How does cannabis affect the brains development? Dr Rebecca Siegel a board certified Adult, Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist at the Amen Clinics in New York and author of The Brain On Cannabis uses prescribes cannabis to her patients. She joins Justin Benton Janet Benton Gaillard and Dan Humiston to share stories from her work at the front-line of treating patients with cannabis. She discusses her new book and provides both optimism and caution for cannabis medical and recreational benefits. Join the Miracle Plant live on Clubhouse every Saturday morning Produced by PodConX #HealTheWorld #3billionby2025 Miracle Plant - https://podconx.com/podcasts/miracle-plant Miracle Plant - www.themiracleplant.org Justin Benton - https://podconx.com/guests/justin-benton Janet Benton Gaillard - https://podconx.com/guests/janet-benton-gaillard Dan Humiston - https://podconx.com/guests/dan-humiston Dr Rebecca Siegel - https://podconx.com/guests/rebecca-siegel Dr Rebecca Siegel Website - https://drrebeccasiegel.com/ Amen Clinics - https://www.amenclinics.com/team/rebecca-siegel-md/ The Brain on Cannabis - https://www.amazon.com/Brain-Cannabis-Recreational-Medical-Marijuana/dp/0806540869/ref=sr_1_1?qid=1643558773&refinements=p_27%3ARebecca+Siegel&s=books&sr=1-1
How does cannabis affect the brains development?
Dr Rebecca Siegel a board certified Adult, Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist at the Amen Clinics in New York and author of The Brain On Cannabis uses prescribes cannabis to her patients. She joins Justin Benton Janet Benton Gaillard and Dan Humiston to share stories from her work at the front-line of treating patients with cannabis. She discusses her new book and provides both optimism and caution for cannabis medical and recreational benefits. Join the Miracle Plant live on Clubhouse every Saturday morning
Produced by PodConX #HealTheWorld #3billionby2025
Miracle Plant - https://podconx.com/podcasts/miracle-plant
Miracle Plant - www.themiracleplant.org
Justin Benton - https://podconx.com/guests/justin-benton
Janet Benton Gaillard - https://podconx.com/guests/janet-benton-gaillard
Dan Humiston - https://podconx.com/guests/dan-humiston
Dr Rebecca Siegel - https://podconx.com/guests/rebecca-siegel
Dr Rebecca Siegel Website - https://drrebeccasiegel.com/
Amen Clinics - https://www.amenclinics.com/team/rebecca-siegel-md/
The Brain on Cannabis - https://www.amazon.com/Brain-Cannabis-Recreational-Medical-Marijuana/dp/0806540869/ref=sr_1_1?qid=1643558773&refinements=p_27%3ARebecca+Siegel&s=books&sr=1-1
Dr Rebecca Siegel, Justin Benton: [00:00:00] Rebecca Siegel on who has published an incredible book that I have recently read and thought was such a great, uh, so many great insights and answers. So many questions that a lot of people have, and we get them all the time here at the podcast and that one-on-one hemp. And the name of the book is the brain on.
What you should know about recreation and medical marijuana. So she's joining us today, which we're so excited. Welcome to the podcast. How are you doing Dr. Siegel? I'm great. Thank you so much for having me. Absolutely. Well, we are very excited and by reading your book and it's a fantastic book, it aligns with so many of the things that we talk about here on the podcast and through our guests.
So we can't wait to get in there and ask you some questions because there is so much confusion about cannabis, even just the name and what do we call it. So we're so excited to ask some questions for you. Of course, we're joined with my co-host Dan hum [00:01:00] Winston and Janet Ben Gaillard. Welcome Dan and Janet, how are you two doing this fine morning.
I'm doing great. Fantastic so much. So am I not completely recovered from last week's game, Justin button I'm on my way. My heart goes out to you, man. Once again in it was the best NFL weekend we've ever seen them football games and unfortunately, someone can't win them all and you guys play good enough to win, but you guys got a great future ahead of you, but I digress back to the topic and go bills.
Um, you know, Dr. Siegel, would you tell us a little bit about how you got introduced or, or how this, this plant cannabis started to come into your life? And then what was your introduction and, and, and what caught your attention to start to study and truly understand this. Absolutely happy to explain. So it was a, a patient of mine who [00:02:00] came to me in early 2018, um, saying that she no longer needed medication to help her.
For her terrible insomnia that had played there for years. And I was very curious, you know, and she, she said, well, and she actually pulled out a chocolate bar, showed me a actual, a photo, a photo of a chocolate bar that she had gotten in Denver. It was actually a, an edible cannabis chocolate bar. And she said, this has changed my life.
I no longer need the medication to help. And I said, wow, I couldn't believe it. And, um, you know, then her, her request to me was, could I help her with this? Which you know, I knew, so I'm a practitioner in New York state. And I knew that, and I've been practicing for about 15 years, maybe even 18 years. And I am an adult psychiatrist, a child psychiatrist.
I have three daughters of my own. I have a lot of experience with a [00:03:00] lot of things, but cannabis wasn't one of them. And so when she said this to me, piqued my interest tremendously. So I started looking at. I knew that cannabis was medically legal in New York state that I did know, but I didn't know how to get involved with it or how to, um, you know, be able to certify people for it nor did I really know anything about it myself.
And so that kind of piqued my interest and started my journey. And, um, you know, I, the way I am is that when I get something in my head, I want to learn more about it. And then I want to share it, educate and make people aware. Okay, fantastic. And from that, I assume you probably, you know, you're, it sounds like you're a lot like me.
