Chicagoan Sheila Hogan, one of 140,000 people registered in the state to use medical cannabis, believes in its powers. She uses mild gummies at bedtime to relieve debilitating pain from spinal stenosis, which has allowed her to get back to gardening and pickleball.

“I could not even believe it,” she said. “It was remarkable. I was able to get a lot more active.”

Despite support for legalization, and increasing use of marijuana nationwide, a recent Gallup poll showed slim majorities say it negatively affects both society and most people who use it — but is still less harmful than tobacco and alcohol.

The evolving perceptions of cannabis come as major changes are afoot in the regulation of the drug.

The Biden administration has proposed reclassifying pot as less-dangerous, making it legal with a prescription. Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has called for decriminalization, while Republican candidate Donald Trump, who legalized hemp, has said he is open to decriminalization, and that legalization should be up to the states.

At the state level, more jurisdictions continue to legalize weed. Ohio became the most recent state to do so, effective this year. Residents of Florida and North and South Dakota will vote on the issue Nov. 5. So far, 24 states — with a majority of the nation’s population — have legalized marijuana for adults, and most states allow some level of medical use.

So with the nation at a potential tipping point in its treatment of cannabis, what have we learned from legalization, and what does the latest research show about its effects?

Public health effects

First, the sky has not fallen in those states that legalized. A report by the Cato Institute in 2021 concluded that the effects, both pro and con, were fairly limited.

Advocates have suggested that legalization reduces crime, improves public health and stimulates the economy. Critics argued that legalization spurs marijuana and other drug use, increases crime, harms public health and hurts kids in school.

But many of these claims, Cato reported, were overstated and sometimes baseless.

While adult use of marijuana is at record highs nationally, use among teens has not risen appreciably in states that have legalized it, surveys have found. In Illinois, the legal age to purchase marijuana is 21.

As far as crime goes, homicides and other violent crimes increased significantly in Illinois since recreational legalization in 2020, before decreasing substantially recently. That was part of a nationwide trend that criminologists say was influenced by many factors, including civil unrest and the COVID pandemic. In a prior study, the Cato report found no substantial increase or decrease in violent crime through 2018 in states that legalized.

Traffic fatality rates also surged in Illinois in 2020 and 2021, before falling in 2022, again part of a nationwide trend fueled by the pandemic. A 2022 study found a 6% increase in injury crashes and a 4% increase in fatal crash rates in states after legalization.

Ingestion of edibles by toddlers and overdoses by adults also have increased in Illinois since legalization, but remain far fewer and less harmful than overdoses of other substances.

One significant economic effect has been that legal weed has generated substantial tax revenues — about $1 billion since 2020 for Illinois.

After administrative expenses, 25% of that money goes to community reinvestment; 20% for substance abuse prevention and mental health treatment; 8% to local governments for law enforcement; and 45% to the state budget. Illinois has awarded $244 million for community programs from weed tax revenue.

Effects on individuals

Despite widespread claims about the effectiveness of using pot to treat a host of medical conditions, the evidence is limited.

After a comprehensive review of medical uses last year, Health and Human Services found support for the use of marijuana for three conditions: anorexia related to a medical condition; nausea and vomiting; and pain, especially nerve pain.

Those findings match with prior Food and Drug Administration approval of synthetically derived THC, known as dronabinol, for the treatment of nausea, vomiting and anorexia. The agency also has approved pure CBD, under the brand name Epidiolex, to treat a rare form of severe epilepsy.

But marijuana showed mixed or inconclusive effectiveness for anxiety, inflammatory bowel disease, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Anxiety disorder is a good example of divided views of cannabis. Though it’s one of the most common reasons people use the drug, the Illinois Medical Cannabis Advisory Board recently failed to recommend it as a qualifying condition on a tie vote.

Board member and family nurse practitioner Katie Sullivan said that with guidance, high doses of CBD, a nonpsychoactive component of pot, with low amounts of THC — the part of pot that gets users high — can help some people with anxiety.

But a study of 12,000 patients showed it’s not very helpful for many and can cause shrinkage in parts of the brain, neurologist Amarish Dave cautioned.

“There’s real risk,” he said. “There are studies to suggest it can make it worse for a significant portion of people.”

With people in Illinois able to buy cannabis for any reason, they may be using it for anxiety without any medical guidance. Board members agreed that Illinois needs better education of doctors and the public on the medical use of cannabis.

One of the advantages of marijuana is that it doesn’t have some of the side effects of opioids, such as constipation, or of causing fatal overdose. Many people use low doses occasionally without incident.

But modern commercial marijuana is much more potent than street weed of the past. It can have mild to moderate adverse effects, such as causing anxiety or, in rare cases, psychotic episodes.

More alarming, a National Institute on Drug Abuse study found that young men with cannabis dependence were at a significantly increased risk of developing schizophrenia.

And smoking or vaping can damage the lungs. One study showed that cannabis use was tied to increased risk of severe COVID-19.

The most popular nonpsychoactive component of cannabis, CBD, is generally well-tolerated by users, without the anxiety or other side effects of THC. It has been shown to help people with certain severe forms of epilepsy, though in high doses it could cause anemia, flatulence and sleepiness.

One small study at the University of Colorado suggested CBD was associated improvements in cognition and emotional issues associated with Parkinson’s disease. Other studies have suggested potential benefits for ulcerative colitis, opioid withdrawal and sleep, but doctors say much more research is needed to prove widespread health claims.

Rescheduling

Last year, at the request of President Joe Biden, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and National Institute on Drug Abuse recommended rescheduling marijuana from Schedule 1 (the highest) to Schedule 3 on a scale of 5 that rates controlled substances by their dangers and medical effectiveness.

