Daywatch: Hemp-based cannabis overdoses prompt concern

Good morning, Chicago.

Research has shown that lead exposure affects the brain and its neurons, impairing learning and memory and disrupting brain development and behavior.

The Tribune obtained lead testing results for both schools and day cares through public records requests. But limitations in the day cares data prevent a full accounting of the extent of the problem, which poses a particular threat to young children. Here is what we do know about the impact of the lead testing regulations on day cares.

Emily Hoerner

And here are the top stories you need to know to start your day.

Subscribe to more newsletters | Puzzles & Games | Today’s eNewspaper edition

Hemp-based cannabis overdoses at Chicago high school — linked to neighborhood smoke shop — prompt calls for strict state regulation

On a recent school day, a student at Uplift Community High School in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood began vomiting multiple times and became unresponsive. A short time later, other students alerted security that they had taken cannabis gummies from a classmate and felt sick, the school incident report showed. Another student who’d taken a gummy was “extremely paranoid and delusional.”

The gummies came not from a licensed cannabis dispensary, but from a neighborhood smoke shop, according to the school report of the incident and one of the parents of the teens involved.

This summer’s Chicago Street Race promises to boost tourism, but it may be even more pivotal for NASCAR

The Chicago Street Race, which is expected to draw 100,000 attendees during July Fourth weekend, promises to be a potential tourism boon for the city, but the event could be even more pivotal for NASCAR.

An immigrant service center that opened this year is already making an impact in and around Gage Park

In 2021, the concept of a community hub where immigrants could enrich their lives through education and resources was a dream waiting to be realized.

But by January, the headquarters of PODER Learning Center had become a reality. And just a few months in, staff members are seeing a dramatic impact in the Gage Park community, with an increase in students and clients using the building’s services.

Chicago Bears 2023 schedule: Here’s who they’ll play — and our predictions for each matchup

The 2023 Bears schedule is set. Season opener against the rival Green Bay Packers. Season finale? Against the Packers. Sandwiched in between are 15 games that will determine the direction and momentum of the team’s resurgence effort. The Bears will play a pair of Thursday night games for the first time — in Weeks 5 and 10 — and have four prime-time games in all.

Here’s how our trio of Bears reporters sees the season playing out.

Column: For Mother’s Day, a critic, his mother and a screenful of memories

Who else am I going to interview for Mother’s Day? My barber?

Mom was up for it, writes critic Michael Phillips, so here it is.

Column: How ‘America’s mom’ became a small but significant part of my life

As Mother’s Day arrives, Jon Rabiroff takes a moment to remember how “America’s mom,” Florence Henderson, essentially climbed off his TV screen and out of a family photo album to give her blessing to the birth of the Lake County News-Sun managing editor’s son more than a half-century after serving as a bridesmaid at his parents’ wedding.