'Retox' a worry if you go off the grass

[mull]

That's some real nice work there Alby

 

Doc Arnold has his eye on the funding with Jan is a given eh

[Al B. Fuct]

thanks, mully. We aim to please.

[grace]

An article in relation to Dr Arnold's research was first published in New Scientist and other international online sources on 9 August 2009 (See full text below).

 

There was no reference in New Scientist to the comment purportedly made by Dr Arnold that was published in the Sydney Morning Herald on 16 August 2009. The Sydney Morning Herald also failed to report other relevant comments reported in the New Scientist article.

 

The comment in the Sydney Morning Herald purportedly made by Dr Arnold was sandwiched between a statement made by Dr Arnold and Jan Copeland.

 

"Dr Arnold said the implications for humans were being studied.

 

"You could potentially kick your grass habit and a couple of weeks later go on a rigorous diet and exercise regime . . . the THC could flood out," he said.

 

"Following a weekend binge by skipping breakfast and heading to the gym on Monday morning "could possibly lead them to say some silly things in a meeting".

 

Jan Copeland of the National Cannabis Prevention and Information Centre said it was a case of user beware.

‘‘You could potentially kick your grass habit and a couple of weeks later go on a rigorous diet and exercise regime and it is theoretically possible based on this paper that the THC could flood out and lead that person to being re-intoxicated,’’

 

Facts

 

Dr Arnold: Head of Laboratory at the Cannabinoid Science Research Group at the Bosch Institute - University of Sydney

 

The Cannabinoid Science Research Group, headed by Dr Jonathon Arnold, conducts a diverse range of research related to cannabis and the cannabinoids including research into the Anticancer actions of cannabinoids

 

http://www.bosch.org.au/research/NervousSy...ience/index.php

 

Jan Copeland: Founding Professor and Director of the National Cannabis Prevention and Information Centre (NCPIC) at the University of NSW.

 

http://ncpic.org.au/ncpic/about/staff/article/jan-copeland

 

 

Two separate entities set up for entirely different purposes and aims.

 

 

The Orignal Article published in New Scientist

 

Dieting could lead to a positive test for cannabis

9 August 2009 by Emma Young

New Scientist

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg2032...r-cannabis.html

 

CANNABIS smokers beware: stress or dieting might trigger "reintoxication", resulting in a positive drug test long after you last used the drug.

 

The main psychoactive ingredient of cannabis is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and once in the body it is readily absorbed into fat cells. Over the next few days it slowly diffuses back into the blood. Since THC is taken up by fat more readily than it diffuses out, continual intake means some THC can remain in the fat cells.

 

It has been suggested that stored THC can be released at a later date in situations where the body's fat is rapidly broken down. This is based on anecdotal reports of spikes in blood cannabinoid levels in people who have not taken the drug recently but have experienced extreme stress or rapid weight loss.

 

Jonathon Arnold at the University of Sydney, Australia, cites the example of an athlete who swore he hadn't smoked cannabis in months but who had rapidly lost 4 kilograms just before a positive drug test.

 

To investigate whether rapid breakdown of body fat could have been responsible, Arnold and colleague Iain McGregor first exposed THC-laden fat cells taken from rats to the stress hormone ACTH. They found that the hormone increased the speed of release of THC from the cells.

 

Then they injected rats with 10 milligrams per kilogram of THC (equivalent to a person smoking between five and 10 cannabis cigarettes, depending on their strength) every day for 10 days. Two days later, they injected a third of the rats with ACTH, deprived another third of food for 24 hours, with the rest as controls.

 

Subsequent blood tests showed that rats that were food deprived had double the blood level of THC acid, a metabolite of THC, compared with the controls. Those that were exposed to ACTH also showed a statistically significant increase in THC acid levels. The study has been accepted for publication by the British Journal of Pharmacology.

 

However, the new work did not find evidence of increased THC acid levels more than two days after the last THC dose. Arnold thinks this could be due to the short-term nature of the experiment. He suspects that if doses were given over a longer period of time, sufficient THC levels could build up in body fat to explain abnormally high levels of THC metabolites in people who claim not to have taken the drug recently.

 

The main implication of the work could be for legal cases in which athletes or employees have tested positive for cannabis but claim they haven't recently consumed it, Arnold says. "But the clincher would be for us to show these results in humans."

[Al B. Fuct]

I don't think there's any doubt that stored THC metabolites can be released into the bloodstream (or urine) as a result of food deprivation or exercise. This could indeed cause a 'positive' drug test without the user having smoked nor ingested cannabis recently. I don't disagree with this part at all. Yes, for those who are subject to drug testing, this could be a concern.

 

However, Arnold claims that this release of THC metabolites will cause a re-intoxication. THC metabolites are not psychoactive! Testing 'positive' DOES NOT indicate an acute, present state of THC intoxication. It indicates the presence in the blood or urine of THC metabolites, the meaning of which is muddy on a good day. This is what I took the journo to task for- and she has yet to reply to my response NOR to correct the online story. Ambivalence to such corrections is bad journalism and smacks of driving an agenda which would not be served by publishing the correct information.

Edited September 9, 2009 by Al B. Fuct