Health

By Amelia Stern Behavioral health issues, especially anxiety, alcohol use, and substance use disorders, rose dramatically as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and experts predict the numbers will only continue to rise — specifically in the San Luis Valley, where there are serious barriers to accessing much needed mental health care services. According to the most recently published Colorado Health Access Survey (CHAS) conducted by the Colorado Health Institute (CHI), more than 24 percent of residents living in Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Mineral, Rio Grande, and Saguache Counties reported poor mental health, but only 16 percent talked to a mental...

COVID-19 comes up almost daily, in almost everyone’s conversations, and many people in our community I have been impacted personally by this virus. For that reason, I was heartened to learn that new research by Oregon State University and affiliates has found that our old friend, hemp, may offer some protection from infection by the virus, if preliminary research leads to future treatment protocols. Colorado is one of the growing number of states that allow gardeners to grow up to six plants of the Cannabis genus for medicine or recreation. Can our plant friends also protect us from COVID? According...