The Cheerful Pharmacist

A number of publications and reviews have documented the increased cardiovascular risk (like heart attacks, strokes, arrhythmias, etc.) associated with the use of cannabis. In this podcast, I explain what this risk is, how relevant it is depending on the form and type of cannabis used and the likely mechanism responsible for this risk.

Cancer pain is one of the most debilitating symptoms experienced by those with cancer and those who have survived cancer. This podcast reviews the evidence on using cannabis to manage cancer related pain and explores the benefits of using cannabis as an adjunct therapy to opioids (e.g. the potential for a synergistic effect leading to lower doses of opioids needed). I also discuss which combinations (high CBD, high THC or 1:1 THC:CBD) and what doses have been shown to be efficacious in clinical trials so far and the side effects to be expect from cannabis.

THCA (tetrahydrocannabinolic acid) is less well studied than CBD and THC and is supposed to be non-intoxicating. In this podcast, I discuss how THCA is different from THC and how a bottle of THCA that didn't initially contain THC can eventually contain some THC. In vitro studies and studies in mice currently suggest that THCA may have anti-inflammatory, anti-nausea and neuroprotective effects but most products on the market and those being used for medical purposes are ones that contain CBD and THC, not THCA.

This podcast is an introduction to medical cannabis. This is the first episode out of a series of episodes I will be doing on the topic of medical cannabis. In this podcast, I discuss my role as a pharmacist when it comes to initiating medical cannabis and selecting the appropriate dosage. I review some of the common misconceptions with cannabis/cannabinoid products and what are the different constituents of cannabis and what are some of the uses of CBD and THC. I also discuss the different forms of cannabis (medical cannabis, recreational cannabis and prescription cannabis products), why they are different and the evidence surrounding medical cannabis.

In honour of the International Day of the Midwife, this episode is about my experience with having a midwife team and an unplanned home birth. Whether you choose to have an OB, a maternity doctor or a midwife is a very personal choice and I hope to share some insight on what it was like to have a midwife team as my maternity care provider. I received amazing support and care from them during and after my pregnancy and during the labour/birthing process. I also talk about my experience with hypnobirthing and why lying on your back is not an optimal birthing position.

This podcast is about the recent cases of acute severe hepatitis of unknown origin (idiopathic hepatitis) affecting children around the world. As of May 4th, 2022, there are at least 200 cases worldwide, mostly in the UK but some in other parts of Europe and in the US. I talk about what normally causes hepatitis - that is, hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E viruses and what are potential causes of the acute severe hepatitis we are seeing now in healthy children with no significant chronic conditions or co-morbidities. Most of the children also tested positive for adenovirus so it is thought that this virus may be playing some role. The COVID19 vaccine is not thought to be linked to these cases as most of the children affected were unvaccinated and/or too young to have gotten the vaccination. 

This episode is about how to get better sleep and some of the strategies as part of having good sleep hygiene to promote better quality sleep. I explain why daylight is so important to regulating our sleep-wake cycle and I discuss the basics of sleep architecture (organization of our sleep cycle) and how sleep aids can affect sleep architecture and why they shouldn't be used on a long-term basis if possible. I also highlight which sleep aids are least likely to affect sleep architecture and have a better side effect profile.

This episode is about Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir and ritonavir) - the recently approved at-home oral COVID 19 treatment for those with mild to moderate symptoms and at risk of progression to severe COVID 19. In this episode, I discuss who would benefit from this medication, conditions where it should not be used or prescribed, examples of drug interactions, side effects of the medication and some of the data points from the original Pfizer trial that evaluated the use of this drug.