What were you doing during the start of the pandemic lock down in 2020? Did you build a puzzle for the first time in year? Did you get reacquainted with how stupid and long and frustrating monopoly is? How about sour dough bread? Did you make your first sour dough? Dr. Igor Kovalchuk and his wife, Dr. Olga Kovalchuk from the University of Lethbridg…

The Canadian Medical Cannabis Program has been available for more than two decades, yet the process of obtaining cannabis as medicine remains very cumbersome. In comparison, Recreational Cannabis, seen as a substance of misuse, is easy to acquire. When people express an interest in trying cannabis as a medicine to their health care team, many healt…

Tarris Baptiste was athletically gifted. Tarris was driven. Tarris was on the brink of breaking into the National Football League. And then, it didn’t happen. Ten thousand hours plus spent on becoming an elite football player didn’t matter anymore. Now what? Tarris had a shadow pursuit that paralleled his football career. Sometimes it helped him su…

Dr. Suzy Pinnick, a family physician specializing in palliative medicine and remote northern medicine, shares her cannabis story with Kirk. In this episode, the two health professionals sit in a casual masked conversation within the warmth of the NIC’s office of a northern nursing station during a deep Covid19 Canadian winter evening. She is quick …

Regular users of cannabis will – often self-consciously – admit to having a spiritual relationship with cannabis. Will Johnson, a teacher of Buddhist Dharma since 1972, explains how he is ‘something of an anomaly and outlier when it comes to the use of cannabis.’ In his book “Cannabis in Spiritual Practice: The Ecstasy of Shiva, The Calm of Buddha,…

What is the evidence? Where are the studies? There is no proof that cannabis can treat anything! Well…What if I told you there are lots of studies showing that cannabis has medical benefits? What if there was a study going on right now in Sarnia looking at Cannabis and Dementia in Long Term Care (LTC) homes? Dr. Blake Pearson and his partners in La…

If you suffer from headaches, Dr. Carrie Cuttler, Assistant Professor at Washington State University, may offer some insights. This episode explores how migraine sufferers may benefit from cannabis. In her study, this cannabis researcher, uses Strainprint data to track people who use inhale cannabis to treat their migraines. Kirk and Trevor explore…

The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for the discovery of microRNA. It’s too bad we at Reefer MEDness don’t know anything about microRNA. But wait…We do! Hilal Kalkan, a post-doc at Laval University, talks to us about how microRNA and cannabinoid receptors are involved in the side effect of a c…

Kirk and Trevor discuss PTSD with Dr. Mike Hart founder of ReadyToGo Clinic. Dr. Hart talks about how PTSD, migraines, IBS and some other conditions are due at least in part to an endocannabinoid deficiency. That means cannabis is an obvious treatment for PTSD. Also hear how cannabis can also be used in sports medicine and about Kirk’s Runners’ Hig…

Pop quiz! Name a condition that costs $2.5 Billion to the Canadian health care system per year, that causes 1 in 5 sufferers to lose or quit a job at some point during their life because of the disease and that 8 in 10 people with the disease were initially told their pain was normal before diagnosis? Welcome to the under-appreciated suffering of t…

Is it the future? Kirk and Trevor delve into the craft cannabis market, again. In this episode, they gather a unique panel of Cannabis enthusiasts, willing to share their views on growing small batches of their best. A British Columbia computer geek turned owner, an Alberta legacy grower gone legit, and a Manitoba seed archivist waiting on a licens…

VanHoot is now traveling the roads of northern British Columbia. While Michelle is off filling their cupboards and cooler, Kirk and River explore the resale cannabis market in those small communities they visit. Kirk records some of the discussions collecting cannabis stories to better understand cannabis from the budtenders’ perspective. In this e…

On July 23, 1983 at an altitude of 41,000 feet, Air Canada Flight 143 travelling between Montreal and Edmonton ran out of fuel because of confusion between metric and imperial measurements. However, the crew of the Boeing 767 successfully landed the passenger jet in Manitoba’s Interlake in what is now known as the Gimli Glider. That intrepid flight…

Once again, Kirk is on the road collecting stories, and never knowing where a story will take him. This road trip is in British Columbia where infused pre-rolls are the hottest summer blitz. Join Kirk and his dog River as they collect stories from cannabis stores, a vape shop, and while standing in a parking lot. We learn how bud tenders gain knowl…

You’ve said the word concussion. You might even have had one. But do you really understand them? Did you know a concussion is a minor traumatic brain injury? Dr. Patrick Neary and his team got a grant from the NFL to study if cannabis can help prevent or treat concussions! Dr. Neary explains, you don’t have to actually bang your head to get a concu…

Kirk catches up with Ted Smith from the Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club and his organization’s ill-defined existence within a country of legalized cannabis. We hear how Ted’s dreams, for this timeworn cannabis compassion club, are close to fruition yet there lingers potential for a new set of fines and a visit from the Public Health Authority impedin…

