For years, friends and family and angel investors were the primary funding sources for cannabis ventures, as only those closest to the industry were willing to take the risks that came with investing in a sector that, while increasingly legal at the state level, was (and is) still illegal federally in the United States. While those early investors continue to be important, we’re starting to see more institutional investors make moves into cannabis. Many of them are investing because of the way the industry is evolving. As cannabis becomes a fundamental ingredient, in products from drinks to beauty creams, investors will have more predictable ways to evaluate and invest in cannabis companies.

Following A Familiar Growth Path

While cannabis might be unusual in its legal status, the investment path it is following is well-trodden. Consider other sectors – personal computers immediately come to mind – where a small core of advocates and visionaries toiled away in relative obscurity before a sudden awakening of the market. Where once only angel investors participated – early backers of Apple and Microsoft MSFT 1.54%, after all, were family and friends – venture capitalists followed. Then came private equity investors before companies emerged onto the capital markets as public, well-funded vehicles with broad investor bases.

And like technology, cannabis will soon be the backbone for many different kinds of companies. Technology has powered new growth in industries such as hospitality, health care, and retail. Cannabis is on a similar path. As it begins to spread into new segments, it will fuel new opportunities for investors.

Cannabis Market Segmentation Means Opportunity

As cannabis finds its footing, it’s becoming more clear there is no one “cannabis industry.” In reality, cannabis is a foundational ingredient that is beginning to play a huge role in a number of traditional sectors, such as consumer staples (cosmetic, food, beverage), health care (biotech and pharmaceutical), consumer discretionary (retail) and real estate (REITs). This evolution will give institutional and individual investors ways to put money into cannabis through markets where they feel more comfortable. In fact, many of these investors probably won’t be core cannabis proselytizers, but instead, smart financiers who know an industry game-changer when they see it.

The market awakening for cannabis started in 2012 when Colorado and Washington state both legalized adult-use cannabis. The recognition of the sector’s transformational potential created an environment where small-dollar, high-risk investing thrived. Venture capital investors, better funded than angels and still willing to take high-risk bets for big potential payoffs, saw the gathering momentum for normalizing cannabis nationwide. Between 2008 and 2018, VCs made $2 billion in investments into cannabis companies, according to data in the MGO & ELLO Cannabis Private Investment Review, powered by PitchBook Data. The multi-billion-dollar stock market valuations of Canopy Growth, Tilray and others show the VC strategy of making many early investments to find a few large winners paid off.

This year, we’re seeing a shift from early-stage VC investors to later stage VC who prefer making larger investments in companies further along in their development. This is another mile marker on cannabis’ growth road. This year is the first when late-stage investment rounds are outpacing early-stage rounds. About $660 million in late-stage funding was completed through mid-May in just nine companies, including a $420 million round in the first cannabis unicorn Pax Labs, a maker of vaporizing equipment for the adult-use market. By contrast, there were 33 early-stage financings totaling $530 million in the same period. The first five months of 2019 saw inflows of $1.3 billion from private investors, putting cannabis well on its way to eclipsing total prior investment in just one year.

Private Equity Dollars To Come Next

Private equity is the next stage of investors seeking opportunities in cannabis. Often better capitalized than venture capital firms, increasing interest from private equity (PE) investors is a sign the perceived risk factor is declining in cannabis. Generally speaking, PE investors are bankers and financiers running large investment funds. The most successful PE funds are focused on just one sector or even a subsector where they can apply their deep knowledge for outsized investment returns. PE investors, like many VC investors, maybe less well-versed in the dynamics of cannabis, but have the expertise to see how cannabis can create value in a market segment. Many times, PE investors apply more in-depth strategies beyond top-line growth prospects when evaluating their investments. For example, they may carefully track the consolidation process growth industries like cannabis tends to go through. Or they may wait for the type of business results institutional investors, such as mutual funds, will want to see before making a play.

There’s little doubt cannabis remains in a legal and market gray area today, given its federal status. The surge in private investment in cannabis this year already shows that professional investors expect the road to lead to total legality. In the meantime, as cannabis becomes an increasingly viable ingredient in applications ranging from pharmaceutical pain treatment to adult beverages, the investment path is evolving like many industries that came before – and more cautious investors are showing a willingness to enter the space. As these “training wheels” fall off, a groundswell of investor capital will lift cannabis into the next phase of industry growth.