I, I call myself a rabbit holder and so I want to investigate something. I go all the way down the rabbit hole. And when we were looking for a solution for our son, uh, who had [00:04:00] been diagnosed with severe, uh, regressive autism at the age of three. Um, we were looking for hope for, you know, anything really to see how we can clear the fog for his brain.
And, um, when we heard about, uh, the incredible success that was being had with children, uh, seizures and epilepsy, that was really caught my interest. And that's when I was like, well, if it can help with seizures and it can help with, um, epilepsy, then maybe by the grace of God, it can help with, uh, neurological ailment, like, uh, autism.
And so that's what got us attracted to it. But when you get were attracted to the plant, you know, through this a particular story, or this instance where, uh, how far down the rabbit hole did you go and what did that mean? Well, I definitely wanted to learn more immediately, but what I did learn was how to become a certified prescriber of medical marijuana in New York state.
That was the first step [00:05:00] so that I can actually do this. But then, you know, what they re they require is, is very little in my mind, you know, to allow people, allow physicians to do this. And, uh, that, that includes having a valid license, having a valid DEA, you know, so that you can prescribe controlled substances, but also, um, doing a two hour course to learn about cannabis and the endocannabinoid system and sort of their idea to educate people.
But, you know, and I did that and I knew, I didn't know. So I started, I actually started going to, um, conferences and one of the first ones I went to was a conference in UW at UCLA for, um, learning, you know, positions, learning about medical cannabis and its uses. And that was my sort of first, uh, you know, uh, foray into it.
And it was incredibly interesting and exciting and really, really actually, uh, the idea that I had to write a [00:06:00] book came from there. That is awesome. That is incredible. And, and as you started to learn more and then you were had the, uh, you know, the license or the certification to prescribe, uh, you know, cannabis, uh, what were some of the early stories?
Because it's obviously it's the miracle plant podcast and we call it that because of the, we literally started the podcast, you know, and I reached out to Dan on his platform podcast. Uh, what's really hosts cannabis and hemp related, um, podcast. And I, and I said, Dan, I keep hearing all these incredible stories because we have physical stores in California, in Colorado and, you know, through online and things like that, we kept hearing these incredible stories.
And so I was like, we just got to start a podcast, just have people on, tell their stories, just let them, give them the mic and say what happened? What's your story? And tune in, grab the popcorn and maybe a box of Kleenex. So when you, um, first started, you know, prescribing it and having people come to you, are there some, some stories that, that, [00:07:00] uh, that basically people would want to hear and be like, cause I know with what you're prescribing, we usually talk on the raw side of hemp.
So that's, CBDA, CBGA all of the like raw things you would find in juicing the plant. But I know you, when you're prescribing in New York state, you're more, it's more, would you say on the marijuana high, THC side. Um, and I, and I, I assume you probably also educate people on both sides of the most common cannabinoids, which are THC and CBD, but do you have some, some stories you'd like to share with the audience?
Absolutely. So one of the, um, second type second patient that came to me, I remember that. Vividly. It was actually a mom that I knew from my, you know, my, one of my kids' soccer teams and she was going to, she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and was about to go through chemo. And she actually approached me [00:08:00] and said, you know, like, I think that I heard that this was something you were involved with.
And I've heard that, that, um, cannabis can actually ease the symptoms of nausea, you know, when you go through chemo and she was terrified about that and terrified about a breast cancer diagnosis. And so, you know, I said, absolutely, let's talk about this. I want to educate you how this can be helpful, but you know, that definitely was a very memorable, um, story for me.
And she actually. I did get certified and it, it helped her through her treatment, which was a wonderful thing for me to, you know, to understand and hear about. Um, and yeah, and it just kept evolving that way. And people would come to me for various different things and yes, in New York state, it was for what I was doing.
It was mostly about THC and CBD, but [00:09:00] I have to say, I am, I, I am very cautious at baseline. I am very aware. I have the balanced approach to all of this. Um, you know, cannabis is not a one size fits all. It's, you know, unique to everybody and how it affects them. So I am very, very balanced and cautious, um, but do understand that there are some really incredible uses for cannabis I'd say in moderation.
So my understanding that basically what you do is prescribe, uh, Um, and so you don't have involved in your practice or anything to do with like CBD or CBD a Hey, because they're legal and don't need a prescription. Um, have you follow more recently? Actually, that's not quite, that's not quite the case. So I actually had another patient come to me who actually through her, her nephew, who was her [00:10:00] guardian, she'd had a stroke and had a severe seizure disorder, secondary to the stroke and they found.
Using CBD through hemp products was very helpful in decreasing the seizure frequency, which as we know, this is the same thing that, that your son may have found or that, you know, if a dialects, the actual FDA approved, um, medication right using solely CBD, um, helps reduce seizures in children with severe, a severe, severe seizure disorder drug, a syndrome, and also Lennox Gastaut syndrome.
So they were very interested in hearing about this. And I actually certified this woman for solely CBD products, um, in, you know, the medically legal, New York state dispensary. Okay. [00:11:00] So I actually like have used just CBD. And then as Justin talked about our approach or whatever, with working with my grandson, uh, who had real severe autism with like global IQ delays, you could not measure no speech and over behavior issues.
