News & Views
Trends in fatal motor vehicle crashes before and after marijuana commercialization in Colorado
The results of this research were published in Drug Alcohol Dependence in September 2014. Study Title: Trends in fatal motor vehicle crashes before and after marijuana commercialization in Colorado Co-authors: Salomonsen-Sautel S, Min SJ, Sakai JT, Thurstone C, Hopfer...
Marching the talk in the Army
I watched in 2011 as Dr. Christian Thurstone, my relatively quiet and shy (c'mon, I'm comparing him to me) psychiatrist-scientist-husband (and the man whose website you're reading) wrestled with the news of mental health problems among active-duty and discharged...
Marijuana-opiate study raises questions
An article recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association claims states with medical marijuana laws are associated with significantly lower rates of opioid mortality. There are significant limitations to this research making it irresponsible to...
Smell a rat?
It's a Friday night, and we decided to assemble a casual focus group at home to review major elements of the $2 million marijuana-prevention campaign the State of Colorado is aiming at youth. In mere minutes and over slices of pizza (extra cheese), our self-described...
Thurstone among 2014 ‘Top Docs’
I'm humbled by the praise of my physician peers, who named me among Denver's "Top Docs" in this month's edition of 5280 magazine. To those of you who thought of me and took the time to cast this vote of confidence in my work, thank you so much. For the third time, I’m...
Denver Post pot ads irresponsible
News organizations running ads that promote the use of cannabis for the treatment of serious medical conditions are acting irresponsibly -- and that is an understatement. Please see the following letter sent to Greg Moore, editor-in-chief of The Denver Post, and...
Denver crime rate up almost 7 percent
We can’t say what has caused Denver’s overall crime rate to jump — but we know crime here isn’t down.
Temporal trends in marijuana attitudes, availability and use in Colorado compared to non-medical marijuana states
The results of this research originally were published in Drug Alcohol Dependence in July 2014. For more information, see PubMed.gov. Title: Temporal trends in marijuana attitudes, availability and use in Colorado compared to non-medical marijuana states Co-authors:...
Avoid Charlotte’s Web for epilepsy
First, please let me be clear: I want more research of Cannabidiol, the nonintoxicating component of the cannabis plant that has shown some medical promise -- particularly for the treatment of children with intractable epilepsy. I want that research to comply fully...
Colorado, Washington omitted from CDC analysis
The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBS) produced by the Centers for Disease Control is one of the nation's longest-running and most extensive efforts to monitor health-risk behaviors contributing to the leading causes of death for children and young adults....
Read the book
Clearing the Haze is a guide designed to help parents determine whether their child may have a substance problem and, if so, how to begin to address it. This book includes the voices and insight of experts in substance abuse counseling, young people in recovery, and parents who have lived the nightmare of adolescent addiction.