over 1000 young adults aged 22 to 36 using brain imaging technology.
00;26;33;06 - 00;27;01;28
Gary Johnston
The researchers found that 63% of heavy lifetime cannabis users exhibited reduced brain activity during a working memory task, while 68% of recent users also demonstrated a similar impact. This decline in brain activity was associated with worse performance on working memory, the ability to retain and use information to perform tasks. For example, working memory allows a person to follow instructions they've just been given, or to mentally visualize and manipulate information like solving a math problem.
00;27;02;00 - 00;27;30;07
Gary Johnston
As cannabis use continues to grow globally, studying its effect on human health has become increasingly important. By doing so, we can provide a well rounded understanding of both the benefits and risks of cannabis use. Empowering people to make informed decisions and fully comprehend the potential consequences, said the study's first author, Joshua Going, PhD, assistant professor of radiology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine on the University of Colorado and Utes Medical Campus.
00;27;30;09 - 00;27;53;14
Gary Johnston
In this study, heavy users are considered young adults who have used cannabis more than 1000 times over their lifetime, whereas using 10 to 999 times was considered a moderate user and less than ten times was considered a non user. The researchers then study the neural response of participants during a magnetic resonance imaging session, and gave them seven cognitive tasks to complete the task.
00;27;53;16 - 00;28;18;23
Gary Johnston
Tested working memory. Reward emotion, and language. Motor skills such as tapping a finger to map brain control. Relational assessment and theory of mind. The researchers found that cannabis had a statistically significant effect on brain function during working memory tasks, meaning the observed impact is very unlikely to be due to random chance. This effect was seen in both recent and lifetime cannabis users, and the impact was less significant for the other tasks.
00;28;18;26 - 00;28;48;16
Gary Johnston
We applied the highest standards to our research, setting a rigorous threshold for statistical significance across all seven cognitive function tests to minimize the risk of false positives. We employed false discovery rates after correction, while some of the other tasks indicated potential cognitive impairment, only the working memory task showed a statistically significant impact, he adds. Going during working memory tasks, the researchers found heavy cannabis use appeared to reduce brain activity in certain areas of the brain.
00;28;48;19 - 00;29;11;22
Gary Johnston
These regions of the brain are involved in important cognitive functions such as decision making, memory, attention, and emotional processing. However, going there research also suggests that abstaining from using cannabis before doing a cognitive task could help to improve performance. People need to be aware of their relationship with cannabis, since abstaining cold turkey could disrupt their cognition as well.
00;29;11;28 - 00;29;43;16
Gary Johnston
For example, heavy users may need to be more cautious, Cohen says. He adds, there are a lot of questions we still need answers to regarding how cannabis impacts the brain. Large, long term studies are needed next to understand whether cannabis use directly changes brain function, how long these effects last, and the impact on different age groups. The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus is a world class medical destination at the forefront of transformative science, medicine, education, and patient care, and they're responsible for this particular article.
00;29;43;19 - 00;29;50;22
Gary Johnston
Working memory could have some issues with long term cannabis use.
00;29;50;24 - 00;30;13;12
Gary Johnston
And we're going to strike Cancun. This was written by staff and we are talking about cannabis around the world. The way people refer to the cannabis sativa plant differs around the world. In addition to the numerous global and local slang terms for the sticky green flowers like weed, mota ganja herb and many others. Two of the most common terms continued to be marijuana and cannabis.
00;30;13;14 - 00;30;37;10
Gary Johnston
While marijuana was often the most common search term over the past 20 years of Google searches, cannabis has been slowly becoming more common in Canada, the US and other countries, which is often an indicator of a legal regulatory framework. Cannabis legalization, especially when Canada legalized in 2018, seems to have been a turning point. Legalization moves us from marijuana to cannabis.
00;30;37;13 - 00;30;59;27
Gary Johnston
The Americas. In Canada, cannabis began to replace marijuana as the most common Google search in late 2016 and had fully equipped it by the summer of 2018, a few months before the beginning of legalization. In the United States, marijuana continues to be the most common search term. But a similar trend can be observed where cannabis is slowly replacing it.
