In the weeds

A broad look at the pros and cons of THC, Marijuana, edibles etc.

I’m wondering if The Guinness Book of World Records has a category for the person most blocked by health and wellness “experts and gurus” on social media. If so, that would be me. If I had a nickel... for every time I entered a conversation, a thread, where someone was waxing expert on how the body works, I say my piece, we have a bit of what seems like a decent and civil exchange of science ideas - and then I get blocked by them.

Most recently was one such THC/Marijuana Guru - she feels she is savvy about all things Pot. We didn’t really have a science discussion - because like most of them, she is not at all a scientist - she only knows to find studies on the internet that she feels are scientific. Anyhoo - she blocked me - and like the true non scientist she is, she went and wrote an article, knowing that I could no longer challenge her claims. For example it was I that told her that smoking weed kills brain cells that prompted her most recent article on the matter.

A true scientist allows for full debate and discussion, to flesh out truths, facts and of course, falsities. A true person of science, or someone who really cares about the health and wellbeing of others - leaves NOTHING off the table, all things are up for debate and discussion. This person wants none of that, even as countless people who comment on her posts have serious issues and concerns about doing whatever with weed and THC. Savvy Sally (not her real name) is wont to assuage any fears, summarily dismissing so much concern about side effects as “nothing to see here...”

These wellness Gurus panic - when they are met with cogent ideas, salient science points etc,. They freak out and their only recourse is to block. They don't dare have a conversation that would expose themselves for not knowing things they should know as "experts".

She even mentions at the outset of one of her articles that she will block anyone who comes to her with false science - as if only her science, the studies she cites are the only ones that are valid, the only ones that are peer reviewed and published, wholly ignoring again the countless published articles in scientific journals that speak to the inherent chemical dangers of THC and Weed.

She even referred to those articles that contradict her as dated, going back 50 years...How does she not know that in 2026 there are brand new lab based studies speaking to the dangers of THC and Pot? How? Because in 2026 there are now plenty of studies speaking to the medical “benefits of Marijuana”. So, the search engines are cluttered with these writings and her research thus only takes her down rabbit holes that favor her agenda.

That is POOR medical practice. We are essentially letting the street corner drug dealer tell us their product is safe and effective. Even actual pharmaceutical companies are forced to list the myriad side effects associated with their drugs - and they lie all the time as well about the benefits of their products.

I should say that I am not a fan of peer reviewed published papers - either way on any topic. But chemistry is chemistry, and not opinion based and when a biochemist is showing you cell destruction under a microscope or via mass Spectrometry - that is your proof.

The fact remains that weed does kill cells and damages organs. Getting high, being high, is brain/neurologic dysfunction - plain and simple. It’s the reason it’s illegal to drink and or be high on pot while driving. At the top of the pyramid of claims by Sally is pain relief - well DUH frekin duh - yes, one feels great when high. One can’t feel the pain so much when drunk. I remember sailing in the south seas and someone said when you cross the equator it’s customary to get your ear pierced. We only had a needle and some vodka...

And second on her pyramid is menopause. So, she wants women to get high as they journey for years if not decades with menopause...How many women did she tell that cellular rejuvenation and repair mechanisms decline significantly with age, resulting in reduced tissue regeneration, slower cell turnover and an accumulation of damaged senescent cells? There’s a lot more to it (telomeres, mitochondrial dysfunction etc.) but you get the point. That point, or question, being why would anyone want to augment cellular problems that come naturally with age, by adding THC to the equation?

This goes for men as well. As we age, cell regeneration slows down. In our youth, our prime, for both genders, we are grand at recuperating, self healing, purging impurities even. In our youth, we can quickly recover from a night of over drinking. This all has to do with cell regeneration.

When we poop, pee, cry, spit, sweat, fart, burp, sneeze, bleed, allow for anything to come out of the body, this is nature’s way of cleansing ourselves from the inside out - in our youth, and this slows down as we age. We even shed our skin (humans shed their entire outer layer of skin every 2-4 weeks). Even Bone cells are replaced each year, naturally, on their own – every ten years, roughly, you essentially have a new set of bones. Left alone, your taste buds, which are cells, renew themselves every ten days to two weeks, your heart rejuvenates itself at least three or four times over a lifetime, the cells in the lungs constantly renew themselves.

On its own, the body is naturally designed to purge, repair, and heal. The human body has so many natural filters (all governed by cells), the liver, kidneys, spleen, lungs and lymph system to name a few of many entities the body has that make sure it is clean and pure. We just have to step aside and let it be, let it do what it do.

And all of this slows down, naturally, organically, as we age. Again, why would we want to compliment this deterioration of life, its cells (AKA the factories), by taking THC, smoking weed, eating edibles, as a senior or at any age?

Now, some reading this might be thinking, ‘what about the many people who claimed that THC, smoking weed, eating edibles, etc. worked for them, healed them?’

Well, respectfully, many times it’s simply because someone tells you it will, just like over the counter drugs, prescription drugs and street drugs – “take this and you’ll feel better…”. Placebo dynamics are real, they are alive and well. No one likes to hear about placebo this or placebo that – it makes them feel duped, no one wants to be duped – but duped we all can be at times.

