 Thanks for staying with us. Now according to the World Health Organization, cannabis is by far the most widely cultivated trafficked and abused illicit drug. Half of all drug seizures worldwide are cannabis seizures. Now the geographical spread of these or those seizures is also global, covering practically every country of the world. Now according to about 147 million people, that's about 2.5 percent of the world's population consume Cannabis as the annual prevalence compared with 0.2 percent consumption of cocaine and 0.2 consumption of Op-Aids. Now in present decades Cannabis abuse has grown more rapidly than cocaine and Op-Aid abuse. The most rapid growth in Cannabis abuse since the 1960s has been in developed countries in North America, Western Europe and Australia, Cannabis has become more closely linked to youth culture and the age of initiation is usually lower than lower than for other drugs and analysis of Cannabis market shows that Low prices coincide with high levels of abuse and vice versa. So today we're asking What do you think this impact of Cannabis is on life? Now, please let's hear what you have to say remember you can join the conversation send us an SMS or WhatsApp to the right one is your 3-8-4-6-6-3 you can also Twitter us at we show after one with the hashtag we show I was gonna ask Well, I was gonna ask one question. That's why I'm smiling because who has done Cannabis here honestly speaking Because I've never done it in my life But I have classmates They could swear by that thing that if they want to write exam like I had to class with a graduate with a 2-1 I thought it was in university So before they go write any exam that guy piles has to be high So when it comes to you just download and he came out the very very brilliant score Like he could swear by it that without that thing he can't retain anything is reading and all of that And I see that a lot of people say this I have a friend of mine He put together young chap. He tells me that why do I need inspiration to go and What's he called for if I want to write is very strong proposal to a big client I first of all go and take you called it in I will not call it Oh, I think that is that one is mixed. They called loud or something He has to first of all take a bit of it before he can you know Be able to write the proposal. I see now. Wow. Is it that he's only one that does not know how life is I think just like every other thing Something some people some it's a stimulant in its own way. It's the same way people take You take some people are addicts to panadol pain killer pet drinks, you know pain killers different things So it's just another but like you just said You know the survey shows that it is the most You know sot after hallelujah, let me come to Yes, okay Any question I just said say your mind The topic of conversation or the drug of conversation No, and no and no, I know there are a lot of positives. I know that yes If we want to start to break it down, you know, there are lots of I mean you can see video all over the place Now you hear THC all over the place. They're medicinal uses people with glaucoma people with all sorts of you know pain managing pain My concern is in this part of our own world. That's where my no no and no comes from. Thank you It's a US based physician with a strong interest in wellness He specializes in nephrologist hypertension Dialysis and kidney transplant medicine with an emphasis on preventive care at his practice West Orange nephrology Orlando, Florida Well, he's joined us live in studio as a friend of the house and he's an expert in this subject matter Oh My goodness, okay, so I've been each is to have this conversation So you can imagine how when I saw the headline that I carry a career Dole, I mean national assembly is trying to back him to legalize Cannabis I say finally I get to bring up the money for us to discuss Cannabis because it's a good matter. It's a serious matter. It's not something I mean again You could just it could make real sense Right that a lot of people are using it anyway So why don't we legalize it so that maybe the fears that people are talking about, you know having Laced Drugs and all of that out outside there. Maybe all those will be reduced and people now start taking, you know a more Controlled like, you know, healthy, whatever variation of whatever it is But hey, I saw a report that in the US because they have legalized cannabis Like literally all the other stuff they come into But they don't know if that is impacting on their jobs, so you help me out, right? What exactly is the impact of cannabis on life? You know, is this something that is truly detrimental or is it like this? My friend that is always on point and this he's coming out with straight A's whenever he goes to smoke something Well, first of all, thanks for having me on The first thing I'm going to say is let's not use the word abuse with cannabis. Let's use the word use So with cocaine and everything else it's abuse With cannabis it's use and I said because cannabis is how the stigma attached to it I have a stigma attached to it because of I want to say cannabis I'm referring to THC specifically because cannabis could be it's a it's a dioshus plant It can be male female the male produces hemp which they use for clothing or Or hair exactly. It's more. It's more is a softer