Study Shows Dangerous Byproducts In Marijuana Via ABCNews Some may tout marijuana as a safe, recreational drug with valuable medicinal properties, but toke up your joint and it likely contains mold, pesticides, even dead insects, according to researchers at the University of New Haven in Connecticut. In their genetic studies of marijuana, the researchers found a variety of nasty byproducts in the plant: fungi, mildew and even such bacterial contaminants as e-coli and salmonella. Much of it could be seen with the naked eye on the surface of plants, said Heather Miller Coyle, a forensic botanist and associate professor at the university, who has built a DNA database of different types of marijuana that has helped federal law enforcement learn where illegal pot growers and dealers get their product. Now she has turned her attention to public health and is urging states where marijuana is legal to pass strict certification laws. Marijuana is a controlled substance that is illegal under federal law. But in states where it is used legally for medicinal purposes, there is limited testing, and the testing that is done is for medical potency, not purity. Says Coyle: “Every other medicine out there is controlled and monitored for quality and not administered in a smokable format,” Coyle told ABCNews. “There’s a lot of concern about the way these forms of medical marijuana are grown,” she said. “A lot of the time, they are grown in a noncertified fashion, especially in California. “They are grown in open fields or illegally on federal park lands,” she said. “Pesticides are dumped on them to prevent damage and increase yield. Some are grown between crops of different species, and chickens are running around and fertilizers are being used. “They are grown in the wild by people and are not certified by anyone,” said Coyle. “What would the effect be on a person who is immune compromised or seriously ill?”
Posted on: Wed, 04 Dec 2013 14:36:25 +0000
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