On March 17, news from a study in the British medical journal Lancet - “Using medical or recreational marijuana to ease symptoms of numerous mental health conditions doesn't work, according to two new analyses of existing gold-standard research.

"We found no evidence any form of cannabis is effective in treating anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder, which are three of the leading reasons for which cannabis is prescribed," said Jack Wilson, a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Sydney's Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use.

Will the marijuana lobby now go to the 20 plus states that have PTSD as a qualifying condition for “medical” marijuana and tell them to stop recommending marijuana to treat mental health conditions? Of course not. They care about profits, not patients. If you have “medical” marijuana programs (which are not medical) and are allowing marijuana for addressing mental health issues - send this article to your board of health asking them to take action.

After hearing from those negatively impacted by Kratom, the Boston city council is moving to ban Kratom. “Councilors heard testimony from experts, a city official, and people who said that kratom was responsible for the deaths of their loved ones during a hearing on Monday… These products can take the form of tablets, gummies, drink mixes, and shots that are often marketed as energy supplements. Public health officials are worried that these can be particularly appealing to young people and are easily bought in many states.”

You may be surprised what is being sold in your community. We need more communities to ban any new psychoactive substances. Sadly, there is a long history of local stores more than willing to sell these substances and cities may completely unaware.

It’s sad but not the first or last time the US FDA is working to help drug sellers. In their latest action, “The agency is proposing allowing other tastes for vapes, like mint, coffees, spices or tea, to appeal to adults…The agency said in a documentreleased on Monday that it would consider vapes in flavors such as mint, coffees, teas and spices, possibly like clove or cinnamon.”

The FDA is approving more flavors to be sold - to appeal to adults! First, why is the FDA wanting to help industry that sells an addictive substance attract more adults? And we’re expected to believe kids would not be interested in cinnamon or mint? Understand the FDA has failed, despite empowering law from the Obama years, to remove menthol from tobacco products despite overwhelming evidence that it would save lives. Obama, Biden, and Trump’s FDA have failed to act. In fact, Reynolds tobacco, the biggest maker of menthol products, was the largest corporate donor to the Trump campaign. Within months of the new administration they announced they were tabling removal of menthol from tobacco. Menthol was the most used by youth and used by most adult and youth black smokers. Now, we have the FDA moving forward to approve mint flavors for vaping products. Corrupt.

News about more harms caused nicotine pouches like Zyn. Understand this is factually, poison in a pouch. Nicotine is a poison, in addition to being very addictive. “Poison control centers across the country reported 4,254 cases in 2025, nearly double than the year before, according to America’s Poison Centers, a nonprofit that represents 53 centers. In 2020, there were only 200 cases…Nearly three-quarters of cases last year involved children under the age of 6, according to America’s Poison Centers.”

Nicotine is dangerous of adults and kids and why we need to push for ban on all tobacco and nicotine products. Nicotine has had two commercial uses over the last 100 years - as an insecticide and sold by the tobacco industry to addict and harm millions.

The new mayor of San Francisco, Daniel Lurie, is ending a San Francisco program that was spending $5 million per year to provide free alcohol to the homeless. The program was not created by the alcohol industry but the San Francisco Department of Health. Facilitating drug use should never be the goal of health officials. The MHHP is about harm prevention and facilitating treatment and drug free living.

In a report from the Truth Initiative tobacco imagery in top films from 1989 to 2023 increased 43%. In 2024, among the top box office movies, tobacco imagery appeared in 51% of the movies (77/152). Hollywood along with the music and sports world have played a major role in promoting and glamorizing drug use. The Truth Initiative, a national nonprofit, issued a report in 2023 where they articulated their vision and that Truth “supports policies designed to accelerate progress toward a future free from commercial tobacco and the predatory influences of the tobacco industry.” The MHHP is about having more organizations join the call to end the sale of tobacco and nicotine products.

