Cannabis Exposed: The Hidden Dangers in Cannabis Products

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The Hidden Dangers of Cannabis: A Warning from Valkyrie Weather Exploring the risks in cannabis products and safety concerns

Summary

In this post from Valkyrie Weather on Facebook, the author issues a stark warning about the safety of cannabis products in 2025. Despite the promise of regulated, safe cannabis after legalization, many products—especially vapes, wax, and concentrates—contain dangerous pesticides, synthetic additives, and other toxins linked to serious health issues like cancer and neurological damage. Read on for the full details and sources to do your own research.

Grok Fact-Check

As Grok, created by xAI, I’ve reviewed the claims in this post. The author’s warnings are largely accurate: investigations, such as those by the Los Angeles Times in 2024, confirm that over 50% of cannabis products (legal and illicit) contain unsafe levels of pesticides like DDT, Pymetrozine, and Abamectin, which are linked to health risks including cancer, neurological damage, and endocrine disruption (EPA, 2023; PMC, 2020). Vitamin E acetate, a common additive in vapes, was indeed tied to the 2019-2020 EVALI outbreak, causing lung injuries and deaths (CDC, 2020). The post is also correct that “organic” cannabis labels are misleading, as USDA certification isn’t available for cannabis, and that Cannabis Sativa’s “dynamic accumulator” nature makes it prone to concentrating toxins (PMC, 2018). However, while the risks are real, more research is needed to fully understand the long-term effects of synthetic THC and other additives. For now, harm reduction—like avoiding concentrates and verifying sources—is a practical step.

The Post: A Warning About Cannabis Safety

This is a post from Valkyrie Weather on Facebook. There’s a heap of articles at the bottom, so do your own research and make informed choices for yourself.

Okay here's the post, and goddamn it I hate to tell you this now of all times but you need to know the facts: friends, it is no longer safe to consume cannabis, ESPECIALLY vapes, wax, and other concentrated forms of the drug.

We were promised that weed legalization would lead to safer, regulated cannabis. This has not been the case. It has come out that more than half of cannabis products on both the legal and illicit markets contain highly dangerous, unregulated fucking poison including shit like DDT/DDE, Pymetrozine, Abamectin, and HUNDREDS of other insectisides, fungicides, herbicides, and miticides.

Some of these compounds have been illegal in the States for decades, and have been smuggled in from other countries.

I cannot stress this enough—these are EXTREMELY toxic and have been linked to cancer, neurological damage, Parkinsons, epilepsy, endocrine disruption, reproductive damage, multiple sclerosis, respiratory system damage, and other serious health complications.

When cannabis treated with these compounds is refined and concentrated into vape oil, the compounds are also concentrated. And whereas treated produce has a chance to be broken down in the liver, vapor and smoke bypasses the liver, enters the bloodstream, and travels straight to the brain and other organs.

Beyond these compounds, other dubious contents have been commonly found, such as synthetic THC (to make a homogenized product with consistent THC levels) and Vitamin E acetate, an agent that sounds benign but has been linked to vaping DEATHS as well as lung injury. Synthetic THC might be harmless, but the thing is that we don't fucking /know/ if it is or not and, because of its federal status, the FDA and USDA can't investigate it. Considering that the refinement process of synthetic THC involves a lot of nasty, powerful acid compounds, I personally wouldn't touch it.

Some products are labeled as coming from "organic farms." This is false by definition, as organic certification is a thing regulated by the USDA and USDA-accredited agents and is not available for cannabis growers. Those growers may use organic methods, HOWEVER, it was found that cannabis from these "organic" farms was cut with cannabis from other sources that *still contained toxic compounds.*

How did this happen? It's a long and complicated story, but basically once the doors were open for massive commercial grow operations, there was a massive push to employ every commercial growing technology available to have five, six successful harvests per year. Capitalist interests demanded the most exigent methods to achieve their earning targets. Many avoid the list of (I think 11) banned pesticides set forth by the State of California, by just using other products that are just as—or more—dangerous.

Some growers were just ignorant. They wouldn't spray the plants, but after each harvest they would bomb the grow building for aphids. The noxious compounds soaked into the drywall and would offgas in such high quantities that it badly contaminated successive crops.

What makes this whole thing even worse is that Cannabis Sativa is what is known in the permaculture world as a "dynamic accumulator." What this means is that it soaks up nutrients and chemical compounds in its immediate environment and stores it its tissue in much greater ratios than other plants. This makes it very useful for cleaning up hazardous waste spills, filtering septic leach fields, etc. Unfortunately, it also means that it accumulates and stores shit like pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides in its tissue as well. When you take a lot of herb and highly concentrate it into a vape cart, all those nasty compounds get concentrated too.