Currently, at the federal level, marijuana is classified as having no medical use and high risk for abuse and addiction — somehow more so than even fentanyl or methamphetamine, which, unlike marijuana, kill thousands of people every year.

Instead, pot would be categorized as having a moderate to low likelihood of dependence and would be legal for medical use with a prescription. It would allow increased research and would let marijuana businesses take federal business tax deductions, making it easier to make money. Consumers would likely see little direct effect, since state law would still control where and how pot is legal.

At the local level, one aspect of the Illinois medical program upsets both patients and doctors.

Cannabis patients in the state still are restricted to getting their medical products without tax at the 55 original designated medical dispensaries. Some of those companies, which have a captive market, have lobbied to keep it that way.

Dr. Leslie Mendoza Temple, a member of the state cannabis advisory board, said the state should allow patients to get their medicine at any recreational dispensary.

“The consistency of supply for our medical patients has always been an issue,” she said. “It reduces compliance and confidence in the program. Our medical patients who built this program are being edged out by market forces.”

rmccoppin@chicagotribune.com

When it opens on Sept. 14, Pure Elevations Canna-Spa & Salon (185 S. Santa Fe Drive) will be among the city’s first public consumption spaces, where guests who book a massage or pedicure will be able to smoke weed onsite before or after their appointment. The business will sell marijuana products from a small dispensary counter in its salon for guests to consume on the outdoor patio, and it will also integrate topicals into its services and treatments. That means THC- and CBD-infused massages for anyone who wants to get extra chill.

Owner Rebecca Marroquin’s unique concept was inspired by her own experience using cannabis lotions to help with pain. In 2011, Marroquin was preparing to finish school and become a massage therapist when she was involved in a car crash that broke her neck. Four months of using infused topicals had her back on track to graduate.

Marroquin is now hoping to offer Denverites similarly therapeutic experiences and show there’s more to cannabis than simply getting high.

Pure Elevations features four rooms – three for singles and one for couples – where guests can get a massage or body scrub, a salon with manicure and pedicure stations, and an area for hair stylists specializing in African-American techniques like braiding and fashion coloring.

Additionally, the spa will serve coffee and pre-packaged snacks, and patrons can order food for delivery to enjoy alongside their marijuana products on the outdoor consumption patio.

“We’re just trying to get a good vibe in here,” Marroquin said.

The vibes may be on point now, but it’s been a long time coming. Marroquin originally hoped to open Pure Elevations in April, but construction plus the additional challenges of integrating marijuana into her business model delayed that timeline. She sold her previous massage studio and went all in on Pure Elevations – a process that’s been “fun, exciting, stressful, and been everything in between,” she said with emotion welling up in her eyes.

“We’re here now and we can’t give up,” Marroquin said. “It’s been an unbelievable dream I’ve had forever. To see it become reality is unbelievable.”

Because the canna-spa is a new concept, Marroquin plans to ramp up the number of available service appointments slowly. Customers who want to get on the books first can register for VIP access at pureelevations.com (use the password MyCannaSpa). Those folks will be invited to a launch party on Sept. 14 when they can check out the space, enjoy live music and bites from a food truck, and get hooked up with prizes and swag.

Take a virtual tour of Pure Elevations Canna-Spa & Salon below:

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Mike’s Knockout Gummies, launched Aug. 20, are THC-infused edibles shaped like little boxing gloves. They’re the first gummies the boxer has been able to sell here even if he’s had others available throughout the U.S.

In 2022, Tyson released his first line of edibles, Mike Bites, featuring gummies shaped like ears with a missing piece of cartilage at the top – a nod to Tyson’s infamous 1997 fight against Evander Holyfield. Clever, right? Well, not according to state law.

In 2017, Colorado banned the production and sale of THC-infused edibles shaped like people, animals and fruit to deter children from mistaking them for other kid-friendly snacks like gummy bears.

Mike’s Knockout Gummies, from the company Tyson 2.0, are made with full-spectrum rosin and join Tyson’s roster of cannabis flower and prerolls that have been available for sale at dispensaries throughout the state since 2021. Consumers can currently find them at Jars Dispensaries, Cookies on Broadway, and Police and Thieves, among other pot shops.

“Whether it be through ears or gloves, I’m always looking for new ways to connect with my fans, and I think these gummies will pack a real punch in Colorado,” Tyson said in a statement.

To celebrate the launch — and the upcoming bout between Tyson and YouTuber Jake Paul — the company is hosting giveaways at sevenpointdistributors.com.

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While the bulk of formal studies focus on the effects of ingesting large doses, the wellness industry has popularized a concept called microdosing, which involves taking small amounts of drugs like psilocybin or LSD as a supplement. This idea is to enhance physical and mental well-being without inducing a full psychedelic experience or trip.

Most psychedelic drugs are still illegal in the eyes of the federal government, however, so even though microdosing has inched its way into the mainstream lexicon, it simultaneously remains part of an underground culture. A Colorado company is working to create a microdosing drug for approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but until that happens doctors cannot prescribe microdoses to patients.

And there’s another catch: To be approved as a medicine, microdosing needs to be proven to work. Right now, scientists don’t agree on if it does.

Microdosing hasn’t been studied extensively, but the various methods used to do so often produce varying results. Much of the available data comes from observational studies in which users share anecdotal information about their experiences. Reports are usually overwhelmingly positive with people citing benefits from improvements in mood, focus and athletic performance to relief from chronic pain and anxiety.

Studies in placebo-controlled settings, however, tell a different story. In these cases, researchers often find minimal differences between people who get an active drug versus a placebo, suggesting participant bias is at play. Simply put, when people expect to see positive results from microdosing, they perceive them that way.