material the softer fiber or the male one Yes, the male plant. So is it female or is it dead? The female one is not dead It produces THC What's THC? You're perpetrating the stigma. It's not deadly What produces THC and They they work together to produce it now the male produces some THC and THC is tetra high Ducanabinol and it's the psychoactive Part of cannabis everyone refers to and the product has gotten most pressed because many people some people that get it Become very altered when they get high they can become become very altered. But see the interesting about cannabis is Most people I'll get to say all people but I can't say all garbage in all people but most people that use it you really have a Condition that's being treated by it Sometimes unbeknownst to them because it's a social drug, right? So people just Peer pressure they pressurize their peers to to to use it especially the the Well, actually not just smoking but the gummies the edible ones, which is more acceptable So in society brownies, yes inside all those things. They put it inside all kinds of things. So I'll first of all stop I So one thing I didn't say and I mean you alluded to already by talking about the fact that The governor of understate is is is advocating it and because it's illegal in Nigeria So I mean that's the first thing that I should I should say that it is illegal So when you're asking me if I use I'll say totally no I don't use at all because it's illegal but in the states I do I Do because it's legal and it's in Florida specifically. It's medically Supervised so it's under medical supervision. So I have a medical marijuana clinic where I see patients that want to start using it and I Evaluate to see if they can did for it and By and large most people are because there's a condition that they have that it treats You're limited to earlier medicinal medicinal properties of it what it treats you mentioned glaucoma Pain seizures that's a big one especially in in kids They use THC and CBD For CBD is another derivative. It's not as psychoactive as THC is but they use that combination for seizure treatment in kids and Why I subscribe to it. It's much safer than the alternatives for pain Heroin you mentioned earlier Chamador Fentanyl that we want to talks about as cause all kinds of religious go go under It's actually they actually find that by by making it's medicineally available They're decreasing the amount of people that are actually addicted and overdose on Opium on heroin on narcotics. So by decreasing that It's getting a better spotlight in America now, of course, some are gonna abuse it Some are gonna mix it with other substances to make it even more potent to to give that psychoactive effect People want to get high, but many people don't get high and we will get relaxed. You mentioned that it's a stimulant it actually Can tranquilize as well depending on what type you use there's sativa. There's in the car Because now from what the house of representative they what they are trying to back a career delu on is Is the is growing of cannabis sativa for export? How big is cannabis sativa? Like what exactly is the economic power that it has? Because I know that many times I've taken reports on customs and what's it called? And Arresting a truckload of cannabis, you know, especially around that on-do area. So maybe the governor Justin Ida This thing is business. Let's cook. We just convert it to business. So how lucrative and how how was it called? What's the what's the demand on cannabis sativa, especially the one that they're trying to Back him up for exports. Okay. So the particular I'm drawing I saw just now on sativa versus in the car in the car. They were more or less sleepy in the guys in the couch It knocks you out sativa makes you more related and happy and Sativa and in the cup especially sativa because it's That's safer. It's milder. So to speak especially for the first time users some economies are referred to Cannabis as green oil Hmm That's how lucrative it is. It's a very lucrative business and you know in some economies Some countries especially in the West Indies, it's very very commonplace You go to people's houses. They do you want to drink or do you want some marijuana? It's it's just a very common it's a social Drug and they don't worry about the effects of getting high Because if you get high with it, you will come down There's no danger like in when you use fentanyl or heroin if you take too much of it get too high You stop breathing as overdose. So they OD on it by stopping breathing that can happen with cannabis Which is why it's much safer for pain it's one of the few substances on the world that are purported to actually Encourage the growth of brain cells. So at some point people with strokes Will benefit from that and I've become mainstay of therapy. We're not there yet Some countries like Israel. They're really pushing that idea and they have all kinds of ways to take it Not just smoking it is you can vape it. You can use the gummies You can actually use pills. I use patches as well. You use patches. You can use creams Some countries they use it as douches because it helps for dysmenorrhea the period pain So there are different ways to get it in but if you get high with it Time will bring it down what I was to my patients is if you fit if you're thinking for the first time don't