Jeez, what a revelation!

Good Day Readers:

Wonder how much money the U.S. government paid for such an earth shattering discovery?

According to our calculations 350 joints a week is 50/day. Assuming 16 hours of consciousness (Well sort of!) that's 3 every 60 minutes which doesn't include time for eating, doing your morning ablutions or going to the bathroom - equivalent to about a 2 pack a day habit. Smoke 50 a day of anything and watch what happens?

Sincerely,

Clare L. Pieuk

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STOP! ..... now or else

Why are UK butchers -- and inspectors -- apparently so lousy?
Posted May 8, 2008 by Doug Powell

This isn't about the Butcher of Wales, or the Butcher of Scotland. This time, it's the Butcher of Leeds, The Yorkshire Post reports today that a butcher's shop at the centre of one of Yorkshire's most serious food poisoning outbreaks was found to be "filthy" by inspectors two years before it was shut down.

About 60 people were struck down by E-coli O157 during an outbreak in Leeds in 2006 that led to an investigation into Todd's Pork and Beef Butchers in Armley and its stall at Kirkgate Market.

Papers released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that Todd's was warned several times about poor hygiene standards and practices.Hilary Cobley, whose late husband Neil was struck down by poisoning as he was due to undergo chemotherapy, was quoted as saying the outbreak was "no accident," adding, "I don't think this happened overnight. When they shut the shop you could see the muck on the floor. It is a shame that they can't make them pay the fine."

Marijuana May Up Heart Attack, Stroke Risk
Will Dunham, Reuters (2008)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Heavy marijuana use can boost blood levels of a particular protein, perhaps raising a person's risk of a heart attack or stroke, U.S. government researchers said on Tuesday.

Dr. Jean Lud Cadet of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health, said the findings point to another example of long-term harm from marijuana. But marijuana activists expressed doubt about the findings.

Cadet said a lot of previous research has focused on the effects of marijuana on the brain. His team looked elsewhere in the body, measuring blood protein levels in 18 long-term, heavy marijuana users and 24 other people who did not use the drug.

Levels of a protein called apolipoprotein C-III were found to be 30 percent higher in the marijuana users compared to the others. This protein is involved in the body's metabolism of triglycerides -- a type of fat found in the blood -- and higher levels cause increased levels of triglycerides, Cadet added.

High levels of triglycerides can contribute to hardening of the arteries or thickening of the artery walls, raising the risk of stroke, heart attack and heart disease.

The study did not look at whether the heavy marijuana users actually had heart disease.

"Chronic marijuana use is not only causing people to get high, it's actually causing long-term adverse effects in patients who use too much of the drug," Cadet, whose study is in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, said in a telephone interview. "Chronic marijuana abuse is not so benign."

The marijuana users in the study averaged smoking 78 to 350 marijuana cigarettes per week, based on self-reported drug history, the researchers said.

The researchers said the active ingredient in marijuana, known as THC, seems to overstimulate marijuana receptors in the liver, leading to overproduction of the protein.