Researchers at the Prevention Research Center for Healthy Neighborhoods (PRCHN) penned an article titled “Availability and Characteristics of Hemp-Derived Psychoactive Cannabis Products: A Pilot Study in Cleveland, Ohio,” which was recently published in the Ohio Journal of Public Health.
The research team included:
- Jessica Suratkal (CWR ’23; GRS ’23, public health);
- Erika Trapl, director of PRCHN and professor in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences;
- Catherine Osborn, bioinformatics research associate at PRCHN;
- Pranav Vasu (CWR ’23; GRS ’23, public health); and
- Stephanie Pike Moore, research scientist at PRCHN.
The team conducted an audit of 20% of Cleveland’s tobacco retailers (n = 82) to determine the prevalence and type of hemp-derived psychoactive cannabis products—such as delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)—locally available. Over two-fifths (41.5%) of retailers carried these products, which are unregulated, indicating the need for additional research into their potential public health impact.