And then throw the course of many different approaches. We actually developed our raw whole plant CBD product for him. And then very quickly we saw improvements. And by kindergarten now he's been in regular school. So indeed handicapping conditions or interventions top of his class. Totally removing of the symptoms so far of, of autism.
And so we had moved on and we took it from the CBD, even the heat and CBDA into the RA on hated CBDA. And just wondering if you followed, bitten any research on that or, uh, I become aware of that approach to dealing with issues. Yeah, no, I definitely am aware of it, but it's much harder as I am. You know, if I do certify people to use medical [00:12:00] cannabis, you know, I am, I am limited to the products that the dispense.
Ah, okay. Okay, good. So as you know, too, in a different, for even the CBD products, they're by law have to have higher levels of THC, um, then, uh, products that you would get, not at a dispensary, so, okay. That's very interesting. I didn't realize you were limited to that. Well, and, and that's one of the things that we certainly, I mean, we're out here in California.
And I know New York has become very new, uh, to cannabis, uh, you know, as far as recreational access go. So, uh, do you know about how long that New York state has had access to the medical side of, of prescription? Roughly? Yeah, so I think it was from 2014 that it was medically legalized. And as we know it is now adult use and they're starting to set up, you know, they're getting ready to do this.
And I see [00:13:00] this as a tremendous opportunity for myself as a physician and other physicians, you know, to help people increase awareness and medical cannabis is definitely how I recommend, you know, adults go about this. I cannot control that, but to have. The, you know, to have a physician who understands cannabis and how the modes of delivery and the, you know, the ratios of THC to CBD and even the understanding of all the different, um, you know, endocannabinoids and phytocannabinoids in, in the plant, um, is a huge benefit, but people don't really realize that.
So I can only, you know, try to make people aware and educate them that going the using of a physician, a knowledgeable one may be a better way of doing things then doing this on your own, especially for those who have no prior experience with it, which is a lot of people. [00:14:00] Did you have something to say, to add?
Um, yeah. When did it, I was saying maybe we would segue a little bit into the book and talk a little bit about some of the, some of the things that people will learn when they read the book.
So, I mean, this book covers so many things, it's covers a lot of stuff. You know, a lot of my stories that patients came to me and, you know, I mean everything that people, I, you know, I, I'm a sponge and I like to hear and learn from others. I say that, you know, everyone, I meet teaches me something, you know?
And so then I want to impart that to them, to others. So, you know, how people use it, what people use it for, why, why people are using it, you know, the, the, the discussion about, um, you know, is it helpful or is there. And a dependence type [00:15:00] of situation. Like I delve into that in the book. Um, there are so many, uh, you know, things about this cannabis has been out there and been around for forever.
And now we're just getting around to, uh, trying to understand it, you know, I'm all about please more research is needed for physicians like myself to get behind it. I most physicians, even physicians don't really understand it, you know, and I am one of the few that is really seeing this as, wow, this is really, for many, it can be a form of medicine and, but unless the research has done and larger scale research physicians won't get behind it.
Yeah. And it's exciting that they're, we have so much research coming and, um, and obviously it's hard to do research on a controlled one substance, but we're, we're, we're making progress and we. Leaps and bounds from where we were even 10 years ago. So a more research is coming and I love [00:16:00] refreshing and checking out pub med.gov to see what's coming down the pipe, the pipeline, and we will touch back on some recent research, um, that came out that we'd love to discuss with you.
But one of the things that I think a lot of people have questions about that you wrote about in the book that, uh, I would love to get your take on, um, what your opinion is on your research and your practice of, of, of marijuana and, and, and use with children. Uh, and you can go, um, teenager or below. Um, what has been your research?
What has been your experience in as far as, um, you know, recommending marijuana for, uh, people, uh, under the age of 18. Well in my mind. And what we know is that the, the, the brain is developing until you are in your mid twenties. And so we want it, and I work at a, a wonderful [00:17:00] clinical at amen clinic and Daniel Ayman who started this 30 years ago is all about brain health.
And we do a specific kind of brain imaging where we take, we look in the brain and see what's, you know, gives people an idea of what's going on in their brains in order to help them deal with all kinds of psychological issues. And other than that bring trauma and things like that. But, but the research that we have done over 30 years shows.
The brain is developing until you are in your mid twenties. And I, so in that way, I am true to the amen clinic and the research that's been done that we really don't want to be recommending anything like Matt, when we say marijuana, meaning THC for the developing brain, because it may have a big impact on how the brain develops.
It's been shown that it can absolutely impact areas of the brain [00:18:00] like the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus and the amygdala, things like that that are so important in areas like executive functioning, decision-making impulse control. These are incredibly, uh, important, important areas of the brain that need to be given the chance to develop appropriately.
So I really don't recommend anything with. A psychoactive component to anyone under the, the while your brain is still the. May I jump in there and say, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Now I work with a lot of people and I work with a lot with autism and people around actually kind of around the world at this point.
And there is a certain group of doctors working in this same field who are recommending high dose THC for children, young children with autism. And I just find that now. Helpful. And to me, it's just not good medical practice to do that. And again too, I often [00:19:00] talk with people that we talked within our offices that come in for help that, you know, if, and I use kind of the terms like men's brains develop, take a little bit longer to develop than women, but again, to about 25 to 27, you know, you're taking a risk to have that be building up in your brain and explain to that our brain is still developing.