When it comes to medicines and drugs, one fundamental truth is that everybody is unique. Each individual experience different effects, and reacts differently based on many factors, including biology, life history, mental state, mood, and even transient factors such as how much food or sleep you have had recently. As such, some people may experience anxiety or paranoia when smoking weed, while others find it relaxes and relieves such conditions. In this article, we will try to elucidate why these differences occur and discuss some ways to decrease the possibility of paranoia from cannabis consumption.

How Does Cannabis Affect the Brain?

The cannabinoids in cannabis, such as THC and CBD, affect receptors in the body’s endocannabinoid system. The central nervous system is highly responsive to triggers of the CB-1 receptors by both endogenous cannabinoids and exogenous ones such as THC. When consuming THC, a wide range of psychoactive effects are experienced depending on the individual and the strain of cannabis ingested. Effects can range from euphoria, bliss, and relaxation to anxiety, paranoia, and depression. For the most part, users report enjoyable experiences, and except in the case of over-consumption, negative experiences are rare.

In those cases where negative emotions are experienced, they are usually short-lived and non-life threatening, however uncomfortable at the time. Often, such negative experiences are put down to set and setting, meaning that the user was already in a negative state of mind due to personal issues or environment, and smoking weed exacerbates these feelings. But more recent studies have looked at the biological effects of cannabis on paranoia, and are beginning to theorize on the mechanisms in which weed can cause paranoia.

Paranoia in Weed Users

The symptoms of overconsumption include anxiety, paranoia, tachycardia, sweating, confusion, disorientation, and nervousness. However, these effects are not life-threatening and tend to subside after a few hours, depending on the route of administration and amount of cannabis consumed. In Emergency Rooms, patients admitted due to an overdose of cannabis are just given medications to treat nausea and anxiety, given a place to relax, monitored, and then released, usually with little to no long-term effects. Other than cases of overconsumption, the long-term use of marijuana is generally well tolerated. There are instances in which long-term cannabis use has been associated with psychosis, however, such cases appear to be treatable. While there seems to be some consensus that cannabis use can reveal latent psychotic disorders, the scientific community is still unable to prove with certainty that a specific type of psychosis associated with cannabis use exists.  

However, since the advent of synthetic cannabinoids the prevalence of paranoia, hallucination s, and other negative psychoactive reactions have been increasingly reported in both scientific studies and calls to poison control centers. Some researchers have put this down to the lack of so called “entourage compounds” present in the cannabis plant, but not in synthetic versions of cannabinoids used in clinical trials. It is theorized, although not proven, that the terpenes and CBD in cannabis help to regulate the high from THC, and when removed, lead to stronger psychoactive effects which can be uncomfortable for users. Several studies using synthetic THC such as Nabilone or Dronabinol have shown pronounced negative psychoactive effects that are not normally associated with the use of whole-plant cannabis.

In areas where weed is illegal, particularly in the UK, synthetic cannabinoids such as ‘Spice’ or ‘K2’ is a growing black market industry. As of 2016, there are around 140 synthetic cannabinoids on the market. These synthetic cannabinoids differ from weed. The THC found naturally in weed is known as a partial agonist of the CB-1 receptors in the body’s endocannabinoid system. Synthetic THC, on the other hand, has been shown to act as a non-selective, full agonist of the same receptors, making the substances between 2-100 times stronger than the natural version and longer-lasting. According to a 2015 review, case reports involving synthetic cannabis overdoses include symptoms such as alterations in mood, perception, tachycardia, seizures, kidney failure, and cardiac arrest. In another review of Emergency Room visits in the US, it was found that 59.3% of patients admitted due to overdose of synthetic THC had serious medical outcomes. A 2016 study concluded that synthetic cannabinoids had “significantly pronounced neurotoxicity and cardiotoxicity compared with marijuana. With the rise of such synthetic cannabinoids, researchers are now beginning to understand the mechanisms through which THC can cause negative psychotic reactions such as anxiety and paranoia in the human brain.