drive because it increases your Your sense of your depth of perception So you're looking at my car. It may look a little closer Or a little bigger so it increases depth of perception, but it's something that you can manage with time You mentioned your friend was using for exams many people use it before they work out They use before they they it helps your creative juices flow So before they write they the writers they will use it before they sing Before they compose new songs and use it so it's had its effect since beginning of I mean, it's been out for a very long time Unfortunately, it's place in our economy has to become solid because it's very lucrative and it's placed in health Has become solid too because it's very beneficial for many many people. Hmm. Okay, let's take a break But where the doctor is talking now, you will say By no, we see and they're eating the heart to ask a question, but let's go on a very short break. We'll be right back Now if you just you knew we're discussing the impact of cannabis on life and we have with us Dr. Banji Awushika just really explaining it into the details now, please. Let's hear what you have say remember You can join the conversation send us an sms or what's up? 1-8-4-3-4-6-6-3 you can also tweet at us at Weiss show after one with a hashtag Weiss show So what do you like come to you that I'll come back to you and just Well Very compelling For the use as you would say and not the abuse of cannabis But yeah, you and I I totally Everything that you said is totally positive around the economic opportunities The multiple use cases But please I just want to center the conversation back on Nigeria And the fact that We know that our roads are not streets. So a drug that is illegal today We're already cultivating it. I think oh you said something about ondo, right? Yes, and I know that there are a couple of other states Where I mean we're currently a huge producer of this right, so I'm trying to understand what your thoughts are around the legalization of this and Is it's going to We already have a problem today with local use when we talk about crime when we talk about all these things We have all these issues, right? But I don't want to go down to those negatives We also have cultural Issues around Igbo. It's not a but I don't I don't see like how do you start to change those mindsets, right? Around the fact that people are smoking Igbo and they're smoking it openly, right? Let's put it that way. We call it cannabis. It sounds very posh Um, so people are smoking Igbo and they're smoking it openly We already have a problem. So how do we If we say we're going to legalize this what are your thoughts around? stopping that abuse that we currently have now So that the right kind of people can benefit from it That's a great question. So so the abuse of Igbo using the word you use Is something that happens because of the the stigma attached to it and the fact that it's illegal So anything that's legal when there was a prohibition of alcohol back in the 20s It was illegal. So anything that's illegal will be sold for a profit Will be sold under dangerous conditions People would would take other drugs to help them develop the more confidence to to go and you know Hatch it out with their contemporary whoever they're sending it to there's just that world that happens That environment has created when it's illegal when it's legalized things will change but before they legalize it though There has to be education That's part of what I My strongest push is because I've seen the benefits on my patients A lot of my patients and I have the sickest population of patients patients on dialysis And the benefit I've seen in those that I've prescribed it to or have recommended because they don't prescribe We recommend it. I've recommended it to Has been tremendous and that's why I continue pushing it but here in Nigeria It's illegality. We thought it was illegal Makes it a more dangerous thing dangerous Situation to be a part of the stigma attached to it Doing it in open. I mean, there are cleaner ways to do it now You know in the states or I was in the uk recently or in canada They have most people just would vape it. They don't even take it like the way they take it here You know the Igbo where they they like they light it up and all that they have to roll it up There's a place for them to do that, but the cleanup versions of it are the vaping it the gummies So for me I'm taking I would like to know I know you've said You've stated a lot of you know benefits Of cannabis and I but I know that there's always There's always a downside to it. So I would like to ask long term. What are the long term? I know that there is um, I think from research I saw CHS So I wanted to ask what are the other, you know Long-term effects of the constant use right good question. So My water should be ideally used in Periods not chronically because if you use it chronically every day the likelihood of developing The syndrome you're talking about hypo-remesis syndrome Is the cannabis induced hypo-remesis syndrome hypo-remesis is vomiting continuously It will make you nauseous make you want to throw up every morning And that happens after you've done you've had chronic use usually more than a year But it can be as long as 10 years of use before you develop those symptoms and to fix it you just stop