It's more complex, you know, prefrontal areas. Then I'm just very happy to hear you point that out because I've been saying it, but obviously I did not carry the weight of a doctor and a doctor works with Dr. AME and who I'm very familiar with and very much enjoy everything that he does and believe in his research.
So that's when. You just couldn't fix. I have working with people is the doctors in our field that are still recommending it for children and especially for autism, which again too, it's another neurological dysfunction. So I really don't want something else adding to that. So thank you very much for that.
Absolutely. And Daniel, amen was instrumental in getting this book published and out there for me. So I, I [00:20:00] owe him a huge, you know, a debt of gratitude and so appreciative of all the work he has done well, I just knew you two would get along. I know that has been something that my mom has definitely been, um, advocating for.
And, uh, we were happy to see that you were on the same page about not recommending high THC. Cannabis products to children. Well, I don't recommend high THC products to anybody. Well, and once you turn 21 in New York or California in 30, some odd other states, you can do whatever you want in those states, uh, at least to, for recreational or medical.
But, but yes, maybe more reasons to, I know you mentioned some, but just as your research and, and working with Dr. Ayman, what are some of the other, um, specific things in the brain that may have an adverse effect to THC that THC may adversely affect the brain functions or parts of the brain? Well, the, the, the two that come to [00:21:00] mind are, first of all, is, is cannabis.
You know, th the whole plant, uh, uh, gateway, you know, is it a gateway drug when used in, you know, in, in younger, uh, developing minds. And the other thing is, is cannabis use in younger people, uh, a, um, potentially, you know, leading to psychosis or schizophrenia, if there is a predisposition to it, So those are two huge things that are, you know, very scary for me to think about.
And I always say more research needs to be done in order to really understand this, but also to it, can you make this statement? Is this really true? And that much larger scale research needs to be done? There's a huge argument on both sides to say, yes, cannabis is a gateway drug or no cannabis is not.
And the other, the other point is [00:22:00] that, is there, is it causation or correlation, right. That's also a very big thing, you know, is cannabis going to lead to psychosis or does someone have a predisposition to be, uh, you know, to have that type of mental disorder? Um, and then cannabis may just kick it off. We don't really know.
You know, but I am so cautious and very aware that this might be that I, I, all I can say is that I recommend more research, be done, large scale, well controlled diet designed studies so that we will really know. Absolutely. No, that's excellent. That's a common question just in my experience. And I admit, I grew up in the seventies and I saw so many of my college classmates drop out of college after heavy use of marijuana.
And just recently I had worked with a man who literally. Exhibiting psychotic symptoms when he came to visit us. And actually he took the CBDA Nicole and beamed up [00:23:00] that he was able to go to the judge and not be placed in jail. I assume he went back to his ways after he got through the court issue though.
And so I bet done some research on that. So again, too, it's all preliminary. We don't have exact research on the psychosis aspect and then the gateway drug too. I haven't seen really exact science on that. I personally, in my own experience, I've not seen it as a gateway drug to people. I work with that smoke a lot of marijuana that I know too.
They tend to be their drug of choice, but I'm sure at some points they might try other things. So, but you're right. We need more research on all aspects of this. So very excited to have your book and have so many things covered. And I liked the way you would say, like, is it this? Or is it that so whatever, and kind of covered both sides of each of the issue.
So that's a very important part of your book. Well, and the other thing that I, that I, and others should understand and more research needs to be done is that can CBD actually mitigate that right? Or CBD has these anti wonderful anti-inflammatory [00:24:00] properties that can be used and harnessed for such wonderful, good, you know, uh, things and opportunities.
But, you know, we have to understand. Um, I totally agree. And again, to just, it's been seven years now, we've been working with the whole plant CBD with a wide variety, and then the research I do on that too. And the CBDA certainly does, and we see it a lot, uh, with people who are a. Smoking too much marijuana that use it for that.
And one of the most dramatic uses we saw besides helping with, like I say, with autism and with like Parkinson's and Ms. And those types of things, anxiety and pain are the main reasons people take. It is the CBDA real is really was helpful. Uh, when the opioid crisis kind of hit a point, uh, two years ago in February, where suddenly the pharmacies had turned it off in California.
Anyway, I had many people coming in. Who'd been on opioids for 20 years, often like veterans and people with injuries. And they were able to get relief from both the addiction and the [00:25:00] pain with the CBDA. And again, too, when my limits not working in a university is being able to do research, but that's an area I would love to see.
And the research is very clearly showing more and more that the CBD. Yeah on heated version, which is actually the most prolific in the hemp plant. Uh, it has properties beyond the CBD. It goes beyond the endocannabinoid system and actually interacts with most of the cells of the body and our favorite doctor, Dr.
Raphael Mechoulam, we call him the godfather in the cannabis field. Uh, he came here in 2019 to say CBDA was the most powerful and effective of all cannabinoids and wondering, particularly pointed out was with nausea research on nausea and CBDA showed was up to a thousand times more effective than CBD or THC.
And so he been, he and Dr. Ralph. Excuse me. I Dr. Ethan Russo, um, have also been kind of our leading doctors that we followed in developing what we're doing. So I'm just really excited to have some of the research move forward into the CBDA and we're starting to see that [00:26:00] more and more coming out. Yeah. I look forward.
I definitely look forward to, you know, reading and learning more about it and yes, they have. They're instrumental in leading the research for sure. Um, and Raphael Meshulum is a, a God in my mind, we were lucky enough in 2019 that he came out to canned med and he, uh, it's cannabis, medical, and, oh, good. So you saw him?