A Study on Weed and Paranoia

Although many studies have encountered patients experiencing negative psychoactive effects such as paranoia, only one study has thus far focused on this reaction. The 2015 study, published in the Schizophrenia Bulletin, used 121 volunteers with previous histories of paranoia. In the placebo-controlled clinical trial, participants were injected with either pure THC (Dronabinol) or saline and given a self-assessment test to rate their levels of paranoia. The study found that THC “significantly increased levels of paranoia” in the subjects receiving the treatment over the control group. Although brain scans were not used in this study, the author’s hypothesized that the mechanism of action was due to “an anomalous internal state,” including changes in “sensory intensity, distorted sensory experience, sensory flooding, thought echo, and hallucinations.” So, although this study does lay the groundwork for an increased mechanistic understanding of how THC can cause paranoia, it is by no means conclusive and should be reiterated that it used synthetic THC and participants who were already predisposed to such mental states. Further studies using fMRI and other diagnostic techniques are needed to better understand the relationship between THC and anxiety or paranoia.

Tips to reduce paranoia

If you are a first-time weed user and are concerned about the risks of paranoia or anxiety then there are some things you can do to mitigate the risk and increase the likelihood of a pleasant and pleasurable experience. The first would be to relax and stop worrying, the incidence of negative reactions to weed are rare, and worrying about such effects could be a self-fulfilling prophecy. 

We recommend the following tips:

• Start slow. Try smoking or vaping just a little bit and see how you react, if you like it, take more. Avoid edibles or tinctures your first time as it is harder to titrate the dose and the effects are more long-lasting.
• Set and Setting. Try weed when you are in a good mental state, a comfortable and safe setting, and amongst people you are comfortable with. Intentionally designing your first experience to reduce any sources of stress or worry can ensure that it is a pleasant one.
• The Strain Matters. Different strains have different cannabinoid percentages and terpene profiles. As such, each strain will affect you differently. Ask your budtender for a strain with a mellow high and lower THC content. Remember that you want to look at the moods of the strain, not indica or sativa, as the effects associated with those terms are not based on science at all.
• Try a strain high in CBD. CBD primarily affects the CB-2 Receptors in the periphery of the nervous system and is thought to help mitigate the psychoactive effects of THC. It may also reduce anxiety, and improve sleep or relaxation.

When you first step into the world of cannabinoids and CBD, it can be overwhelming trying to understand the types of CBD products available and how to use them. You’ve likely heard some of the natural balancing benefits of cannabidiol (CBD) and have made the decision to incorporate the supplement into your wellness routine, but perhaps you don’t know exactly how to use CBD oil.

Unlike medical marijuana, hemp CBD oil products are available throughout the United States without a prescription. Hemp-derived products like CBD oil are now legal under federal law, which allows people across the country to take CBD oil and experience its natural benefits. Because of the growing demand for CBD, there are now a wide variety of CBD products to choose from, such as liquids, tinctures, chews, capsules, and topicals. This gives you more choices and an opportunity to find a way to use CBD oil that aligns with your needs and lifestyle.

If you like the idea of using CBD oil, but don’t know how to start, don’t worry — we’ve got you covered! Here are seven different ways to use CBD oil.

1. Swallow and Ingest CBD Oil

Perhaps the most common way to use CBD is simply to swallow pure CBD oil. When you ingest CBD oil, it passes through the digestive system and is metabolized by the liver, eventually delivering its active compounds to your bloodstream.

Medical Marijuana, Inc.’s Real Scientific Hemp OilTM (RSHOTM) is pure CBD hemp oil packaged in an easy-to-use oral applicator. Simply squeeze your dosage of CBD oil onto a finger or spoon and place it on your tongue before swallowing. RSHOTM comes in three label varieties – Green, Blue, and Gold, giving you the choice between our non-decarboxylated, decarboxylated, and filtered options.

Looking for the highest concentration of CBD? Our 3g oral applicator of RSHOTM Gold Label contains an impressive 720mg of CBD. Or, choose to use our RSHO™ Maximum Strength CBD oil, which blends our RSHO™ Green Label and RSHO™ Gold Label varieties for an incredible 4,500 mg of CBD in every 10-gram oral applicator, or 225 mg of CBD per half gram serving.