Most certainly, we have learned Cannabis has benefits but it is not benign. With all medications it is important to understand the risk and benefits. In this episode Trevor and Kirk discuss the cardiovascular effects of chronic cannabis inhalation with an accomplished student of medicine, Dr. Venkat Subramaniam. Although, he admits limited studies …

You’ve got a PhD with lots of lab and testing experience. It should be easy to start a cannabis testing lab, right? Well, not really. Aldwin Anterola found cannabis growers weren’t always interested in finding the accurate amount of cannabinoids like THC in their products, among other problems. So, Aldwin went back to school. The NIH (National Inst…

Ross Rebagliati, Michael Phelps, and Sha’Carri Richardson. Different athletes, different sports, and different eras. Tremendous athletic ability and years of arduous training aren’t all they have in common. Their sporting careers have all been touched by cannabis. Dr. Mark Ware and his colleagues examined cannabis and elite athletes. What they foun…

Brent Alarie is informed he has COPD, then it was multiple sclerosis. No wait, he receives another diagnosis of blood cancer. These were just a few of the catastrophic verdicts given to describe how his body was betraying him. He needed to create change and prepare for his enviable death. With a new bucket list he started living his best life under…

The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell. That is what we learned in high school biology. But what if it is more? What if the mitochondria has receptors on it for cannabinoids? What if mitochondria move around the cell? What if mitochondria help produce chemical signals for the cell? What if mitochondria are involved in such diverse processes…

In this episode we explore a series of unfortunate events started when a Registered Nurse decided to illegally grow cannabis as medicine. Society may consider nurses one of our most trustworthy groups however, employers and professional colleges have policies and procedures suggesting otherwise because the profession is plagued with addiction issue…

Do you know anyone with dementia? If you don’t, you will. We humans are living longer and healthier lives. There are more healthy 75 year old people alive now than there ever have been. However, the number of people with dementia is sky rocketing as well. Enter Dr. Mechtler… Dr. Lazslo Mechtler is the Medical Director of Dent Neurologic Institute, …

In this episode, Kirk and Trevor bring forward the importance of Cannabis advocacy. With the legalization of recreational cannabis, some may see the need for Cannabis Advocacy as being dispensable. Stephen Stairs, a medical cannabis consumer is a leader within the Winnipeg green culture. He explains how the many interpretations of regulations, from…

One sunny evening in the summer of 2020, Kirk and Trevor had a meeting on Kirk's driveway. Even though all indoor meetings were taboo, they met someone bursting with excitement. Eric Greening's face lit up as he described the cannabis growing facility he envisioned building north east of Dauphin. Four years, a pandemic, spiraling inflation and all …

Trevor and Kirk continue their CBD exploration with a Canadian Icon. Bif Naked, one of Canada’s best selling musicians shares her “my Cannabis story” sharing how she watched CBD help various members of her family, peer group, and eventually how she too benefited from daily dosing. Bif Naked discusses her formative years in Dauphin, her experiences …

So many amazing Canna-people, so little time. CannMed 24 was sublime! Here are the another batch of clips we got! Ben Cameransi – Mingowood Pharmacal, LLC - Dr. Benjamin Cameransi, MD, DABA is a Board-Certified Anesthesiologist, with a extensive background in pain management. He has started four Biotech Companies. He was involved in the development…

Our co-host, Trevor has an unhealthy obsession with suppositories. You know that guy you never ask, “Hey, what is an NFT?” lest he talk your ear off? Well never ask Trevor, “Hey, what is a Rectal Rocket?” With that background, imagine our delight when we stumbled across Sarah Roberts and her company Cicatrix Labs. They make vaginal and rectal suppo…

So many fantastic Canna-people to meet and talk to at CannMed 24! Here are the first batch of clips we got! Ariane Williams & Megan Mbengue – Trusted Canna Nurse - There were so many nurses at CannMed 24! Our slightly biased co-host Kirk was ecstatic. He thinks more nurses makes every conference and everything else better! Ariane is the Director of…

Ian Mitchell is an emergency physician, the Site Scholar for the Kamloops Family Medicine Residency Program and is occasionally photographed teaching whole rooms full of people to stick their fingers in their ears while opening their mouths really wide like they are in a silent scream. He caught our interest with an article and talk he did about ga…

Do you have a favourite craft cannabis flower? Are you getting what you think you ordered? Think again. While attending the Calgary Hempfest, Kirk and Trevor gathered five Micro Cultivation License holders (plus a surprise cameo contributor!) to discuss the recreational cannabis retail space. The conversation revealed a complicated system of regula…

Let us start by saying, we encourage pregnant women toward balanced diets, proper exercise, and we discourage unnecessary drug and alcohol use. But, what if a mother consumes cannabis during pregnancy? In this episode Kirk and Trevor begin to explore prenatal cannabis exposure and are joined by Dr. Ciara Torres, Adjunct Assistant Professor in the D…

It’s like having a trial lawyer try to explain how cannabinoids interact with endogenous cannabinoid receptors! You know what that is like? It’s, it’s, it’s… actually pretty great. Come hear how a trial lawyer got into the cannabis space, how he thinks the acidic versions of cannabinoids are bursting with medical promise and just come listen to one…

The Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club (VCBC) is no stranger to defending the services that a compassion club can deliver. For decades, the VCBC has supported individuals with chronic and or life-threatening diseases by providing aid not available from government health systems. Kirk once again visits this west coast healing community. He examines how t…

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” Apparently, that isn’t really a Mahatma Gandhi quote. But it is a great sentiment. How we are teaching people about cannabis isn't great or sometimes it isn't happening at all. But, you can be part of the change and help shape the future! Listen to Lisa Bishop PharmD, a Professor and Pharmacist at Schoo…

When you take a prescription medication, it goes into your body, does what it is supposed to and then leaves. Part of leaving the body often involves the medication getting broken down or metabolized by enzymes in the liver. One of the biggest medication metabolizing enzyme systems in the liver is called the Cytochrome P450 enzymes. Why should you …

Akeem Gardner and his team at Canurta are delving deep into the hidden corners of the cannabis plant. They want to know if we extract this cannflavin, this terpene, this cannabinoid, or one of the other thousands of molecules in the cannabis plant, can it treat a disease? Last year at CannMed 23, he talked to us about how cannflavins could be used …

More than 200,000 Canadians are registered Medical Cannabis patients. Due to a cumbersome national system, many of these individuals discover the benefits of Cannabis alone, with little therapeutic expertise to guide them. Learning about your medicine or just trying to access your medicine, these tasks are made easier when engaged with a business l…

We’ve got another amazing group of attendees from CannMed 23! Joe Thompson One evening they said dinner was on Lanai Beach. In Manitoba, if you are at a conference and someone says dinner is on Lanai Beach, then Lanai Beach is the name of a room. But in Florida, they actually meant dinner was on a beach. That sounds like a lovely idea, unless it is…

Philippe Lucas, formerly of Tilray, comes on the discuss the TOPS study. It looked at around 2000 medical cannabis patients across Canada prospectively and gather tons of data. Some of the most interesting findings include medicating with cannabis seems to reduce opioid use and the use of prescription medications in general. Plus, there was no sign…

Imagine being so good at your job that everyone knows you, but not by your face nor by your name. Jorge Cervantes (an alias) put on a disguise in 1983 and started sharing his plant knowledge with all people. In these forty years he has published more than 50 gardening books; many of which focus on growing that Schedule One drug we call cannabis. Th…

We are in an opioid crisis. Wouldn’t it be great if we had another tool to taper people to a lower opioid dose or off their opioids altogether? A group of almost 20 experts got together and drew up consensus guidelines on how to taper opioids with cannabis. We got Aaron Sihota - Pharmacist, Dr. Brennan K. Smith, PhD, and Dr. Colleen O’Connell MD fr…

Ahmed Labied – Morocco - At the opening reception of CannMed 23, there were all these people with green t-shirts that said Morocco. Trevor introduced himself and was told he had to talk to Ahmed Labied. Ahmed explained that in August 2023 there should be the first legal crop of cannabis coming off the field in Morocco and that they’re organizing a …

Terry O'Regan has spent his career in the pharmaceutical industry. He has worked for several Big Pharma companies including ones that have developed important treatments for neurological diseases like Multiple Sclerosis. Terry had heard there was a class of therapeutics for neurological conditions that pharmaceutical companies weren't working on, c…

Bernardo Carreira the owner, and founder of 8000 Kicks believes hemp is the past and future of textile manufacturing. His business goal is to leave a legacy. In this legacy, hemp becomes mainstream and the most ubiquitous fiber available in the textile industry. This small European company creates shoes using the strongest canvas fiber available, w…

Canadians are changing their perspective of cannabis. People are using it as medicine and access has never been easier. Why is this bad? Why should anyone care how we access our medicinal cannabis? Canada is one of the few countries with federally legal cannabis. However, Canadians are not all benefiting from the creation of the Cannabis Act. There…

Living without alcohol contamination may be an oxymoronic assertion for a licensed producer, specializing in cannabinoids extraction, to make. Typically, alcohol is a common solvent used to extract cannabinoids from cannabis plants. Trevor and Kirk are introduced to a new business in Dauphin. It partners with local hemp farmers to create a cannabis…

“David Crosby, I read your chart man” is how Kirk starts his long-awaited chat with one of pop-culture’s most notorious Cannabis influencers. In 50-years, David Crosby has had a very public relationship with cannabis, addictions, incarceration, and relationships, which he willingly discusses. With thoughtful understanding that these past behaviours…

A short intro for the eminent Dr. Ethan Russo is challenging. Ethan Russo is a neurologist who explored the Amazon rain forest in the 90's to explore medicinal plants with aboriginal tribes. He returned to the USA and became interested in medicinal cannabis. He quickly became an expert in the field, and worked as a consultant for GW Pharmaceuticals…

The fact marijuana heightens the musical experience is no secret. We know both listeners and players have enhanced their musical experiences through the use of this plant for over 100 years. This episode links cannabis to music through the stories told by acclaimed musicologist John Einarson. We follow a path of early jazz players influencing Canad…