This paradox has sparked debate in psychedelic circles and caused friction between the traditional methods of investigating new drugs and burgeoning enthusiasm for psychedelics’ potential medical applications.

We spoke to researchers who’ve conducted both types of studies to understand the nuances of investigating psychedelic drugs and how their various methods may shape the future of the sector.

Microdosing in the natural world

Many people credit researcher Jim Fadiman with popularizing the microdosing concept in his 2011 book, “The Psychedelic Explorer’s Guide.” Fadiman began studying psychedelics in the 1960s, primarily focusing on the effects of ingesting large doses. He became interested in microdosing after hearing that Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann, the first person to synthesize LSD, had done it.

In 2010, a curious Fadiman launched an experiment that he bills as the first formal research into modern microdosing. He worked with a colleague to create blotters, each with 10 micrograms of acid, and mailed them to 100 willing participants nationwide, asking them to write back about their experiences.

“I got reports like a little outline, like two lines a day, and also got people who wrote well over 2,000 words a day,” Fadiman said. “I got a lot of indication that said there’s something here. There is some real effect and people notice it.”

Fadiman, who lives in Northern California, stopped mailing out microdoses, but he kept collecting testimonies. To date, he’s received about 5,000 personal accounts from people in at least 50 countries. The vast majority report positive effects in using small doses of psychedelics to manage conditions like depression, anxiety and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, to treat chronic pain, and improve cognitive function.

Based on his trove of anecdotes, Fadiman likens microdosing to a tune-up for the whole system.

“Medications are very symptom-specific. If you have a headache, a backache, a stomachache, a tremble, those all (need) different medications,” he said. “But if you take a vitamin, the assumption is it helps your system. Microdosing is much more akin to a vitamin than to a medication.”

Given few standards exist around the practice, another ongoing observational study launched in 2019 seeks to understand how and why people currently microdose. It’s called microdose.me and to date, there are more than 9,000 participants worldwide.

According to principal investigator Zach Walsh, who is also a professor at the University of British Columbia and a clinical psychologist, the results offer real-world insight into microdosing and distinguish trends among those who do it.

The most popular reasons for microdosing are to enhance mindfulness (82.9%), to improve mood (76.1%), to enhance creativity (74.1%), to enhance learning (58.1%) and to decrease anxiety (57.4%).

Walsh said enough people signed up who do not actively microdose that he was able to compare the two cohorts. Using self-reported data like the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales and other measurements, his team found that individuals who microdosed psilocybin showed greater improvements in mood and mental health after one month compared to those who didn’t.

“When we followed people for a month, there were some modest decreases in measures of mental distress,” Walsh said. “Because it wasn’t placebo-controlled and it wasn’t blind, we can’t tease apart whether or not it was just the act of microdosing and being active with your health that made the difference, or whether it was specific to microdosing. I don’t think it has to be either or.”

Controlled studies

What scientists know about the neurological effects of microdosing has primarily come from studies involving high doses. Research done at Johns Hopkins University and other institutions suggests psychedelics promote neuroplasticity and allow otherwise segregated portions of the brain to communicate. That’s why some scientists see promise in their ability to treat major depressive disorder, addiction, and end-of-life anxiety, among other ailments.

These studies are typically done in double-blind, placebo-controlled formats — the gold standard for evaluating the efficacy of pharmaceutical drugs. However, psychedelics present unique challenges since participants often break the blind, meaning they successfully guess whether or not they received an active drug or placebo. That’s especially true in studies using large doses – participants either trip or they don’t.

Harriet De Wit, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the University of Chicago, said it’s easier to maintain the blind in microdosing studies since users take a fraction of the dose needed to cause effects like hallucinations. However, it’s also challenging because the exact amount, known as a threshold dose, varies by the individual, she said.

De Wit, who has studied the effects of drugs for 40 years, heard the anecdotes heralding microdosing’s benefits and sought to understand how it affects people’s mood, cognitive performance and responses to emotional tasks. So she conducted a study in which 56 adults took repeated doses of either a placebo, 13 micrograms of LSD or 26 micrograms of LSD for several weeks. (The university has a license from the Drug Enforcement Administration to conduct research.)

“When people microdose in the natural world they have strong expectancies of what it’s going to do for them and that it’s going to have beneficial effects, and we don’t know how much the expectancies are influencing their responses to the drug. Our laboratory is set up to control those expectancies,” she said.

Many in the highest dose group reported feeling stimulated, energetic, amphetamine-like effects, De Wit said. However, microdosing did not improve their mood or cognitive performance, leading researchers to conclude it is safe, but has negligible effects in healthy volunteers. Subsequently, De Wit decided to investigate microdosing in individuals with depression symptoms and found the drug produced more marked improvements in mood.

“That’s kind of a novel finding and opens the door to maybe there is something to the microdosing. That is, some people who have symptoms to begin with might benefit from the drug, even if healthy volunteers don’t so much,” she said.

One of the most talked about studies, published in 2021, similarly found statistically insignificant differences between groups that took microdoses and placebos. Researcher Balázs Szigeti, then at Imperial College London, relied on citizen science by creating a unique self-blinding methodology that reduced the cost and approvals normally required to study psychedelics.

Participants created their own microdoses and placebo pills at home using non-transparent capsules that they either filled with their own psychedelic substance or left empty. After randomly selecting certain capsules to consume during the study’s four-week period, the 191 participants ended up in one of three groups – those who took only placebos, those who took only microdoses, and those who took half and half. QR codes helped Szigeti and his team track dosing data and survey results.

All groups reported improvements in subjective factors like well-being and life satisfaction, but comparatively, the differences were marginal. Szigeti attributed the benefits of microdosing to the placebo effect, causing swift backlash from the psychedelics community.