News that “An updated Cochrane review reports that there is still no clear evidence showing cannabis-based medicines provide meaningful relief for people with chronic neuropathic pain. Despite growing interest in these treatments, the available research does not support their effectiveness compared with a placebo.” It’s to end the “medical” marijuana smokescreen. “Medical” marijuana is sold like alcohol and tobacco, not medicine. There are no medical protocols - which marijuana for which condition, no dosage, no duration, or contraindications. Medical marijuana has been about opening the door for legalization. It’s about profits, not patients.

A new study from the University of California San Francisco looking at the first California communities to end the sale of tobacco and nicotine products. In a statement from ASH, Action on Smoking and Health - a national nonprofit, they said the “…data showed that it did not lead to a decline in sales of non-tobacco products at retailers which formally sold them…”. The Executive Director of ASH concluded “The idea of ending tobacco sales, rather than minimizing them, is no longer wishful thinking – it’s an effective policy being implemented.” While this study is helpful, it’s Important to remember the primary reason for ending the sale of tobacco is health and safety.

The Governor of Oklahoma, in his state of the state speech, urged legislators to support a ballot measure to end Oklahoma’s medical marijuana program. “ When Oklahomans voted to legalize medical marijuana in 2018, we were sold a bill of goods…Now, we have more dispensaries than we do pharmacies…Think about that…” Medical marijuana is about profit, not patients and meant to open the door for legalization. Oklahoma would join efforts in Massachusetts and Maine which are looking to repeal marijuana legalization.

Colorado continues to be harmed by drug use. This news story highlights the increase in impaired driving deaths in Colorado in 2025. If lettuce kills one person it’s removed from sale. Impairing drugs like alcohol, marijuana, etc. kill thousands and not a mention of suspending or ending sales. The news story linked also highlights an ongoing media challenge where they fail to mention drugs involved and never will the media confront marijuana or alcohol reps about their drugs role in killing people.

Substack from Dr. Matt Bivens on how coldly and methodically Purdue (and other opioid manufacturers, but especially Sackler-led Purdue) worked at getting people addicted. Be sure to continue to follow the Make Health History Project and provide your contact info below to learn how the action of the opioid makers outlined by Dr. Bivens follow similar strategies by the tobacco and marijuana industry.

People Magazine story from January 8 on US weakening alcohol use guidance in the latest US Dietary Guidelines. The article includes the flippant remarks by Dr. Mehmet Oz who is running Medicare and Medicaid. For a drug that kills, according to the CDC, 178,000 each year - Dr Oz, at the press event, referred to it as a “social lubricant” and “don’t have it for breakfast.” Bigger question - why do we have dietary guidelines for any drug? The guidelines should discourage drug use.

Here is a story from April 2025 on the elimination of the CDC’s addressing tobacco use. Remember, the action taken by the administration was to eliminate - not refine or improve. Not noted in the story is the tobacco industry was the Trump campaigns largest corporate donor. Government plays a critical role in health and safety and this action was about protecting the tobacco industry profits, not the people.

A December 2025 story on a European study published in the Journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research. “The 1,740 substances identified were classified into three categories according to available toxicological knowledge: category 1 includes substances presenting the highest risk…Of all the substances identified, 134 fall into the priority category. These substances include carcinogenic, mutagenic, reprotoxic, chronically toxic, respiratory irritant or endocrine disruptor compounds, some of which have multiple effects.”

A report on Florida’s largest “medical” marijuana company, Trulieve, funding efforts to reschedule marijuana. As the report shows, Trulieve is more about money than medicine. Trulieve spent $140 million on a failed ballot measure to legalize marijuana in Florida and is spending millions again to try in 2026. And they have spent more than million supporting Trump. Stay tuned for more exposing true intent of Trulieve and “medical” marijuana movement - clue - it’s about profits, not patients.

This Opinion piece from January 2025 helps to expose the harms of legalization and commercialization of marijuana. Legalization brought higher potency and, not surprisingly, massive increase in daily use of marijuana. Legalization of any drug has the same story - industry profits and everyone else picks up the expenses.