It may take a while to stop easy to stop Well, because I feel like if if for instance, I start to depend on marijuana for maybe Inspiration as a creative it's going to be difficult for me to say, you know, you know what I'm just going to stop I believe that I become very dependent on it, right? Is it not addictive? Wouldn't I get to that point where it seems like I can't think I can't do anything like my friends? I mean literally if they didn't have that It would they don't the right example They won't come to they won't write the exam Because he literally will tell you say because he's read his books But he believes that he cannot remember until he smokes it and his eyes are always red and his lips dark So for me, I just did not like the the look that it gave what do we are talking gummies You know But he he grew that Dependence on it that you know, it was difficult for him to and I think his mind has already told him that I can't I can't pass my exams if I don't if I don't take this totally mental It's a mind thing because Vitamin D The vitamins if you're deficient in them and you take them You get better sometimes you feel bad sometimes you don't even know the difference But if you stop taking them you necessarily develop symptoms for a while Some vitamins you develop symptoms that you need to take the vitamins to get rid of the symptoms now With cannabis if you stopped taking it And you were using it for creativity for instance Would it make you less creative? No, but the fact that you're not taking it, you know, you would have to put more effort into doing so So it's just easier to just take it So you're not addicted because there'd be no symptoms that would arise if you're not taking it like sweating and like with heroin None of that Okay, let's go back to this morning Mata because you say it's green gold. Yes. I mean green green oil Green oil is a new oil. So it means that when I'm looking at the boner I'm seeing crude oil and I can see some what's it called forex income dollar signs Yeah, so I mean so really because we're talking about branching of alternative sources of income, you know for our country And you know, so if we truly want to grow this Because I know again that There is a way to grow it that is acceptable that is free from pesticides and all of those things What is the was the fossil for a farmer that is thinking now, okay Can I grow this for business and let's say this This house of assembly are able to come together Do the thing and finally pass it into law to say, okay It is now legal to be able to transact, you know businesses and export Cannabis, right? So what would be the the the the structure like in terms of growing the plant Is this something expensive to do for people are thinking about doing it for business, you know So there's there are different ways to grow cannabis and there are different Environments that are created to grow it depending on what the situation is in that part of the world Um, it's not it doesn't have to be expensive. It could be ridiculously expensive Depends on where you are. That's why I talk about education. Education has to be key before they legalize things in the States There was a ton of education especially to the growers because the the users are on one side the Physicians that are part of it are in another group But the growers the farmers are different cup entirely and they have to be educated So talking about how to grow it is a whole education But they're not sure that there are different types of of of growing marijuana and you know going into Into the details of of its growth Is much more challenging for me than going into the downsides of its growth Because growing it the wrong way Um Obviously there'll be less quantity made because the whole idea of marijuana is the quantity of it That's what that's why it's a very lucrative business. It's very lucrative business and getting away whenever you're taking the business away from the illegal part of things or making it legal There's that that transition period is a very dangerous period because many people that were Benefiting from its illegality Will be very happy about that and they will fight that and they have different parts of the world So that's a bigger concern for me Than anything else that transition period We have to first educate people about it and then we have to put things in place to make sure people that are better that part of the education is let the people know that people that are benefiting from its And with it's been illegal let them to let them know that they can still benefit from it Locatively when it's legalized, but obviously because they have to share the profit They don't want to do that because there are more people more hands in that pot if it's now legalized People now go into it for business, especially when you have economies countries And many of them economies actually start to not depend on it But the big chunk of the economy the revenue generation comes from that So it's something that I really really would want to push education with And safety the safety factor is a very very big one What's your name come to you to ask around so we know that we don't have the best of healthcare systems here in Nigeria I don't know what the situation Is so of course we we still have a very small population of people who have access to things like HMOs