Szigeti, who now studies psychedelics at the University of California San Francisco, tells The Denver Post he was surprised by the study’s results and does not believe they are at odds with people’s lived experiences. (It’s also worth noting that most participants broke the blind.)

“When a scientist says that, ‘Hey microdosing is placebo,’ it doesn’t mean microdosing doesn’t have an effect. It means the effect of microdosing is not larger than the placebo effect, which itself is a large effect,” Szigeti said. “So there is no contradiction in potentially microdosing being placebo effect and people getting benefit from microdosing.”

De Wit isn’t convinced that microdosing is just hype, but the claimed benefits are so varied and widespread that it’s impossible to determine which effects are actually due to the drugs. She hopes to see continued research on the subject.

“If you’re interested in what the drug does then you have to give it while controlling those expectancies. If you’re interested in making people better clinically, maybe it doesn’t matter so much,” De Wit said.

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The state’s Department of Revenue recently finalized the regulations surrounding psychedelic-assisted therapy, which is expected to roll out in 2025. Colorado is the second state after Oregon to legalize the model, which has shown promise in treating mental health conditions like depression and end-of-life distress.

The new regulations outline licensing processes for psilocybin mushroom growers, manufacturers, and drug testing labs, as well as so-called “healing centers” where psychedelic-assisted therapy will take place. They spell out permitted and prohibited actions at each of these businesses; offer strict guidance on waste disposal; define drug serving sizes and product labeling requirements; and set penalties for individuals caught breaking the laws, among other things.

The DOR is one of two state agencies that wrote rules governing the nascent industry. Earlier this year, the Department of Regulatory Agencies published its occupational protocols and training requirements for facilitators, meaning those people who supervise individuals under the influence of a psychedelic experience. Those considering obtaining a business license in this sector should read the regulations in full.

Here are five things to know about Colorado’s new Natural Medicine regulations.

Products beyond dried psilocybin mushrooms are allowed

Individuals who undergo psychedelic-assisted therapy may have multiple ways to consume psilocybin mushrooms. Colorado’s new laws allow manufacturers to produce a variety of edibles, including tea bags, capsules, chocolates, gummies, tablets and tinctures.

It’s worth noting that these products, along with dried mushrooms, will not be for sale in a retail store or dispensary. They will only be supplied to adults ages 21 and up at healing centers during an administration session, the formal name for a guided trip.

Additionally, Colorado’s law bans manufacturers from using synthetic tryptamines, such as 4-acO-DMT, and requires edibles to be tested for synthetics before they are distributed.

Psychedelic serving sizes set and labeling requirements

Even though manufactured mushroom products will not be sold to the public in retail stores, regulators set serving size limits for various products to help standardize them.

A single serving is defined as 10 milligrams of total psilocin, the psychoactive compound that causes effects like hallucinations. That is about how much is active in one gram of dried mushrooms. Edibles may contain up to five grams of psilocybin mushrooms or 50 milligrams of psilocin in total. Tinctures must come with a device that ensures facilitators can measure out an individual serving.

As far as labeling, the state requires a warning label about potential interactions with other drugs, and prohibits companies from using cartoons and colors that may appeal to children. Additionally, companies may not use the words “candy” or “candies,” or iconography from indigenous cultures.

Healing centers may operate as part of other healthcare facilities

Colorado permits healing centers to be co-located at facilities that offer other healthcare services. However, exactly where they open may be impacted by additional local regulations.

Separately, state law allows healing centers to share a building with a mushroom cultivation and manufacturing facility, as long as they have distinct areas where each business operates.

Adverse health incidents must be tracked and reported

If anyone experiences a serious or life-threatening incident that requires medical intervention or if someone dies, healing centers must report that to the state within two business days. They must also track and keep records of all adverse health events.

Businesses must diligently track psilocybin output and waste

While Colorado’s framework does not permit retail stores, regulators put in place strict guidelines for tracking psilocybin mushrooms and product inventory to ensure they stay within the legal system. Part of that includes specific rules for how to dispose of waste related to cultivation and manufacturing, as well as unused products at healing centers.

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Products made by California’s Prophet Premium Blends, and sold under the Diamond Shruumz brand, have been linked to 113 illnesses in the U.S., including at least two Colorado, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s latest outbreak report. The agency is also investigating two potentially related deaths.

On Thursday, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said the local illnesses were tied to products purchased in Mesa County and Denver. CDPHE is now investigating those cases with assistance from the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Safety, Mesa County Public Health, and Denver Department of Public Health and Environment.

“People should not eat, sell, or serve any flavors of Diamond Shruumz chocolate bars, cones, or gummies, and should discard products that have been purchased,” the agency said.

In June, the FDA tested two Diamond Shruumz chocolate bars and found they contain a compound called 4-acetoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine, also known as 4-acO-DMT. One of the products also contained several compounds found in the kava plant.

Local experts say synthetic psilocybin is pervasive in so-called mushroom edibles sold at head shops throughout Colorado and the U.S. Not only is that misleading — 4-acO-DMT does not occur naturally in psilocybin mushrooms — it’s also potentially dangerous when you consider the hazardous chemicals needed to create synthetics. In the underground, manufacturers aren’t subject to oversight that ensures their products are safe for human consumption.

Diamond Shruumz edibles were sold at 50 stores in Colorado before being recalled, and other similar products are likely still available. The FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are still investigating the link between Diamond Shruumz products and the illnesses, which include symptoms such as seizures, abnormal heart rate and vomiting.

In the meantime, it’s worth knowing more about 4-acO-DMT and why some in the psychedelic space are wary of it.

What is 4-AcO-DMT?