Yes. And so right there in the front row. And we literally like reserved the seats that morning. I remember when they opened up the doors because we had a booth there and we, uh, as soon as, because I could see where he was going to speak the keynote across the hall, And so like, I could see it and I'm like, I grabbed a couple of the staff.
I go, dude, grab these four right here, grab these five and lay down, put stuff on him. And cause we're just going to like get these seats. And so when he came out, I mean, you remember that Rora, so applause that [00:27:00] he got everyone stood up and gave him that ovation as he walked out on stage. Do you remember that?
I surely do. I remember it. And I was like, it was Mick Jagger coming out on the rolling stones and I was getting a moat because he had meant so much to what he searches meant so much to our family and, and meant so much just so many families and so millions of people, uh, that, that, uh, have used this plant, uh, to help, uh, with medical, uh, elements.
So yeah, I'm glad you were there. That's great. That was a, that was such a great time. And he. Yeah. And that was the time that he did was as you recall, he was talking about all the acid precursor CBDA specifically in CBGA and a few of the others, but, uh, but yeah, I'm glad you were there. We might've, we were in the same room watching, uh, uh, Dr.
Meshullam. So that's wonderful. The staff that was when my books were, my book was in it sort of like beginning stages of, of forming and it, you know, it [00:28:00] came out in September this past September, 2021. So yeah, it's, it's been a huge journey for me and a huge journey following all of this. And the amazing to me is cannabis has been around for thousands of years and it's finally being, you know, investigated further and researched, and it's still, you know, uh, Illegal federally.
And that has to, in my mind that that, that's the first thing that probably has to change in order for it to really be accepted as a real medicine. Yeah. And I believe it will. Um, it's just a matter of time and priorities, but, um, it's great that so many states have adopted some type of access, whether it's medicinal or adult use, it's huge.
There's huge. And it's helping people. It's also interesting is that just recently New York, you know, where I practice, uh, I mean, just, this is hot off the press just days ago, [00:29:00] New York has, uh, recently increased its accessibility to people. Meaning physicians are able to certify for anything that they see fit, why people might need, you know, medically legal cannabis before.
Insomnia. Wasn't a medical condition that I could certify people for and anxiety wasn't a condition I could certify people for. Did that's that's incredible to me, because for the most part, that's why many, many people will use cannabis. Absolutely. And, and I think something that you're going to be really excited about, and I can tell we're going to talk a whole bunch more, uh, is the, the, when you keep the plant in the raw form, the CBDA the CBGA the T H C a a, it doesn't have the, you know, psychedelic or psychotropic effects that people associate with the Cheech and Chong movies.
And then you can really, when you start to really go down that rabbit hole and understand the matric [00:30:00] potential of the plant for medicinal prop for its medicinal properties, I mean, essentially Dr. William Courtney has been on here a few times and he says that the cannabis plant should be a dietary issue.
And if you ate the plan every day, you wouldn't have to use it as medicine. And so I, I look forward to getting that over to you, the, some more research and some products for you to try and see for yourself, the difference with the raw plant. And, uh, there has been some incredible research that's come out recently, which has been all over the news.
Uh, I don't know if you had a chance to read much about it, but, uh, there was a couple articles or researchers. The first one was the one out of Oregon state, um, and talking about CBDA and CBGA helping protect those ACE receptors, ACE two receptors from the COVID virus, uh, attaching. And, uh, I didn't know that the thing that excited us the most, because everybody in the world sent me that article and those, those researchers.
And I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah. I've known about that for years and [00:31:00] different studies and countries have shown that for since this whole. But the fact that they were isolating the molecules THCA CBDA and CBGA, those were the three they were studying. That was the needle mover for us, because it's like, people are asking about what is CBD a and what is CBGA and this and that research that you were there, that, that conference with Dr.
Fri Meshullam. That was, that was the first watermark for CBDA. When Dr. Raphael Michigan came out and told the world CBDA is up to a thousand times more powerful, effective than CBD. That was when it was like, okay, everyone started asking about CBD and that was a needle mover. But this, this research out of Oregon state, uh, I believe is having a similar effect of, of at least having a conversation about these acid precursors.
So did you get a chance to read that study or hear much about it from Oregon state? Yes, absolutely. And I'm definitely incredibly excited about the possibility for this, [00:32:00] but like I said, it's all about, you know, Showing the medical community that this is research-based and con you know what I mean? And it has to be a larger scale trials, large scale studies that will move the needle for physicians.
Yeah, very true. If it's exciting too. And the way they came up with which ones, which just checking which natural products or small molecules, they called them that had an affinity for the spike protein, as something, as a possibility to do some treatment. And so it was interesting that it was the hemp CBD and the hemp CBG a and then the THC a that had that affinity.
And then when they tested it in the lab against live viruses, they were still effective at blocking, uh, someone like an antibody blocking the attachment to lead to infection. And so definitely yes, it's hopefully people are funding more studies now to move that forward. But again, to Riverside, [00:33:00] there are tremendous opportunities for cannabis in every way.
Right. Uh, so anyway, I was very excited about that. And then there's a lot of the news confusion. A lot of people like late night talk show with her saying, oh, it just means we needed to smoke more pot for COVID in us, which had maybe a totally wrong response. And then there was a lot of talking back saying, no, it has to be the raw form of the hemp plant.