00;31;00;02 - 00;31;29;13
Gary Johnston
By the end of 2024, the two terms were an almost dead heat. In terms of Google searches in 2025, cannabis is poised to take the lead in the U.S. in Mexico, though, where the word is thought to have originated, the term marijuana remains the dominant search term by far. While cannabis became slightly more common in Mexico beginning in early 2013, there is no discernible trajectory similar to the US and Canada in terms of the two dominant terms, switching places.
00;31;29;15 - 00;32;01;16
Gary Johnston
Further south in Uruguay, the first country to formally legalize and regulate cannabis for adult use in 2013. The term marijuana is also the dominant search term. Unlike Mexico, cannabis has been an increasingly common search term as well. Beginning around 2011, in Brazil, which decriminalized some aspects of cannabis in 2006, cannabis has tended to be more common in search term than marijuana, but local terms such as Makonnen or Mota are far more common in some countries across the pond in Europe.
00;32;01;17 - 00;32;21;11
Gary Johnston
The term cannabis appears to have a more long standing foothold in the United Kingdom. In France, cannabis has been the dominant search term of the two by far for the last 20 years. Germany shows a similar trend between the two search terms, although a recent spike in the use of cannabis as a search term coincide with recent legislative changes in the country.
00;32;21;14 - 00;32;47;12
Gary Johnston
In Spain, marijuana has historically been a more common search term than cannabis, although in the last few years the two have been reaching a more even footing. Slang terms like moto were sometimes even more common. In Italy, marijuana was the more common term up until late 2013, when cannabis began to replace it, and the local term canopy is also very popular in Israel, which has allowed medical cannabis since the 1990s.
00;32;47;13 - 00;33;16;21
Gary Johnston
Cannabis became a more common search term than marijuana. Around 2012, Australia saw the term cannabis begin to become more common than marijuana. In Google searches around the time it legalized medical cannabis in 2016. In New Zealand, cannabis began to replace marijuana as a search term in the lead up to a referendum on cannabis in 2020. Although the referendum failed, cannabis stayed on as the preferred search term and note this is, of course, not an exhaustive list of terms for cannabis.
00;33;16;28 - 00;33;42;10
Gary Johnston
Many of these common slang terms like weed or pot, for example, would be too commonly used for non cannabis products to measure in the same way accurately. Instead, the goal here is just looking at the terms cannabis versus marijuana and how legalization legislation appears to sway people towards replacing marijuana with cannabis. At least when searching on Google, a summary of cannabis and marijuana search terms as they're used around the world.
00;33;42;12 - 00;33;51;25
Ian
It doesn't matter how high the THC is. The entourage effect is always waiting for you here. This is the cannabis potcast.
00;33;51;27 - 00;34;07;19
Gary Johnston
Once again, thank you for being here. I truly appreciate the fact that you're a listener to Canada's podcast. And keep in mind, you can also go to Buy Me a coffee.com/cannabis potcast. If you like what you hear and you feel so inclined, you're welcome to buy me a doobie. And now here we are at the end of another episode.
00;34;07;21 - 00;34;36;14
Gary Johnston
It's time for Gary to pull out his worst dad's jokes. And we're starting with one. Here's here's the first one. What dinosaur had the best vocabulary? The thesaurus. I'm sorry about that one. Why didn't the orange win the race? It ran out of juice. I'll just do a couple more. What's black and white and red all over? This one should be easy, a newspaper.
00;34;36;16 - 00;35;02;06
Gary Johnston
And what kind of hair do oceans have? Wavy. And again, I should apologize for that. But what about what more cod? Why is Peter Pan always flying when he's smoking cannabis? He never lands. And what time is it? If an elephant sits on the fence after they've smoked cannabis, it's time to fix fence and we shall leave it there.
00;35;02;09 - 00;35;11;05
Gary Johnston
Thank you so much for being here. I truly appreciate it. And for the guy in the clouds. That's it for episode 196 of the Cannabis potcast.
00;35;11;08 - 00;35;19;17
Ian
From the cannabis infused studio high above the Okanagan Valley. This was the cannabis potcast.