Simply, 4-AcO-DMT is a synthetic tryptamine that doesn’t occur naturally in mushrooms. It’s known as synthetic psilocybin because it converts into psilocin when metabolized in the human body, according to Scott Thompson, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Psilocin is the psychoactive compound that causes trippy effects like hallucinations.

Psilocybin, on the other hand, does occur naturally in mushrooms. It goes through the same conversion process when ingested and becomes psilocin. The difference is that synthetics are man-made in a lab using chemicals and solvents.

Why is 4-AcO-DMT showing up in psychedelic mushroom products?

The psychoactive effects caused by 4-AcO-DMT are similar to psilocybin because the two compounds are similar in structure, said Noah Novello, founder and lead scientist at Friday Ventures drug testing lab in Louisville. But most people won’t notice a difference, he added.

The process of extracting psilocybin from mushrooms is labor-intensive and produces a low yield. To manufacture edibles, it would be potentially more efficacious and cheaper to use something synthetic.

Once Novello learned about the synthetic tryptamine, he developed a method for testing it and found it widespread among edibles marketed as containing psilocybin.

The chances of finding 4-AcO-DMT in psychedelic mushroom edibles are “at least 50/50 if you’re buying stuff online,” he estimates. “If you’re buying something from a head shop or a convenience store that’s labeled mushrooms, well over 50%.”

Is 4-AcO-DMT dangerous?

4-AcO-DMT has not been studied extensively, so it’s unclear exactly what risks it carries when ingested. Experts say in theory it should be safe, but there are inherent dangers when buying unregulated products that contain it.

According to Colton Brook, lab manager at Altitude Consulting in Englewood, pure 4-AcO-DMT is likely non-toxic because it is very similar to natural psilocybin, which has a low risk of overdose and addiction.

In clinical trials, professional scientists in regulated labs conduct testing to ensure their formulations have been purged of the toxic chemicals and solvents used to make synthetics. But when 4-AcO-DMT is manufactured underground, there’s no guarantee that happens.

“Typically you’re going to have leftover impurities. That’s where it becomes the question of, well is 4-AcO-DMT, 100% pure, safe? That’s a different question than ingesting a chocolate bar that maybe contains it. Because how do you know it’s 100% pure 4-AcO that went into there? You really don’t,” Brook said.

Thompson at CU Anschutz agrees. “It’s still a mystery to me as to why it should kill somebody because I don’t think the 4-AcO-DMT should be toxic,” he said.

Is 4-AcO-DMT legal?

No, 4-AcO-DMT is not legal in  Colorado. It is banned in here because the Natural Medicine Health Act, passed in 2022, prohibits the use of synthetics in psychedelic-assisted therapy. It is also not included in the list of decriminalized psychedelics.

What can consumers do if they are concerned about 4-AcO-DMT in their products?

The FDA recommends anyone who has purchased Diamond Shruumz products dispose of them or return them to Prophet Premium Blends for a refund.

Locals can bring their products to Friday Ventures for testing to identify what’s in it, Novello said. His rule of thumb: “Do not believe what the packaging says.”

Novello also advises being skeptical of any lab results published by a mushroom brand, as they may not tell the whole truth.

Diamond Shruumz, for one, has a robust trove of lab results available to the public. The certificate of analysis (COA) for its dark chocolate bar shows the sample does not contain 12 various cannabinoids, including THC and CBD. The results do not include an analysis of tryptamines or synthetic drugs. A COA  for Diamond Shruumz’s birthday cake-flavor chocolate bar shows the lab did not detect “amanita analytes” or “mushrooms analytes,” suggesting it does not contain amanita or psilocybin mushrooms, Novello said.

Both the aforementioned products were tested by the FDA.

“The COA can only tell you what the lab is looking for. This lab is not looking for 4-AcO-DMT, or LSD, or rat poison,” Novello said.

If you’re a consumer, he suggests joining local groups like the Psychedelic Club of Denver or the Nowak Society where you can connect with Colorado’s plethora of home growers, who are legally permitted to share their stash.

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“If you cross (Quebec Street), there’s about six, seven, eight different pools over there,” Cobb said last week at the Northeast Park Hill Coalition’s June membership meeting. “We have, really, two.”

His neighborhood is instead known for its plethora of marijuana businesses — a presence that’s controversial for some residents. Northeast Park Hill and other areas that are home to Denver’s marginalized populations have the most marijuana cultivation facilities and stores in the city.

Although they’ve attracted a high concentration of cannabis businesses, elected officials and neighbors say their communities struggle to secure other public and private investments, including grocery stores, recreation centers and amenities like splash pads. Those concerns led the city to limit the neighborhoods where new cannabis businesses can open.

“I would like to see some more resources provided by the city more than anything, so that we can live, work and play once again,” Cobb said.

As of May 30, the Denver neighborhoods with the most marijuana cultivation facilities include:

• Northeast Park Hill: 28
• Montbello: 24
• Elyria-Swansea: 19
• Overland: 16
• College View-South Platte: 13

The neighborhoods with the most cannabis stores are:

• Overland: 13
• Northeast Park Hill: 11
• Baker: 10
• Five Points: 10
• Montbello: 8
• Valverde: 8

Since the city started publishing its list of neighborhoods of “undue concentration” in 2021 as part of a regulatory overhaul, the same areas have remained at the top. That year, Northeast Park Hill and Montbello tied for the most cultivation facilities with 32 each, while Overland had the most stores with 14 locations.

Several of these communities are among Denver’s most diverse neighborhoods. Northeast Park Hill’s population is 42% Black and 26% Hispanic or Latino, according to its neighborhood profile fact sheet. Elyria-Swansea is 84% Hispanic or Latino, while Valverde is 77% Hispanic or Latino, the city reported. Five Points is a historically Black neighborhood once called the “Harlem of the West.”