And people don't hear that. They hear what they want to hear. And, but in my experience with people coming to me and being curious about it, but also really wanting options, other options, then, you know, medication is, they don't want to be in quotes high. They don't want necessarily the psychoactive effects.
They want the medicinal effects. Right. That's what I. You know, trying to work with and trying to understand better. And, um, you know, I need, I want more research done, but [00:34:00] I can understand it better. Yeah. There's quite a bit of research done on the CBDA and like you had mentioned, it has those very strong anti-inflammatory and antioxidant, and also it's very good at homeostasis or balancing most of our systems.
I know in terms of COVID two, it was very good at balancing the immune system where the anti-inflammatory level. So it could not. Really overreacting or the cytokine storm or whatever. So there's a lot of research out there. And again too, there has always been more interest in THC and CBD or especially the raw CBDA.
So the research has been more slowly to be completed. Um, but again, true the direction I'm reading my understanding of all the unique benefits of keeping it raw and going into the whole body and things. Um, I'm hoping that we continue to see more research, uh, in, just in your practice. I know it's medical marijuana.
Do you ever see yourself moving toward like, like I say, the raw CBD products or just CBD products and not from the dispensary, because there's going to be [00:35:00] a pretty high level of THC in them for them to be in the dispensary. Um, anyway, it's when, if you're with us, all yourself moving toward that or researching more in that field of the RA CBDA.
Well, I mean, as I say, uh, you know, as a physician and as a scientist, I say, we call, I like to call it canvas because it, this is, it has such a multitude of properties and compounds and options and opportunities and things that it might do and might be helpful for. I, you know, I am not a, I'm not a bench scientist to say, this is what, you know, like that I'm going to use.
I'm going to use the research. I'm going to use what comes out. And I can trust to say, this is what I will do. And if it comes out in large scale that they're saying Roz CBDA and to be GA products are what will help the most. Then that is what I will get behind. Absolutely. Yeah. [00:36:00] And at the end of the day too, I mean, it's, it is about education and that's why we have the podcast and that's why we're so happy to have you on.
And the. You know that you wrote about it, you know, the brain on cannabis, what you should know about recreational and medical marijuana, you could find it at Amazon or audible. I'm a listener. And, uh, you know, some of the other things that you talk about in the book is, uh, you talk about best ways to consume, uh, the cannabis plant.
Uh, would you care to share that with our audience? What is, what is your normal recommendation when it comes to the best ways to consume the, the cannabis. Well, abs. Absolutely. Thank you. I think that when each person is an individual, right? And so I want to understand the individual and I want to understand meaning what medications are they on?
What medical conditions do they have? We're also in a pandemic, you know, where. It's a, it's a respiratory illness and you'd, you know, my, my thought is we really don't [00:37:00] want to be putting anything into our bodies. That's going to impact our lungs. So for the most part, my recommendation is that you really don't smoke or vape any cannabis products that you want to be safer about it.
And certainly with recreational use many people are very much into smoking and vaping. That is not my bent. I am much more towards the tinctures or we could say edibles, there's really, edibles are a very newer concept in New York state where I practice it's been capsule. And, um, things like that, you know, it's not, it's been capsules and tablets, not, um, not edibles, right?
So that, that is more of my, my thought behind it. You know, we don't want to be impacting the lungs in any way, especially during COVID. So, what you're saying is smoking marijuana, won't keep you from getting COVID. [00:38:00] Cause I know that was the punchline that people out there were using. And in fact, smoking cannabis or smoking marijuana, isn't necessarily the best thing maybe to do for a virus that attacks the lungs.
Right? Absolutely. And I really don't want to be, I look, I, I mean, I want first do no harm. That is the first tenant of medicine. So I am very, I have a, an approach of moderation. I have approach an approach of caution. I am not recommending that anyone smoke or vape, I am definitely taking into account every individual person that comes to me to understand what's going on for them and how I can be helpful to them.
And just, and just so people are, cause they products. I think it was in 2019, they started to show some side effects. They started to show some studies. You know, there was being linked to as dangerous as secondhand smoke. And then there was some more things that came out. Can you explain to our audience, [00:39:00] what are some of the dangers of vaping?
Because some people don't know. Well, yes, it was called the beeping crisis. And unfortunately the pandemic was just around the corner. So that really, it took a backseat. Uh, but there were a many people who were, um, ending up in ERs and very, very ill because of something in the vaping product. And so, uh, as far as I'm aware, it was, it was never quite understood exactly why, but the thought was that it was probably, uh, a component, a chemical component of what was either in the smoking or the vaping products.
And so that is another reason why I do not necessarily recommend that anybody smoke or vape. Um, the other thing is that, um, I also do not recommend that anyone get it off the street. I definitely recommend that people obtain it legally because you don't know it is a plant. You don't know what you're getting.[00:40:00]
You also don't know. You know, if you're getting it off the street, who's providing it to you. What it may be contaminated with all kinds of things. You know, I'm very, very concerned about that. And certainly the, um, desire that, that adolescents and kids in their, you know, their twenties have about trying all these types of things that's, that's understood.
And their, their frontal lobes may not be fully developed at that point. And, you know, to impulsively do something that may really harm your brain is a horrible thought to me. So to be as safe as possible. Thank you very much for those cautions. That's so important. And did you, would you say, I mean, cause I know that people have, you know, you know, the, the top reason before the, you know, beginning of March, 2020, uh, people came to us with.