If you value convenience, you may prefer getting your daily dose of CBD oil with easy-to-swallow CBD oil capsules, which can be quickly washed down with a swig of water. When you take CBD oil capsules, you don’t have to worry about measuring out how much CBD oil to take each day.

2. Hold CBD Oil Under Your Tongue

Another popular method for taking CBD oil is to apply and hold it under the tongue so that the mucus membranes in the mouth can absorb CBD and the other active compounds found in CBD oil. This method of taking CBD oil offers faster delivery, because the CBD and hemp oil’s other natural constituents get to bypass the digestive system and metabolization by the liver. To take CBD oil tinctures, simply add your serving under your tongue for 60-90 seconds to allow the natural chemicals to be absorbed.

CBD Oil Drops like Dixie Botanicals® 1oz. Dew Drops tinctures and RSHOTM 1 oz. tinctures are popular choices for those new to using CBD oil. RSHOTM MCT oil liquids – particularly our Blue and Gold Label Liquids — are also top choices and lend themselves to this method of using CBD oil.

3. Vape CBD Oil

Over the past 12-18 months, vaping CBD has grown in popularity among health-conscious consumers. Vaping offers a lung-friendly method for inhaling CBD oil, allowing CBD and other trace cannabinoids to be absorbed through the lung’s large absorptive surface area before they’re diffused into the bloodstream.

When you’re first beginning to use CBD oil by vaping, it’s best to start simple. A CBD vaporizer pen is easy to use. All you need to do is charge the battery, thread the pre-packaged cartridge of CBD oil onto the pen, push a button to turn it on, and inhale using the mouthpiece. Regular users sometimes upgrade to desktop vaporizers to enjoy CBD from the comfort of their home.

Our Dixie Botanicals® CBD Vape Cartridge is a pre-filled vape cartridge containing 250 mg of CBD made from our CBD distillate and featuring botanical terpenes for a light, slightly sweet citrus and pine taste. This high-quality vape cartridge features universal 510 threading, so it’s compatible with any 510-threaded vape battery. We’ve made it easy by bundling the Dixie Botanicals® CBD Vape Cartridge with some high-quality vape batteries, providing you with everything to get started vaping CBD oil.

If you already own a vape pen and prefer to fill your own vaporizer, Dixie Botanicals® CBD Vape Liquid comes in three delicious flavors: Sour Watermelon, Blackberry Lemonade, and Vanilla Caramel. These CBD Vape Liquids come packaged with a simple to use dropper top that makes filling your vape pen easy. Want to learn more about vaping CBD? Visit our Vaping 101 page.

4. Chew and Swallow CBD Oil Edibles

There’s likely not a more enjoyable way to get your daily CBD than by chewing and swallowing a CBD edible. CBD edibles are food products that have been infused with CBD. After taking the CBD edible, it is digested by the liver and the CBD is delivered to your bloodstream where the compounds can begin promoting balance.

Our Dixie Botanicals® Kicks are all-natural energy chews that combine 5 mg CBD with B vitamins and either caffeine or vitamin D3. Available in chocolate, mango citrus, and sour apple flavors, Kicks contain all-natural ingredients that provide energy and help you be alert and at your balanced best. Pop in a chew to help you wake in the morning or as a pick-me-up in the afternoon for an all-natural energy boost while getting CBD.

Also from Dixie Botanicals® are CBD Gummies in tasty flavors like watermelon and mango. These CBD gummies are made using CBD isolate to remove any concern over THC. Each gummy provides 10 mg of CBD, and their soft texture and pleasing flavor means getting your daily CBD can be a delightful treat.

5. Mix CBD Oil With Your Favorite Food or Drink

Looking for a seamless method for adding CBD into your daily life? Try blending CBD oil into your favorite foods or drinks. Adding CBD to your already-prepared healthy foods is not just an easy way to use CBD oil, but it may also improve how well the CBD is absorbed. Fatty acids found in foods can serve as carriers for cannabinoids like CBD, allowing them to move through the body for faster processing.