In these communities, the presence of the marijuana industry — where only about 19% of the business owners identify as minorities in Colorado, as of July 2023 — receives indifference from some residents and dismay from others.

“I don’t think it helps our community to have people walking around like zombies,” said Abdur-Rahim Ali, imam at the Northeast Denver Islamic Center (Masjid Taqwa), on Tuesday. “We already have a large number of people who are on psychotropic drugs, and, with the addition of marijuana, it’s just not a good mix.”

Community impact by marijuana businesses

Molly Duplechian, executive director of Denver’s Department of Excise and Licenses, acknowledges that “certain neighborhoods were getting more stores and more applications and more businesses.”

Several reasons contribute to that, including zoning codes, real estate costs and proximity restrictions that require marijuana businesses to be at least 1,000 feet away from schools and other facilities.

However, communities with high concentrations of marijuana businesses have worried about the potential impacts on youth usage, commercial real estate values and the areas’ cultural and historic significance, Duplechian said.

“We heard from some community members that they wanted to have other opportunities for other types of businesses to come into their neighborhood,” such as grocery stores, she added.

As a result, Duplechian’s department put a restriction on opening new stores or cultivation facilities in those neighborhoods of “undue concentration.” Marijuana businesses also have to comply with rules about advertising and odor control.

However, odor complaints reported to Denver’s Department of Public Health & Environment aren’t typically an issue for cultivation facilities.

Only two neighborhoods on the city’s high-concentration list had complaints filed from May 2022 to May 2024: three in Northeast Park Hill around the Denver Police Department’s District 2 station and two in Overland, DDPHE spokesperson Ryann Money said. No issues were found.

Since marijuana tax revenue collections began in February 2014, Colorado’s Department of Revenue has received a total of about $2.7 billion through April 2024.

Denver has collected almost $491 million in taxes and licensing fees since recreational marijuana sales started in 2014 through 2023. This year, 29% of marijuana tax revenue goes toward homelessness services, 28% to affordable housing, 14% to the Herman Malone Fund to support minority-owned businesses, 12% to education, 9% to regulation and 8% to enforcement, according to city data shared exclusively with The Denver Post.

Any extra money is allocated to the city general fund for city services, so “there are literally pot for potholes in Denver,” said Excise and Licenses spokesperson Eric Escudero. For instance, marijuana taxes helped build the Carla Madison Recreation Center on East Colfax Avenue, Duplechian added.

The decline in marijuana sales has led to nine cultivation facilities shuttering across the five most concentrated neighborhoods in the past year.

“We’re now 10 years into this, and I think we just are kind of seeing some stabilization and some of the novelty wearing off of it, too,” Duplechian said.

In Northeast Park Hill, the Native Roots Cannabis Co. cultivation facility is about 1,000 feet from the Sand Creek Landfill in what Liz Zukowski, director of public affairs, described as a heavy commercial and industrial area. Cultivation facilities are restricted to certain zone districts, and they’re difficult to relocate because of their layouts and equipment.

“These are the areas where the city designated cultivations to be,” Zukowski said. “The former city council created the licensing and zoning scheme and associated maps for marijuana businesses, which follow historically racist redlined areas.”

Hundreds of employees work at the Native Roots location, which opened in 2013, and they frequent local restaurants and retail stores, Zukowski said.

“Marijuana cultivations create no more stress on the neighborhoods than the Caterpillar site across the street, the nearby (Colorado Department of Transportation) locations, or the SaltBox facility next door,” Zukowski said.

“How do we mitigate some of the harms?”

In Denver, a cannabis store is required to take part in a “needs and desires” hearing with the community to prove it’s wanted in that location, and businesses must develop community impact plans, the Marijuana Industry Group reports.

Denver Councilwoman Shontel Lewis, who represents Park Hill and Montbello in District 8, hasn’t heard concerns from her constituents about the concentration of cannabis shops or odor from cultivation facilities, said spokesperson Vince Chandler.

Instead, residents are asking her to tackle larger issues — and those include adding more community amenities, such as crosswalks, traffic-calming measures and multilingual signage for parks and roadways.

“Why don’t we have that concentration of positive amenities?” Lewis said, pointing to Denver’s zoning codes as a possible area of improvement. “How do we mitigate some of the harms that communities have had to endure for decades from a lack of city investment?”

Park Hill neighbors are pushing to build green spaces, grocery stores and co-ops.

“This is the only community that does not have access to a simple grocery store,” said LaMone Noles, vice president of the Northeast Park Hill Coalition, on Tuesday.

She wants to develop a business district between 38th Avenue and Smith Road to boost economic activity. Her area once benefited from the presence of Stapleton International Airport in the nearby Central Park neighborhood. Denver International Airport replaced Stapleton in 1995.

“They’re talking about live, work, play — we’ve been there, done that, right in this neighborhood,” Noles said. “We need to get it back.”

In Montbello, residents hope to build “parks that are just as lavish and beautiful as the parks that you might see in Central Park,” Lewis said. They’d like to expand the Montbello Connector — a free ride-share service offered to commuters by the city.

A recent win: The community is getting its own senior technology lab in the Arie P. Taylor Municipal Center on Peoria Street for elderly residents to gather and access the internet, which is set to open this summer after seven years of interest.

Along the southern end of the district, East Colfax residents want to cool off in a splash pad because they lack shade and pools.

The city’s participatory budgeting process was supposed to fund this lower-cost water infrastructure, Lewis said, but “that piece of the project had gotten lost.” She’s still waiting on updates, including a price estimate.