It was clearly pain was the number one reason that people wanted to consume, [00:41:00] uh, you know, our whole plant, uh, hemp products. Would you and, and w w I mean, we saw it personally, but would you say in your practice or your research that CBD can be a good alternative to opioids and even, even the dependency upon opioids?
I don't know how much experience you had with that, or saw that in your practice or research you came across. Yeah. So I've had a. Uh, patients come to me, asking for my help to use cannabis products in a way to help them get off of, of, of use of opioids. And it's a complicated thing. It's a very complicated issue, but I have definitely found that a, you know, in the way that I am able to recommend and certify people that a higher concentration of CBD to THC is a much safer and much better way to go.[00:42:00]
Certainly for trying to, for people to try to try to help them taper off of opioids. For sure we don't want to, um, cause other forms of, of dependence or addiction and that's it, that's a slippery slope I get into because addiction and dependence are, are, you know, very, very complicated topics and issues, but I definitely agree that cannabis can be an option to help.
I've seen it be helpful for some getting off of opioids. Yeah, that's great. Yeah. We certainly saw the same thing as well. And, and, uh, that's, uh, I've also seen it, like you said, chronic pain. I've also seen it be very helpful for, I've also seen it be very helpful for PTSD. I've treated a number of vets who have definitely, um, been helped by cannabis products.
And that is a huge topic. And one that, you know, has been in the news relatively [00:43:00] recently about the VA and the federal government and how to help them. Yeah, we agree. We see it here a lot. We're out here in Ventura, California, we're close to a Naval base. Um, and so there's a large contingent of military, uh, that we just come across and, and, and talk with, whether it be active or retired.
And yeah, unfortunately the VA stance on CBD is, um, you know, archaic does put it nicely. Um, there's been memos that have been passed around in the Navy that, um, uh, it's, uh, CBD is illegal as far as they're concerned. And it's just been really, really unfortunate. And we've had, um, employees, um, for us that go to the VA and tell them that they're using CBD products.
And the doctor says I can not put that in your folder. Um, it's just been a really unfortunate that so many, um, veterans are suffering from PTSD. [00:44:00] Because of what they went through. I mean, who are we kidding here? And they, that they are being told that they can't have access to this product. So anything we can do to further that topic to pressure, um, whoever we need to pressure, whether it's Congress or whether it's, uh, the VA's or whatever branch of government to give access, um, allow access to at the very least to CBD products, um, that, uh, that you, uh, that you've seen and that we've seen help so much.
With PTSD. I know you had a store, a couple stories in the book about PTSD. Did you want to share maybe a one or two word? Well, yes. And I absolutely wanted to underscore the point that our policymakers need to understand that CBD is, is very different than THC. And that can be so very helpful and to be, to not have the understanding and awareness that CBD is different than [00:45:00] THC is mind boggling to me.
And so I have. The desire to educate and increase awareness of the general population of people, but also, uh, other physicians who just don't understand it either. Um, and people of a certain generation really have very, very biased attitudes towards cannabis as a whole. And you know, that is unfortunate that, you know, these types of, um, things have to change in order for cannabis to move forward in, in my arsenal of things that I, you know, want to use for people.
Absolutely. And we're, that's why we, and you and your F you're a $9. This is your first time on clubhouse. So welcome to clubhouse and, and, and being on the miracle plant podcast, which we're recording live, um, is these are two incredible platforms that, you know, we've had the opportunity to have these [00:46:00] discussions, and there are so many great discussions.
That not only do we have on the podcast like yourself and experts and doctors and researchers in science and people who come, who have incredible stories, how this plant has helped them or their family, but also clubhouse clubhouse has gotten, you know, I've met so many cool people, so many brilliant minds, uh, so many powerful stories.
Um, and so I'm really excited, uh, and, uh, fully encourage you to continue down the rabbit hole of clubhouse. Just maybe put a timer on your settings for screen time at three hours or something, because I know when I first got out, it was a lot more than that, but, uh, but yes, uh, and it's, it's, it's been a great platform that we can have these conversations, and I'm definitely excited to have you on, uh, the miracle plant podcast.
And are there any other, any other things about the book you want to talk about or any other things that, that are really, uh, [00:47:00] you know, kind of on top of mind for you to share with you. Absolutely. So as a parent of three daughters, myself and my daughters are 24, 21 and 16. Um, I am first and foremost, a parent, and I also, I definitely need to get out of the, the message that you really want to understand.
You know, if you think your kids are, um, using or abusing cannabis products in any way, you need to understand what's going on with your children. You need to have good, honest conversations with them. You know, you need to confront something head-on and there's all kinds of people that can help. And, and I think that that is a huge message that I want to get out, that you really need to understand what's going on for your children in every way.
Right. And, and like, I vote, like I said, from the start, I don't believe that anyone. And, you know, whose brain is still [00:48:00] developing and maturing should be using cannabis products or any substance of abuse. And so to really understand what's going on, if you see changes in your, in your kid's behavior or school performance, or social attitudes, things like that, you need to be on top of things.
And I thought that was great in the book too. You talked about, you know, it's an opportunity if you, if you see those changes in their attitudes or their behaviors, um, or if you, if you catch them, you know, little Johnny with a bag in his sock drawer, hearse, or doing his laundry, that, you know, it's an opportunity to come, you know, get closer to your children and, and, and maybe discuss what things are going on in their lives.