Add Green, Blue, or Gold Label RSHOTM MCT Liquids to foods and beverages like:

• Smoothies
• Acai bowls
• Coffee
• Salads
• Oatmeal
• Ice cream
• Curries

Almost any food or beverage can become your own personalized CBD edible with CBD liquids and tinctures from Medical Marijuana, Inc. Want to avoid THC in your DIY CBD edible? Try our CBD Isolate or RSHO-X™ CBD liquid. 

6. Rub CBD Oil On Your Skin

Ingesting and inhaling aren’t the only ways to use CBD oil. You can also apply some CBD products directly onto the skin. The CBD and other active ingredients found in topical CBD creams and salves are absorbed into the skin so that they can interact with cells near the surface without entering the bloodstream. Instead, the balancing properties of CBD oil topicals offer more focused nourishment and natural relief. CBD hemp oil contains CBD and many fatty acids, proteins, vitamins, and other nutrients that play a vital role in the health of your skin. 

Our CBD hemp oil salves from RSHOTM and Dixie Botanicals® are designed to nourish and hydrate troubled areas. Try HempMeds®’s Hydrating & Soothing Body Lotion for spa-like relief and to restore youthfulness to your skin. Or check out more of our topical CBD products.

7. Use CBD Oil to Wash and Condition Your Hair

Use hemp CBD oil shampoos and conditioners to naturally clean and strengthen the health of your hair and scalp. These innovative CBD hair products feature a blend of our Hemp CBD ComplexTM and steam-distilled botanicals. Hemp-derived CBD oil contains a list of essential nutrients that nourish and protect your hair from damage caused by free radicals and environmental exposure.

Add HempMeds®’s Hydrating & Purifying Hemp Shampoo and Nourishing Hemp Conditioner to your shower and use them several times a week to cleanse and repair the moisture and restore the shine to your hair. 

Want Multiple CBD Options?

If many of these options for using CBD are appealing, CBD isolate may be an ideal choice. At 99% purity, CBD isolate is the most potent CBD product available on the market. It’s taste free, allowing you to experience CBD isolate effects using a variety of different methods of consumption. Offering versatility for those who want to benefit from CBD, CBD isolate can be used orally, vaporized, or used to craft your own CBD oils or CBD edibles.

Ideal for creating personalized CBD supplements, our RSHOTM 1g CBD Isolate powder contains 990mg CBD.

Get Started with CBD

If you’re still unsure which way of using CBD is best for your lifestyle, health needs, and financial considerations, try our CBD Hemp Oil Product Recommendation Tool. Already know which CBD hemp oil is for you? Visit our online store to get started using CBD today. If you’ve figured out how you want to use CBD oil but aren’t sure how much you need to use each day check out our CBD oil serving guide.

For growing cannabis, indoor operations have become the norm. They’re discreet and owners can precisely control the climate – and their product. When strains have different THC contents and a quality product is the top priority, these indoor operations provide business owners the control they need to develop the exact product their customers want.

However, these facilities also come with extra costs. Space is limited, climate control equipment requires maintenance, and indoor lighting uses a lot of power. Different strategies and technologies can be employed to create a more efficient and sustainable grow operation. The upfront costs may be higher, but if you are willing to let technology take the wheel, the long-term benefits can outweigh the costs.

Vertical growing by Ideal Harvest

Vertical Growing

An easy way to make your grow operation more efficient is to expand up, rather than out. Vertical growing is a popular trend in the cannabis industry that allows for a more environmentally and financially sustainable operation.

“I believe the future of this industry will soon be transitioning to incorporate vertical growing to help maximize square footage while decreasing your carbon footprint,” said Mike Caine, master grower for Ideal Harvest and a past Cannabis Cup Winner. He should know too, as Ideal Harvest is one of the leading vertical grow consultants and providers in the industry.

The benefits, as highlighted by Ideal Harvest CEO Sheryl Mizicko, are many. From an energy standpoint, vertical growing allows you to use one light for two canopies, rather than just one. It also allows for less energy-intensive bulbs, replacing 1000W bulbs with 615-630W options. It also reduces water usage by using drip irrigation and water reclamation strategies.