“For East Colfax, Montbello, Park Hill, the feeling is that they’ve been historically overlooked when it comes to investment in those communities: both investment in the infrastructure amenities, but also the people,” Lewis said. “It feels like they’ve just kind of been forgotten.”

Frustrations, but fewer complaints

Councilman Darrell Watson represents Globeville, Elyria-Swansea and Five Points in District 9, and he’s balancing supporting small businesses like cannabis dispensaries and advocating for residents’ quality of life.

Marijuana businesses and liquor stores are often located on less-expensive property in low-income neighborhoods, “and it’s usually in Black and Brown communities,” Watson said.

He’s “not shocked” that his district is listed among the neighborhoods with a high concentration of cannabis businesses.

“I would love for our communities to have a high concentration of rec centers or high concentration of parks,” Watson said. “We don’t have those.”

However, according to data that he obtained from Denver 311, “we have more complaints about alcohol and liquor stores and bars that sell alcohol than cannabis,” Watson said.

He wants to ensure that cannabis and alcohol businesses are treated equitably within the city’s regulations.

Still, Armando Payan, a longtime Globeville resident, remains frustrated by the number of marijuana businesses operating throughout his district in northern Denver. His neck of the woods is often tied to its eastern neighbor, Elyria-Swansea.

“We don’t need the marijuana industry in our community,” said Payan, president of a group called the United Community Action Network (UCAN) of Metro Denver. He’d like to see the city put more limits in place, lamenting that Denver uses his zip code, 80216, “as a dumping ground.”

Instead, he hopes for progress in his community spurred by innovative methods like solar panels that produce direct current electricity, giving residents more independence.

“We want this part of the city to lead the rest of the city in terms of quality of life,” Payan said.

But Truman Bradley, executive director of the Marijuana Industry Group, says he’s watched cannabis businesses extend helping hands over the years, working in line with registered neighborhood organizations (RNOs) to build up communities.

“Even from the early days of legalization, cannabis businesses have been deeply involved in their communities because it’s the right thing to do,” Bradley said. “Whether its neighborhood cleanups, walks for charitable causes, community food drives, or planting trees alongside RNOs, examples abound of cannabis businesses doing good in their communities.”

Industry leaders cautioned that such a move — if finalized — would not resolve some major challenges facing the industry, such as limited access to banking. But they pointed to the symbolic importance of preparations by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to downgrade the substance’s drug classification.

“This will be the biggest change in drug policy at the federal level in at least 50 years, if not ever,” said Truman Bradley, executive director of the Marijuana Industry Group, a Colorado-based trade association. “The DEA has had the option to reschedule marijuana before this and elected to keep it at Schedule I, so a reversal is a big deal.”

The Associated Press reported Tuesday that the agency planned to move marijuana’s drug classification from Schedule I to the less restrictive Schedule III in a “historic shift of American drug policy that could have wide ripple effects across the country.” The change, if finalized, would not legalize it nationally but would loosen certain restrictions.

Since the passage of the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, cannabis has been listed on Schedule I alongside LSD, heroin and other drugs deemed to have no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.

The DEA considers drugs in Schedule III to have “moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.” Substances in that category include ketamine, anabolic steroids and some products containing codeine.

Since August, when the DEA indicated it would consider rescheduling marijuana, a cadence of state and federal officials, including Colorado Gov. Jared Polis and Attorney General Phil Weiser, supported doing so.

The effects of such a move would undoubtedly reach Colorado, where cannabis has been legal for recreational use for more than a decade and for medical purposes since 2000.

According to local experts and proprietors, the biggest impact will be financial.

Federal tax code, in section 280E, dictates that companies working with Schedule I or Schedule II substances are prohibited from deducting many standard business expenses from taxable gross income. That means state-legal cannabis growers, dispensaries and manufacturers “end up paying an extremely high effective tax rate — far beyond what any other business might pay,” said Andrew Freedman, executive director of the Coalition for Cannabis Policy, Education and Regulation (CPEAR), which advocates for drug reform on the federal level. He formerly was a state marijuana regulator in Colorado.

Moving marijuana to Schedule III would relieve local businesses of that tax burden and enable them to write off expenses such as electricity, payroll and insurance. For Wanda James, co-founder and CEO of Simple Pure Dispensary in Denver, that could mean a savings of as much as a 15% to 20%.

“It’s a hugely significant number,” she said. “It depends on your business and what you do with your business, but it could mean hiring more people. It could mean dedicating more money to marketing. It could mean upgrading your facilities or benefits to your employees.”

Connor Oman, CEO of Sun Theory Holding Co., wrote in an email that he was hopeful the rescheduling would produce tax savings of up to 40%, a figure that fluctuates based on how each of the company’s businesses is structured. Sun Theory owns 13 dispensaries in Colorado, including all locations of Terrapin Care Station Dispensary, which it recently acquired.

In a statement issued by the governor’s office, Polis said he was “thrilled by the Biden Administration’s decision to begin the process of finally rescheduling cannabis, following the lead of Colorado and 37 other states that have already legalized it for medical or adult use, correcting decades of outdated federal policy.” He cited the likely reduction of the industry’s tax burden and said it “will improve public safety, and will support a more just and equitable system for all.”

James considers the rescheduling a marker of progress, but she noted that it wouldn’t fix another monetary issue in the industry: banking.

Large banks are hesitant to work with cannabis businesses because they don’t want to take on the risk of dealing with a substance that is still illegal on the federal level for fear that they would violate anti-money laundering laws. Their reluctance makes it difficult for entrepreneurs in the space to access loans, lines of credit or traditional merchant processing.

Marijuana would remain a controlled substance, even if it is reclassified — so the incentive for banks to get involved in the industry wouldn’t necessarily change.