Um, maybe it's stress or pressure or. Uh, whatever types of things that, um, can lead them. Obviously the peer pressure is a big one, but just, you know, stress in general. And I've heard it from all over the place that so many kids these days, [00:49:00] over the past two years, with all this homeschooling and all of this, you know, fear that's been going on, um, you know, a lot kids are really a lot more anxious than they've maybe ever been.
Um, you know, obviously consuming large sugary sodas and caffeine from Starbucks might not be the best thing for anxiety, but there are certainly, um, some real, um, you know, consequences and things that are out there. And I love how your book covered that to say, this is an opportunity to get closer to your children and really understand what's going on.
And you shared some great stories in the book about that. So I really appreciate. And I pandemic a pandemic has affected us in so many ways that that are just coming out now. So we have an opportunity as parents to be involved with our kids in, in a much greater and in-depth way. Absolutely. I was just going to say, thank you for that message.
It's just a message I've been saying over and over and over, [00:50:00] um, to parents and especially to teenagers. And so if I have somebody who's, you know, in their thirties, I say you're an adult. You can make your own choices. Please be aware though, of the positives and the negatives, but it's just hard to see that in writing and hear people say it out loud, that right.
You ended up putting a THC into developing brains and why. And so I was just very, very excited and I can't thank you enough for sharing that message. Absolutely is my ultimate message. And like I said, it's a really, really, really good book and. I definitely am a cannabis expert and I've been around the block and I was very impressed with the writing.
And I love like how my mom said you covered both sides of the arguments. Cause many of the arguments are still yet to be determined. And um, so you, you make cases for both sides of, of many, um, you know, conversations that, uh, are, are little charged and like is marijuana [00:51:00] addictive and what are the side effects of marijuana?
Uh, things of that nature that then you explore both sides of the debate. So I really, um, you know, tip the cap to you there. Where can people find your book? Well, they can absolutely find it on Amazon. And it's called the brain on cannabis, as you said earlier. And my website is Dr. Rebecca siegel.com and it will have a link to the book on Amazon.
Wonderful. And if someone wants to reach out to you and has more questions, or maybe even wants a recommendation or a consultation, uh, what's the best way for them to reach out and contact you? Okay. Well, I can definitely be reached through amen clinic and the amen clinic website will direct people to, uh, all the clinics, but I am in the New York clinic and I am on the website as Dr.
Rebecca Siegel. And absolutely, we have lots of people reaching out to amen clinic these days as [00:52:00] well. And I know I'm excited to look at more of the brain imagery work that you're doing and, and, uh, seeing that mapping out of that seems really exciting. And I couldn't let you go because as we know Dan hummus, then the Dan, the man is a, a Buffalo bills fan, and we're feeling for you, but other we feel for ya, you got a great quarterback, had a great team.
Um, now Dr. Rebecca, are you a Mets fan or a Yankees fan? Cause I spent a lot of time in Jersey. Just forgot to get them. You got to check that actually I am a, a duke fan and duke is playing right now, dude. That's what I'm I am. I went to duke and I am a rabid duke fan. And so that is, that is my true love college basketball.
And you're going to have a new coach too, so that's kind of that's right. That's right. And when I w that's right, and when I was there, coach K had, I think he was in his fourth year of coaching that it, it, it ages me. It dates me, but it [00:53:00] was a wonderful thing that has been with me forever. The love of college basketball.
And I, I gave the gift of that to my father. Come with that. So you were, we, you were pre-Christian later Bobby Hurley grant hill era. You will, before that I was right before. Oh, my gosh. Well, I had a lot of friends that graduated probably were there when you were there so they can add it's interesting.
Cause I can't those guys, uh, there, I have to say, you guys have, have the right to be arrogant and they certainly are when it comes to college basketball. Well, I mean, coach Shashefski has created a dynasty and it's going to be a very interesting thing, how the torch gets passed. And, but I am not, I will love duke basketball forever and I'm not giving up on it.
And I think it's going to be an incredible program going through. Well, enjoy that victory lap with coach K he's. I've always had the utmost respect for him. I grew up, [00:54:00] I was always a North Carolina tutorial fan, so I'm glad we waited until the end of the show to get that out there, but I I'm hoping to be, I am hoping to be in the, in, in, uh, the Carolina basketball stadium.
Come, come, come in soon because duke Carolina game is. I'm hoping to be at, which would be an interesting thing. Yeah. At home. Oh, that'll be fun Carolina. So we'll see. That'll be fine. It's it's a great rivalry. One of the best in all of sports. So again, thank you for joining us on the miracle plant podcast.
Thank you for all you've done. You've got a great perspective on cannabis and you've helped so many people and sharing your story and your books so people can, you know, dig deeper and have some of those questions answered. And again, the name of the book is the brain on cannabis. What you should know about recreational and medical marijuana by Dr.
Rebecca Siegel [00:55:00] MD, find it on Amazon or on audible. If you're a listener like I am, which it might be. If you're listening to a podcast and at the end of every miracle plant podcast, we send out a message of heal the world because that's what this miracle plant did for our son. And we're just here to pay it forward for others that are out there that are looking for.
Solution. So on the count of three, we say heal the world. So everyone on stage on mute, your mic sits 1, 2, 3.
Thanks everyone for joining us on the miracle plant podcast tune in next week, while we have some great stories and some great people to talk with about this miracle plant. Thanks for tuning in and we'll see you real soon.