Misery lights. That’s an expression I’ve heard, to describe the sight of a cop car’s flashing colored lights in your rearview mirror, as you get pulled over.

If you ingest marijuana and get behind the wheel of a car, your chances of seeing those misery lights are increasing, as law enforcement agencies throughout the country crack down on marijuana impaired driving.

Accordingly, the National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST) is conducting laboratory studies to determine the feasibility of measuring the concentration of cannabis compounds in a person’s breath after they have smoked cannabis.

The measurement methods NIST is working on are laboratory methods, although not methods that can be implemented inside a breathalyzer device. Also, this study will only consider the concentration of cannabis compounds on a person’s breath. It will not attempt to measure intoxication levels.

Regardless, it’s a prime example of how the marijuana industry is spawning new “pick-and-shovel” technologies of interest to investors.

Read This Story: Federal Pot Laws: The Times They Are a-Changin’

As more states decriminalize marijuana and fewer employers test their workers for marijuana use, society is groping for a general consensus on when it is not okay to use cannabis. Marijuana’s entrance into the consumer mainstream draws attention to its ability to impair.

Should marijuana intoxication be treated similarly to alcohol intoxication? That way, marijuana itself isn’t the crime, but a certain degree of intoxication by the substance, in certain situations, would be. Those situations would include driving, operating machinery, or caring for children.

There has been extensive disagreement in U.S. courts as to whether the purported smell of marijuana is considered enough probable cause for a traffic stop search. Even Supreme Court rulings on the matter differ greatly and there is no general consensus on whether smell is probable cause. Surely there should be a more precise method for determining problematic cannabis use among people who are otherwise permitted to consume it?

Under the influence…

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. Studies about THC and driving have yielded contradictory results.

A 2019 study determined that drivers who were at the legal limit of THC, which is typically between 2 and 5 nanograms of THC per milliliter of blood, were not more likely to be involved in a motor vehicle accident. However, multiple studies have pointed toward an increase in highway deaths in the years since legalization gathered momentum in the late 1990s.

A study released in April 2022 shows that in states that have legalized adult-use cannabis, there has actually been a decrease in impaired driving, as users typically refrain from driving in the three hours after using cannabis. Yet another study showed that in states that legalized cannabis, premiums for auto insurance have recently decreased.

A study released in June 2022 found that states that have enacted marijuana legalization are seeing less dangerous driving behavior than states that continue criminalization.

But another study released in August 2022 found that nearly 60% of drivers who use marijuana in legal-use states drive while under the influence. As the following chart shows, our roadways are traveled by a lot of stoned drivers:

When taken together, these studies don’t come to a clear conclusion. What is clear, though, is the need to gauge marijuana impairment as it pertains to driving.

Every breath you take…

Scientists are collecting breath samples from consumers after they use their own legal market marijuana, and then sending those samples to NIST for laboratory analysis.

The National Institute of Justice, which is funding the study, states on its website: “As cannabis/marijuana use is legalized across the country and knowing that its use can impair executive functions needed for driving, the need for a roadside technology to detect impairment from marijuana in drivers is critical.”

The project is titled Breath Measurements of Acute Cannabis Elimination, or BACE, the aim of which is to study the feasibility of measuring the concentration of cannabis compounds on breath.

Marijuana stays detectable in the human body far longer than alcohol. Even alcohol breathalyzers took decades to develop, and while they are typically regarded as accurate, they actually have a high margin of error.

Measuring levels of THC impairment is difficult. Scientists have created a breath test that focuses on when a person last smoked marijuana, rather than THC levels in the body.

THC is stored in body fat and is processed differently by different people and effects and impairs people differently as well. For those reasons, it’s more important to determine when the test taker last ingested marijuana.

Generally, people are impaired for about three hours after smoking marijuana. Edible cannabis is another story, and can impair someone for many hours, complicating the development of a comprehensive THC breathalyzer.

Presently, a separate type of saliva test would be necessary to determine impairment via edibles. An ideal test would be able to accurately determine levels of THC impairment, not THC “presence.” Current methods of determining drug intoxication have high rates of inaccuracy, take too long, or are simply not good for determining THC intoxication.

PS: As the above article explains, marijuana is revolutionizing society and generating new technologies. Looking for ways to profit from these trends? I urge you to read my new book: The Wide World of Weed and Psychedelics. My book is your definitive guide for making money in the thriving cannabis and psychedelics industries. Click here to get your copy.

John Persinos is the editorial director of Investing Daily.

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