Additionally, there is a convenience of access; vertical canopies can be serviced and maintained without having to reach into or over the canopy. This helps mitigate pests (mites, mold, bacteria) by reducing human-introduced elements. Prevention on the front end means less need for pesticides later on.

Apart from environmental benefits, vertical canopies can help the operation and business as a whole run more efficiently. With vertical, one person can service the same area in one-half day that it takes two people to do in an entire day. Additionally, fewer pesticides and organic indoor growing help create a better end product, meaning a more satisfied customer.

Automation

“Cannabis, as any other plant, needs a certain temperature, humidity level, and radiation level in order to grow in the most productive way.” This is according to Pieter Kwakernaak, General Manager of Hoogendoorn America, a leader in cannabis and horticulture automation.

Climate control is a major key to indoor cannabis growth. Like any plant, cannabis has specific needs that will determine the highest-quality harvest. “Where are they growing best in outside conditions?” Kwakernaak posed. “India or Jamaica, where it’s very high temperatures. That means in a growing environment, in a greenhouse or in an enclosed room, we mimic the same temperatures where the plant really thrives.”

The best way to achieve this balanced climate control is via automation; a system that monitors and adjusts based on the plant’s needs. In Hoogendoorn’s case, “We do a combination of temperature, humidity, and controlling the light levels,” Kwakernaak explained. “So, on the one hand, that means on a very bright, sunny summer day, we black out the greenhouse in order to mimic shorter days, so that the cannabis can start flowering. On the other hand, we’re also keeping in account that we control the humidity levels because you want to prevent mold in the flowers.”

It’s a delicate process, but one that will likely make or break your grow operation. “I would say the climate, the exact growing climate, is key to success or failure,” Kwakernaak claimed. “If you don’t have the right climate, with too high humidity levels, with too big temperature and humidity swings, then it’s a recipe for disaster, because then the plants are susceptible to diseases. They don’t grow well … It is all about balance … Your relative humidity has to be in balance with CO2, temperature, and radiation. Those four factors all play together in having the ideal climate for the plant.”

Energy

Growing cannabis is energy-intensive. According to MarketWatch, cannabis indoor grow operations account for one percent of electricity consumption in the U.S., approximately 40.3 million kWh per year. To power the lights and climate control systems, these facilities need a lot of power. “They use a lot of energy in a small footprint,” explained John Ryan, head of the financing division at Baker Energy Team. It was cannabis’ energy needs that made it perfect for Baker.

“We focus on the high energy users,” Ryan explained. “We have the ability to go in there and save them at least 10 percent on their current rate … It’s been in the neighborhood of 15 to 20 percent.” Baker works with their partners to develop alternate energy solutions, whether that be solar or wind power, cogeneration, or the development of micro-grids. “What we do is go in and customize the system to the customer’s needs,” Ryan continued. “We’re not out there with a truck full of solar panels … unless you need them. Ultimately, we’ll look at the project … As a rule of thumb, one megawatt of power needs five acres of land. Sometimes you just don’t have that amount of land to do a solar farm, so what we could do is, we’ll come in and do cogeneration and then utilize the rooftops for as much solar as we can.”

In a time when huge companies like Budweiser and a number of automobile makers are shifting their focus toward sustainability, namely cleaner energy, cannabis has the unique opportunity, as a young industry, to brand itself as sustainable. Utilizing alternative energy solutions won’t just benefit the bottom line, but could make cannabis companies champions of sustainability.

Cooling Systems

It’s already been established that a successful grow operations needs rigorous climate control equipment. But how can that equipment be more sustainable? Industrial chillers play a major role in temperature regulation for indoor operations. “The need for temperature control can cross your day in so many ways,” explained Philip Preston, president of PolyScience, manufacturer of liquid temperature control solutions. “It’s an extremely broad range of applications.”

However, these chillers can have an adverse effect on the environment, using valuable energy resources and releasing greenhouse gases in the process. For this reason, PolyScience developed their latest DuraChill line of chilling technology. The new series uses a natural and nontoxic refrigerant-grade propane which can regulate the temperature of your operation, without emitting ozone-depleting greenhouse gases.

The equipment chosen to run a grow operation will ultimately determine the sustainability of said facility – and the owner’s bottom line.