Bradley, however, remains bullish that a rescheduling would inspire more investors and financial institutions to bolster the industry, which has recently fallen on hard times, seeing declines in sales. In 2023, Colorado consumers spent just over $1.5 billion on cannabis products, the lowest total since 2017, according to the Marijuana Enforcement Division.

“Investors have been sitting on the sidelines because of the federal classification. With that change, it, by definition, reduces the risk of investment in the industry,” Bradley said. “With rescheduling, that removes any chance that the federal government is going to try to shut down legal cannabis. That’s not a thing anymore.”

Still, uncertainty remains around when changes will take effect and how far-reaching they will be.

Sam Kamin, a law professor at the University of Denver who was involved in the rollout of Colorado’s recreational market, says a rescheduling won’t align state and federal laws any more than they are now.

In the medical marijuana sector, he said, the government could now force those businesses to adhere to federal regulations for development and distribution of Schedule III drugs. Those often are more rigid than states’ rules to procure cannabis for medical conditions.

“You can’t buy anabolic steroids without a prescription. If you do so, you’re committing a federal crime,” Kamin said. “You can imagine an administration saying, ‘You wanted a lawful path to marijuana. We’ve given you a path, that is the only path.’ That would be really disruptive.

“I don’t think this administration is likely to do that at this time, but at some point that tension is going to need to be figured out.”

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The annual auction features 10 phrases, including 420, COHEMP, HASHISH, HILIFE, REEFER, among others. Proceeds from the auction will go toward grants and state programs to support people with disabilities.

Since the auction launched in 2021, the state has raised more than $96,000, according to a news release from the governor’s office.

Bidders can win the right to own the use of the marijuana phrases on their state license plates or they can buy a novelty plate and keep the right to use that phrase in the future. Winners could also choose to resell the license plate phrase through the state’s Disability Funding Committee.

Last year, the DANK license plate sold for $600 and MJ for $520. Residents interested in participating in the auction can do so at coloradoplates.org/collections/current-auction.

“The Colorado Disability Funding Committee has been an incredible support to the many nonprofits and local partners statewide working to improve life and increase opportunities for Coloradans with disabilities. This auction continues to be a meaningful way to celebrate Colorado’s cannabis industry while making an impact in the lives of others,” Lt. Governor Dianne Primavera said in a written statement.

Officials also want to remind Coloradans not to drive while under the influence of marijuana, according to the news release.

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“One time I was looking for an address and three strangers came from out of nowhere trying to help me find it. I didn’t know if someone was trying to steal my wallet,” he said with a laugh. “I never been uncomfortable with people being nice ’til I got to Colorado. It was giving me the goosebumps.”

Still, Afroman keeps coming back because of the vibe – “I call it California in the deep freezer,” he said, in large part because of the abundance of weed here.

Fittingly, the “Because I Got High” singer’s next appearance will be at Mile High 420 Fest on Saturday at Denver’s Civic Center park. Other artists slated to perform include Gucci Mane, Big Boss Vette, Tommy Genesis and more.

Afroman will undoubtedly perform his indomitable stoner sing-along and he’s not sick of doing so after all these years. “Because I Got High” came out in 2001, long before the country’s first legal weed sales took place in Colorado. When he wrote the song, Afroman admits he never thought he’d see cannabis legalized.

“I was thinking weed was like cocaine and heroin and every other drug that the police would take you to jail for. So it was just etched in this mind as this forever crime, you know what I mean. I started realizing that it had the possibility of being legal because it was too many smart people smoking it. It was people who had college degrees and doctors and lawyers, and they were smarter than police officers,” he said.

In 2014, the rapper even remixed the lyrics to the song to be less about smoking and slacking, and instead to highlight the positive benefits of consumption. Things like marijuana’s medicinal benefits, its ability to help kick more addictive substances, and its ability to motivate people to exercise.

While Afroman generally considers legalization a good thing, he’s witnessed cracks in the state-by-state model. In 2022, officers with the Adams County Sheriff’s Office in Ohio raided Afroman’s house on suspicion of drug trafficking and kidnapping. The rapper was never charged with any crimes, local media reported.

Last November — a year and change after the raid — voters made Ohio the 24th state to legalize recreational cannabis sales.

“By it being legal now, another person doesn’t have to experience that life-threatening episode,” he said. “It takes a crime element out of what we do. I think it’s beautiful.”

Afroman, who was not home during the raid, turned the incident into an album called “Lemon Pound Cake,” which came out last year. The video for one song, “Will You Help Me Repair My Door?” features security footage from Afroman’s house as police raided it. Deputies with the sheriff’s department sued him after its release, alleging invasion of privacy.

Despite the events, Afroman believes he’s won in the court of public opinion. He said his career has reached new heights after a lull in the decades since “Because I Got High.” (Perhaps not totally unrelated was a 2015 incident in which he punched a female fan in the face while on stage.)

Ironically, Afroman credits the Adams County Sheriff’s Department for its role in reviving his image.

“They reinvented me. They brought me back, they made my story interesting again to the point where I’m bigger now than I ever was in my life,” he said.

Afroman is riding that momentum by starring in a new movie, his first, called “Happily Divorced,” which comes out on Saturday. That day, he’ll also debut new music under the moniker Blunt Brothers, a project he’s doing with rapper Daddy V.

And apparently, Afroman is still running for president, even if his name won’t appear on the November ballot. His campaign, which includes promises of federal cannabis legalization, was launched in 2022 and also inspired by the raid on his house.

What does he think of the Biden Administration’s moves to pardon certain marijuana crimes and advocate for rescheduling the substance?

“I’m happy about anything anybody does good for the cannabis community.”

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