How aren't these products being tested independently? Well, they are. Investigative journalists for the Los Angeles Times, particularly journalist Paige St. John, has been independently testing and publishing their findings for the past several years with little response from the government agencies responsible for regulating the cannabis market.

Many independent researchers rely on federal grant money to conduct these types of studies. Because cannabis is still a federally prohibited substance, they cannot get research proposals off the ground.

So where do we go from here, and what harm reduction measures can be taken? Unfortunately these compounds are SO dangerous that I honestly urge everyone to completely abstain from cannabis from sources that you cannot verify YOURSELF.

Barring that, I would say that you should absolutely stay away from concentrates and vape oils. You're taking an already horrifically dangerous substance and concentrating it and introducing it directly to your brain and organs. Please don't do that. Edibles at least let your liver take some of the impact.

You don't want Parkinson's. You don't want cancer. These are serious fucking diseases that WILL change your whole life forever once you get them.

But really the only safe way to consume cannabis in 2025 is community. If you can, grow it yourself legally and make it available to others in your community. If you know someone who can grow it, offer to help them and pitch in. Community grown cannabis is the only safe way to take this drug now. Capitalism has made it too dangerous to reasonably take it.

What's worse is that sick people, old people, and sometimes even children RELY on cannabis for their quality of life and without knowing it they're sucking down DDT and Pymetrozine right into their bloodstream.

There's also another problem. These compounds create a major threat to cannabis workers, many of whom are not aware of the dangers of the substances they are spraying 30-60 times per year. We cannot support an industry that treats its workers the way the coal industry treated miners in turn-of-the-century Kentucky. It's not right.

This is all unacceptable.

On a personal note, I noticed that sometime in the last 10 years cannabis (which had always made me feel silly and lovely), suddenly made me feel like I was in a hell dimension. Literally 2/3 of the time I would smoke it and enter a universe of fear, horror, and self-loathing. On freaking WEED. I honestly think that it's because I was smoking fucking poison.

I'm a trucker now and can't touch THC thanks to regressive DOT regulations, but I recognize all the benefits that cannabis has.

For YEARS I clamoured for the day pot would be legalized. I thought so much would change for the better. It's true that fewer people are being thrown into the judicial system, but the other things we thought legalization would bring didn't really happen the way we were promised.

I'm sorry to bring you this news, I really am. Especially now, since so many people rely on cannabis to cope with everything that's going on. But you deserve to know the truth about what you're putting into your body. You need to know. If you've been vaping regularly, I am begging you to stop right now.

I don't know how to end this, friends, other than saying I care about you. To Gen Z, I'm sorry. Milennials and older fought for so many decades for legal weed and now that it's here we let capitalism literally poison it. We all deserved better.

Organize. Grow. Share.

Harm Reduction and Next Steps

Given these risks, consumers should prioritize harm reduction strategies. Opt for whole-flower cannabis from trusted, small-scale growers who can provide transparency about their methods. Avoid concentrates, vapes, and edibles unless independently tested for contaminants. Advocate for stricter regulations, USDA involvement in certification, and more research into synthetic cannabinoids. Always consult healthcare professionals for personalized advice, and stay informed through reliable sources like state health departments and investigative journalism.

References

• Los Angeles Times (2024). New tests find 'hidden' pesticides in more California weed brands. Read Article
• Los Angeles Times (2024). Cannabis conundrum: Legal isn't always clean, nor illicit dirty. Read Article
• Los Angeles Times (2024). Search your stash: 538 cannabis pesticide tests show what's in your weed. Read Article
• Los Angeles Times (2024). California legal weed industry in tumult after Times pesticide investigation. Read Article
• Los Angeles Times (2024). A new threat to cannabis users: Smuggled Chinese pesticides. Read Article
• Los Angeles Times (2024). How heavy metal and pesticide contaminated weed affects your health. Read Article
• Los Angeles Times (2024). The dirty secret of California's legal weed. Read Article
• UCLA Health (2023). Researchers identify 10 pesticides toxic to neurons involved in Parkinson’s. Read Article
• PMC (2018). Cannabis contaminants: sources, distribution, human toxicity and pharmacologic effects. Read Article
• PMC (2021). Pesticides and Parkinson’s Disease: Current and Future Challenges. Read Article
• PMC (2020). Vitamin E Acetate in Bronchoalveolar-Lavage Fluid Associated with EVALI. Read Article

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Uncovering toxins in cannabis: Stay informed and safe