And basic healthcare is expensive So if we have this as an option for example for for people in terms of managing pain and all the other various medical or medicinal uses What would affordability be like if it was then legalized and then you said, you know, of course it gets cheaper but Can you give us some sense today of how it compares perhaps in the states compared to other sort of pain medication Is it is it an affordable thing? Is it is it is that something that you know Nigerians can look forward to people who have those kind of conditions and with the measure of affordability That's a good question and I'm I'm I'm thinking of how to answer it without sounding very negative But the point is the point I'll make with that is Cannabis is expensive Let's just put it out there. It is an expensive drug It's not expensive as cocaine and other things out there was expensive when they legalized it And they started having the shops that sell The vape the oils the gummies My patients still complain about how expensive it is That they think it'd be cheaper to just go get a hit off the street So in legalizing it looks like big pharma when things are brought into the market. There's that expensive period Where they make their profits and eventually it will become more available to people that are less Financially viable right now. It's it's expensive in the states is an expensive treatment to have But because of its benefits the patients, especially when you're in pain When you're in chronic pain all the time from something like arthritis And you finally have something that makes you feel better and it's not dangerous because all the Tylenol and all the Paracetamol and ibuprofen that they use for pain and then the narcotics have their downsides Plenty of them marijuana has much less Downside than those medications. So we talk about the stigma attached to it. Obviously is the issue Right, but when you talk about the fact that you know bringing it into the legalized part of of things now It'll become more affordable it become more Locative to more people So become an economic You mentioned the fact that they were talking about you know, although whether because many people are using it Why not just legalize it? True, but legalize it with a lot of education. That's one part that we always leave out We have to educate. I have to get educated before I even touched anything because I've done about the stigma about marijuana Growing up. I never used it growing up never did Ever I thought it was horrible. I thought smoking was better Now I know I actually tell my person that smoke that they're better with marijuana Than nicotine and cigarettes. Absolutely without a doubt And if they're used to that habit of this having something then use marijuana Now again, I'll emphasize in countries where it's legal Not in Nigeria because it's not legal. So there's no one should be using it here But we should get to a place where it is so people can use it people that need to use it But speaking to uti's question if we are the ones growing it I don't know what the structure is like in the u.s. Whether they're the ones growing it Right if we have huge farms right that are growing for instance It becomes legal and you're growing it shouldn't the cost be You know affordable for for patients and they now look forward to probably using that as an alternative source of medicine I think it will become affordable But in the states it didn't remember how the pharmaceutical companies are in the states It's very different from anywhere else in the world. That's why that's why they're they're so It's such an expensive lucrative thing there And marijuana took the same or cannabis took the same um platform If you if you will and it's become expensive because they've refined it the products are now refined So they don't know how it's clean as late in the gummies But that's great on the farm, you know That's going on the farm and just taking the weed and just rolling it If you like calling gummies For me, I just felt like we've learned quite a bit and Like you said, the doctor has gone a long way to actually You know bring to light a lot of things that we didn't know but Yes, so I I my last I don't know if it's uh, yeah, my last question would be What are your thoughts about um You know, uh, the re I know you deal in the recreational so Not even your thoughts, but why why is there the question I want to ask is why is it divided? Why yes, what like what is the difference? Oh, the difference is just the fact that with recreation or you don't need the physicians to recommend it Oh, it's still the same product the same product. Yes, simple But without the physician recommending it in the states Glad to give us up. You're just going to the into the but they are being most of the time in the They are being sold side by side Yes But in the country in this one, let me speak to this about the states in the states where it's legalized recreation only There's no doctors prescribing anything Well, I take that back many people still go to the doctors because they want it for specific thing So they want to be guided through it But in Florida where I am you can't get to recreation only They try to pass that through through a physician. Yes. So that way it gives it a bit of you know Let me ask this question says your topic your topic on the impact