Personalised pills: how cannabis will change the way we think, work, and heal
- Ben Larson, cannabis advocate and founder of the cannabis-focussed Gateway Incubator, pictures a future where the plant is de-criminalised, de-mystified and put to good use.
- Automated self-diagnostics could provide tailored, synthetically produced pills to boost our feelings, health, and performance.
- Swapping coffee for cannabis: goodbye espresso, hello enhanced morning routine.
Ben Larson is a cannabis advocate who put his money where his mouth is when he founded the wryly-named Gateway Incubator — a business accelerator which funds start-ups that use cannabis in innovative ways.
At TOA 2016, Ben aimed to change the narrative around cannabis. He spoke passionately, aiming to dispel the myths, and to open eyes to what he sees as a powerful plant packed with compounds.
In his version of the near-future, we’ll be using drugs derived from cannabis which bring us better sleep patterns, relief from untreatable health conditions, and targeted enhancement for discrete areas of our lives — in both work and play.
For a glimpse of a future where we live the high life — not just get high — watch his talk and check out the condensed takeaways below.
How will cannabis-derived drugs replace and enhance your morning routine?
Here’s one way cannabis will affect your future: your mornings may no longer involve a strong cup of coffee. Ben pictures an especially-designed routine:
“Taking caffeine significantly alters your body’s equilibrium and stops your body operating at its optimal levels — and you’re going to need more of this drug as you can become addicted to it.
“Instead you’ll wake up, and with your personal AI assistant of choice you’ll do a simple diagnostic of your body. And then your own little pharmaceutical machine in your house will produce a pill.”
The technology that enables cannabis healthcare is already here.
Cannabis isn’t just about recreation any more — it’s about living your preferred life.
“You’ll get to have the experience that you want. You’ll be able to use this technology throughout the day: to have an amazing creative brainstorming session, or to relax a little bit after work — or to combat that terrible insomnia you’ve been fighting. And the technology that enables this is already here.
“So whether you want to go to the gym and have the most insane workout, or if you’re going to go into the office and start hammering out that busy schedule — or if you’re going to play hooky for a day — that pill will be based on your desired operating output.
Old laws that made cannabis illegal are holding back medical breakthroughs.
“Thousands of years ago in China, cannabis was used as medicine. It wasn’t until very recently that cannabis was considered illegal. But for many years there’s been a stigma built around it.
Today it’s considered a “schedule one” drug in the USA. This puts it in the same category as ecstasy, heroin, LSD — and “worse” than cocaine, opium, methadone and methamphetamines. That is insane.
71% of 18–34 year olds approve of legalisation in the USA.
“But the tide is shifting. In the USA, voters are speaking — the trend shows that legalisation is unstoppable at this point: 71% of 18–34 year olds approve of legalisation in the USA. Legalisation is on the ballot in California — and if that happens, you’re talking about a $5Bn industry in that one state alone.”
How is using individual cannabis compounds different to simply smoking cannabis?
“We have learned that all of our bodies are designed with this amazing Endocannabinoid system, specifically designed to interact with the compounds in the cannabis plant.
“These Endocannabinoid receptors are all over our body and that’s why when you smoke it, you get unpredictable effects. It’s a very complicated plant that has 85 unique compounds all with unique effects, that all interact with these receptors.
“And it’s not only in our bodies. People are making cannabis dog treats for dogs with anxiety to help them mellow out a little bit. Or horses that have a lame leg: you can rub a nice non-psychoactive balm on it and the pain goes away. It’s amazing stuff!”
THC and CBD are already doing benefitting millions. But they’re only two of the compounds.
“THC is the most well-known compound. It’s the one that gives you the high — but it also has some pain-relieving components. There’s also CBD, which — arguably — gives no psychoactive effect, but puts you in a restful state, relieves pain, and relaxes muscles. CBD even helps with previously untreatable seizure conditions, like epilepsy.
“As things legalise. We’re doing more research and finding things like CVN, a compound that makes you go sleep — which some of you have probably experienced before! But if can we isolate CVN, think about the opportunities to create a helpful sleeping aid that doesn’t have negative side effects.
“CVG — the building block of many of the different compounds — is well-known for its use in treating glaucoma because it releases pressure in the back of the eyes. There’s many other applications to it as well. And that’s just four compounds — there’s another 81, and a lot of the research hasn’t been done yet.”
Legalisation is needed so proper cannabis research can take place.
“Because of its association with the cannabis plant, CBD is still illegal. So people are not getting their medicine because of these illegalities that were put into place years ago. This needs to stop. People need their medicine.”
“People are now creating methods to produce cannabis compounds individually, and in mass. And there’s a lot of power in there — but again it’s going to take time and money, and as we make the plant legal, to paraphrase the movie The Martian, we’re going to have the ability to research the crap out of it.”
It’s not going to be “The Cannabis Industry.” But it is going to grow beyond its projected $100Bn market cap.
“It won’t be spoken of as the “cannabis market.” Just as tech startups don’t talk about the market potential of the Internet, no one is going to be saying that about cannabis, either.
“In five years they’re going to be talking about the ‘diet pill market’ and the ‘sleep aid market’ or the same for health and beauty, or athletics. And it’s not that far away. It’s not going to be seen as a drug — it’s going to be another useful tool that we use in everything we do.”
If you enjoyed this article, please consider hitting the ♥︎ button below to help share it with other people who’d be interested.
This talk was edited for clarity and length.
Get TOA.life in your inbox — and read more from TOA’s network of thought-leaders:
Sign up for the TOA.life newsletter
The security leak in your pocket and encrypted chat with bots: Alan Duric, Co-Founder of Wire explains our chatbot-filled, encrypted future
Psychedelic drugs and collective consciousness: crowdfunding the medical treatments capitalism won’t touch
