Right now, the biggest controversy in the National Football League — a matter far more important than trivia such as Deflategate — involves concussions.

A recent study showed that 87 of 91 former players who donated their brains to science after their death tested positive for CTE, a disease linked to concussions. And the impending release of Concussion, a new movie starring Will Smith, promises to bring even more attention to an issue the league would just as soon underplay.

The effect of marijuana use on pregnant women and the children they rear is a controversial subject. It is also a minimally researched subject because conducting studies that expose women to pot is considered unethical. There are ways around that, however; looking at historical and retrospective data has allowed researchers to learn a lot about how the substance affects both pregnancy and birth.

Unless you’ve lived in the New England area in the 1980’s into the 2000’s, you probably are not familiar with the name of Bob Lobel. Back when local news and sports anchors made as much as high six to low seven figure salaries as ratings draws, Bob Lobel was a big name in Boston. As a sports anchor on WBZ-TV, he became one of the more popular personalities in the market.

As the 71 year old Lobel is no longer on television, he’s been dealing with chronic pain due to surgeries on his knees, back, rotator cuff, plus corrective procedures on his legs after a couple of accidents. Lobel said medical marijuana has helped him deal with the pain and led him to wean off over-the-counter medication.

While the Compassionate Care Act to legalize medical marijuana has yet to go into effect — the state is still aiming for a January start date — a “legal” method of vaporizing cannabis has emerged in New York City and is becoming an integral part of the existing electronic smoking culture.

ALBION, Ill. (AP) — A skunky aroma fills the room in which hundreds of lush marijuana plants grow, some nearly ready for harvest. Grower Ashley Thompson, a former high school agriculture teacher in this rural part of southeastern Illinois, takes the scent of weed home with her.

She doesn't mind. It's the fragrance of money and jobs.

"My family says I smell," said Thompson, who quit the classroom to work for Ataraxia, one of a handful of cultivation centers in Illinois, which is one of 23 states with medical marijuana. "I can't tell though."

If you're anything like me, you've heard different things from different guys about how marijuana affects sexual performance. Some say it helps; others say it hurts. So what does the research say? What effect, if any, does weed have on your, uh, joint?

Boston sportscasting icon Bob Lobel is one of the hundreds of patients in Massachusetts who say they have found an effective substitute for opioids by using medicinal marijuana.

The 71-year-old longtime television reporter and anchor has dealt with chronic pain for years, the result of numerous surgeries: He’s had two knee replacements, two rotator cuff surgeries, four back surgeries and, in separate accidents, fractured the tops of both femurs.

“That was brutal,” Lobel told the Herald, referencing the femur breaks. The constant pain left him taking a variety of opioids.

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (WWLP) – Friday was the official grand opening ceremony for western Massachusetts’ first medical marijuana dispensary. Patients were able to walk in and legally buy marijuana. It’s something they say they’ve been waiting for, for a long time.

“This is the best day of my life,” said Mark Ceria of Holyoke. Mark is a local artist who is living with severe nerve pain in his legs. He’s confined to a wheelchair. “A little puff of maybe some pineapple skunk marijuana makes music sound better and my life a lot easier in a wheelchair.”

Ceria and nearly 200 others patients this week have gotten medical marijuana, legally, for the first time at the England Treatment Access Dispensary on Conz Street.

The Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Production (the "Coalition") will provide critical resources to support an initiative targeting the synthetic drug industry that was announced today by District of Columbia Attorney General Karl A. Racine.

The Denver-based Coalition, an industry group focused on public health and safety as well as consumer protection, will provide educational and outreach support nationally. The Coalition also will retain Davillier Law Group LLC,based in New Orleans, to assist in legal research, strategy and legal theory to support implementation of the initiative, said spokesperson Fred Niehaus.