of cannabis on life is very interesting I believe no country in the world will legalize cannabis usage for socialization But rather for medical treatment purposes for this reason is not open to everyone Also studies show that people who use cannabis have mental issues And emotional too No, no, no, no, so Let's say the people when they use cannabis they call no doctor I can I can see where why he would say that But the truth is many mental issues are treated with cannabis So people that have that use cannabis and have mental issues. I don't know what that means because that could be so varied. They could just be Depressed or they could be bipolar. There's so many so many mental conditions But the mental conditions will not come from marijuana unless it's laced Unless it's adulterated Unless it's mixed with something so if it is pure marijuana, you're not gonna go mental Doctor has convinced everybody to go high you come down What was up One more question. I know I've heard there's a popular one that has been making the rounds in You know the lower ends of Nigeria called colorado What is that and why does he have so much of an effect on an individual because I know I've seen it I've seen some videos on instagram and Most of these individuals end up in the corner looking like they're about to Give up on life They have a very very aggressive reaction to it. Is it cannabis too? I'm loudest cannabis as well, but they are all laced. They're all laced. No. Well, not necessarily laced But they have different potencies Colorado what loud is supposed to be that's the more more popular common one that I hear about here Um colorado, I don't know that much about I heard about it recently my last one was here I heard about it and I was curious to know whether it was an indica whether it was a sativa because I want to give up these names They're not they're not dividing it the way we divide it in the states Is either indica a sativa or a hybrid combination of the two You know what quickly hold our thoughts Please ask your guess what happens to youth in the u.s. Now that they have legalized indian him I'm a resident in the united states. There are states where it is not legal having lived in netherlands there is a costly fallout to society if Socially, um authorized. I would advise that cannabis only be legalized in the medical sphere and for government controlled Expulsion sorry exportation purposes with all due respect doctor vaping is detrimental to our health I know an award-winning heart surgeon here in houston Who weeps because one of his children vapes and this is essay. She lives in houston, texas Doctor quickly So vaping can be anything that goes in through the lungs the only that's going through the lungs oxygen air Nothing you smoke is healthy through the lung. That's why they use other ways to get in But if you do vape It's safer than smoking it Well vaping itself can cause issues in the lungs as well. That's totally true. I've regards to the fallout with the youths Youths should not be using it Absolutely not unless it's is recommended for medicine purposes As a physician, of course, I am biased. I think you should be guided by the physician I really do think so many people don't agree with me Many people don't want that extra step to get what they want to get Going through a physician, but I think it makes it safer. It makes it more more purposeful more intentional You're taking it for a reason and you know why it helps you treat that reason better I must just take it because you enjoy it Unfortunately most people that enjoy it are taking it for a reason. They just don't know what reason that is They've not been diagnosed on that note ladies. Have you been convinced or you've been confused? Could we leave that to you people? But we need to bring you back. You see this cannabis matter? You see I'm always excited that I'm talking about this And you haven't even tried it I've not tried it before Oh, see Maybe the day I'm trying it you're gonna be there with me by my side I wanted to ask a final question in the night time note, but we've run out of it. Oh, yeah, quickly quickly. What is this? Why do people get the munchies after they reportedly get the munchies after? What is the munchies? The munchies are yet hungry. Oh, okay, especially for carbs Um, but they get the munchies because of the way the actual My I want to actually ask some receptors in the body. There are two types of receptors. They're called the seed the This Will you bring you measure your studio the time doctor? I wish you guys coming back for fun Oh, thank you so much doctor. I think it's really fun. I enjoyed it Yes You should come and try weed Thank you so much, doctor All right, so thank you. Thank you nj before we go Please ensure you follow us across all our social media handles that waste your Africa You can interact with us further drop a comment and more importantly follow online Engagements of social media like share and invite your families and friends to watch and follow the conversation If you miss our quotes for today here, it is again. I think the doctor found it very interesting He said I find it quite ironic that the most dangerous thing about Getting caught It's not using the window And this was from Bill Murray. We'll see you guys tomorrow at 8 p.m Was to bring another great conversation to your screen child