Student presentation examines “cannabis’ new home in the wellness industry”

I am always excited by the wide range of diverse topics that students in my Marijuana Law, Policy & Reform seminar focus upon for their research and class presentations. And, these days, when it seems many folks have moved beyond having any interest in (always interesting) medical marijuana topics, I get excited that students remeain eager to keep exploting modern medical-related issues.  The third presentation slated for this week is in this space, and my student has titled her presentation as “Modern Medical Marijuana: Cannabis’ New Home in the Wellness Industry.” Here is her description (along with background readings):

Many medical professionals and patients alike have long considered Cannabis to be medicinal; it has been used in a multitude of medical capacities – from alleviating side-effects of cancer treatment to helping manage chronic pain.  While medical marijuana schemes were the predominant way of consuming cannabis legally in the United States, there is a paradigm shift now that legal adult-use recreational cannabis is growing in popularity. How does the medical marijuana industry evolve from here?  The answer may lie in the increasingly powerful and popular wellness industry.

In 2022, the global wellness industry amounted to $5.6 trillion dollars.  Notably, Public Health, Prevention, & Personalized Medicine amounted to $611 billion and Traditional & Commentary Medicine rang in at $519 billion. Cannabis consumption has become an increasingly prevalent tool in the wellness space, especially for helping to calm the nervous system and serve as an alternative to alcohol consumption – “California Sober” is a trendy new “healthy” way to indulge, and THC infused drinks for “relaxing” are booming in production.  However, some research suggests that substituting alcohol with marijuana is just an exchange of toxic effects.  So where does this leave “medical” marijuana in 2024; should we consider Cannabis to be a medicinal pain-management and disease-curing tool?  Or is it a healthier vice with some tangible wellness benefits?  This paper evaluates the medicinal properties of marijuana, its current place in the wellness system and marketability as a “healthy” indulgence, the wellness benefits of Cannabis, as well as some concerns in viewing the substance as part of this new wellness push.

Suggested Reading:

• Todd Suritzky, Beyond deficit and harm reduction: Incorporating the spectrum of wellness as an interpretive framework for cannabis consumption, 60 INT. J. OF DRUG POL. 18-23 (2018). 
• Ernetso Londoño, What Does Being Sober Mean Today? For Many, Not Full Abstinence, NY TIMES (Feb. 4, 2024)
• Sasha Rogelberg, Gen Z’s buyers’ strike on alcohol turns ‘Dry January’ into skyhigh new year, YAHOO! FINANCE (Feb. 3, 2024),
• Allana Akhtar, Cool girls don’t drink alcohol anymore, Business Insider (Jan. 10, 2023)
• Global Wellness Institute, Wellness Economy Statistics & Facts, GLOBAL WELLNESS INSTITUTE (2023).
• Lisa Jarvis, Going “California Sober” May Be Bad For Your Heart, BLOOMBERG (February 28, 2024), .