One final essential component to the placebo equation is hope. When we are ill, when we need to be cured, when we are desperate to rid our bodies of what ails us, like the laying of religious hands, we are all vulnerable and gullible when it comes to hope. Many times this hope factor, believing in many of these remedies, can, ironically, help the body to heal – sort of a reversal of the psychosomatic dynamic. A warm bowl of soup or nice cup of tea comes to mind. But this only lasts for so long, because again, you used a toxin to “heal your body”.

I also told her it can lend to, lead to, cancer. She scoffed at that notion as well - until I showed her that THC can impact our DNA - that is a simple basic research effort, taking mere minutes to do. THC can alter genetics, not by changing the underlying DNA sequence, but by affecting epigenetics - the chemical modifications (such as DNA methylation) that regulate gene expression. Cannabis use, particularly high-potency, can cause structural and regulatory changes in sperm DNA, blood cells, and potential alterations in offspring.

If Sally is so savvy, is such an expert on THC, weed, Canibus etc. , how is it that she didn’t know this? Maybe her being savvy has to do with avoiding certain facts and realities about THC, Edibles, getting high etc.

Being high is the only benefit. Like being drunk is the only benefit of vodka.

Any claims to the contrary are steeped in one agenda after another - this especially includes the many studies that sing the medical praises of marijuana. From Autism, to seizures and epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, IBS, even acne, all these claims are merely founded in hope. That’s it. These studies might describe some “scientific” biologic pathway to where THC does X, but not really. If one wants to make a quasi science argument that being relaxed while drunk or high allows for other physiological beneficial dynamics to occur - that is a stretch, and still one with side effects - because again, cell damage is immediately at hand.

There is a saying: “Alcohol does immediate damage to the body immediately”. And it’s true, the instant booze touches your lips cell damage begins. Then it touches the cells on your tongue and cell damage begins right quick, and in the mouth the booze gets into the tiny capillaries and enters the bloodstream - and all hell breaks loose, a massive assault on your cells.

This is the same with THC. THC acts directly on oral tissues, including the tongue, by binding to cannabinoid receptors in epithelial cells and papillae. Key effects include inducing dryness (xerostomia), altering the oral microbiome (potential dysbiosis) and causing dysplastic changes in epithelial cells. Chronic use is associated with candida infections, leukoplakia, and an increased risk of tongue cancer.

There is so much more to the true dangers of THC, weed, smoking pot (smoking anything), and edibles - Edibles can bring about THC poisoning, severe anxiety/paranoia, psychosis, impaired motor skills, and cardiovascular stress. They are especially dangerous for children, causing severe, sometimes fatal, reactions.

Please be careful folks. The facts still remain as to sheer cell destruction when putting these things into our body. It goes beyond placebo dynamics which as I mentioned can help us in the short run, but later we are then dealing with the issues brought on by THC and weed - in addition to the health problems we had to begin with.

And then there is the issue of accountability. In the US, the wellness/homeopathic industry is a 2 trillion dollar one. But not one penny of that goes to you, the person who was influenced by these many healthcare, wellness and homeopathic practitioners - when something bad happens to you as a result of heeding and acting on so much “advice and suggestions”.

When something goes wrong because you put something in your body, from supplements, juices, weed, to aromatics (essential oils) and beyond - these folks who “informed” you of the benefits - are nowhere to be found. And even if you found them, there is zero legal recourse - “it’s just a blog site...”. And today - there is somewhere on their site a statement that covers their asses - it might look and read like this:

Disclaimer: The information provided on this blog is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider before starting or changing any treatments, including cannabis use.

And of course these people will not assist with any of your new medical bills or quality of life costs.

There is zero accountability - and it seems the world is okay with that...

As I mentioned, Sally the savvy cat, is not a doctor, not a chemist or biologist. She likes weed. That’s her true claim to any of this. I get it - I smoked weed as a kid, did coke, booze, quaaludes, acid, angel dust, freebase and pretty much whatever was available in NYC in my teen years. Young and dumb was the order of the day. But as I reached my 20s I got smarter, wiser - I knew these things, while they made me feel good, great even, came at a cost. And of course, many decades later I can speak in hyper detail to those costs, the damage done to our bodies by taking in these things.

Of the millions of health experts and gurus around the world - all of them are telling you to put something in your body to heal you. None of them got the menu that states - when you are sick, ailing, diseased etc. the best thing to do is Not put things into your body. This is when you need to keep everything out - except for the basics that are oxygen (fresh air) water, sugars (glucose/fructose - or lactose for babies) and minerals.

This allows the body to heal, if it’s going to heal at all. The body heals best when un-interrupted by so much toxic matter. The body repairs and regenerates best when unencumbered by myriad toxins, poisons, chemicals, impurities etc - which includes all food and drink based remedies and elixirs (eating less, way less, is always ideal for the body - even in healthy times).

If some cares to, tell Sally and other gurus to unblock me, suck it up and have the conversation. They owe it to us, to themselves, to allow for a full vetting of the pros and cons of weed. Alas, most like Sally however will just read this and craft another article dismissing all that was penned here... such is ego and pride and not wanting to hurt your brand...

I wish you all well. Oliver (cold liver).