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May 4, 2023Liked by Shayda Torabi

Awesome first article! I recommend using "cannabis" instead of "marijuana" in your future publications. "Marijuana" has negative historical associations, while "cannabis" is a more neutral and scientific term that emphasizes the plant's benefits. This can help promote a positive understanding of the plant and its users.

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Thank you for subscribing, reading, and for sharing your thoughts Michael! I completely hear you regarding the word "marijuana" in regards to it's past, but my intention for using marijuana (high THC) is to differentiate it from hemp (low THC), because the term "cannabis" is all encompassing in my opinion of both marijuana *and* hemp. On top of that, my background is marketing, and owning and operating a cannabis retail where we invest heavily in consumer education. We have a lot of work to do because consumers are confused as I stated in the original post-- we're challenged with communicating CBD vs THC let alone anything else. When states refer to it as marijuana legally as a "medical marijuana" program, it's hard to change that vernacular because it is what is accessible to the consumer to create familiarity with on top of it all. The origins of the word also have a meaningful cultural association and historically has played an important role in ceremony, and I think that should be acknowledged too.

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May 4, 2023Liked by Shayda Torabi

I believe Shayda was attempting to distinguish between CBD-rich cannabis and THC-rich cannabis by using the nomenclature for each, hemp and marijuana. I've run into the same problem when creating content in the past, as I much prefer the term cannabis (it is, after all, the correct way to refer to the plant, which can produce a wide variety of cannabinoids at varying levels of dominance).

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Thanks for chiming in Andrew and for reading and subscribing! I love the commentary and feedback this post is getting because as the name of this page alludes, I like to speak candidly and I welcome discussion, how else would we learn and grow?! With that said, Yes you are correct, it is a challenge to distinguish between low THC and high THC cannabis without referencing hemp and marijuana. And since I'm consumer facing, trying to re-educate consumers is a big task and using the term cannabis, especially in a state like Texas, doesn't clearly communicate what they do and don't have access to legally.

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