Daily news - 7th April 2021

UK news

DDN April 2021

The idea of buying alcohol for people with severe dependence might seem a strange one to many. The outreach team in Bristol (p6) are well enough tuned to harm reduction to know that their life-saving actions during lockdown have opened up many opportunities. It’s a brave idea and the tangible results of their initiative speak for themselves | DDN, UK

New UK Naloxone Poster Campaign

There is a new naloxone poster campaign launching this week in the UK that features the faces of real community naloxone carriers | HIT, UK

Drugs in the Time of COVID: Interim Report

Since the beginning of the first national coronavirus lockdown, Release has operated a public, online survey designed to monitor how people are buying their drugs. The purpose of this survey, which is open to anyone residing in the UK over the age of 18, is to determine the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic, and corresponding restrictions, have had on buying illegal substances | Release, UK

In Britain, unprecedented restrictions on daily life associated with the Covid-19 pandemic included the suspension of professional sports events during the initial ‘lockdown’. This provides opportunities to observe changes in sports bettors’ behaviour when their primary form of activity is removed and assess the impact of Covid-19 related circumstances upon gambling | Addictive Behaviors, UK

No 10 says mayor of London's cannabis review a 'waste of time'

If re-elected, Sadiq Khan wants to set up a commission to look at decriminalising the drug | Guardian, UK

Daily question: Generally speaking, to what extent would you support or oppose the legalisation of cannabis in the UK?

3317 GB adults surveyed | YouGov, UK

Alcohol: A Public Health Issue

Our selection highlights some of the most cited alcohol-related research published in the Journal of Public Health in recent years. All articles in this collection will be free to access until 4 July 2021 | Journal of Public Health, UK

CANCER: Scotland has the highest rate of liver cancer deaths in the UK. We must do more to stop it. By Linda Bauld

For the past year there has been an almost daily count of deaths from Covid-19. These grew as the pandemic progressed and just under 10,000 families across Scotland have lost loved ones to this disease. But other causes of death have not disappeared and are no less important | Herald, UK

QMJC March 2021: Habitus of home and traditional drinking: a qualitative analysis of reported middle-class alcohol use

This qualitative paper explores attitudes, meanings and behaviours in relation to alcohol consumption among professional, managerial and clerical employees | SSA, UK

Drugs supplier trial: Two men guilty of Gurinderjit Rai murder

Two men have been convicted of the "planned assassination" of a drugs supplier in a dispute over a large debt and the theft of cocaine and cannabis | BBC, UK

International news

Victorian coroner backs pill testing after inquest into deaths of four men and a boy

Five people thought they were taking MDMA but instead swallowed lethal combination of synthetic hallucinogenic and stimulant | Guardian, UK

Death Penalty For Drug Offences: Global Overview 2020

This report, our tenth on the subject, continues our work of providing regular updates on legislative, policy and practical developments related to the use of capital punishment for drug offences, a practice which is a clear violation of international law | HRI, UK

Hunter Biden opens up about drug and alcohol addiction to the Today Programme

Hunter Biden's business dealings and personal life were frequently used by the Trump campaign against his father US President Joe Biden. To mark the publication of his memoir 'Beautiful Things', he spoke to the Today Programme's Mishal Husain about business, politics and the trauma he says led to his battle with drug and alcohol addiction | BBC Sounds, UK

Legalisation of cannabis may be associated with increase in fatal car crashes

‘Small but significant’ rise in collisions and deaths in US states which deciminalised marijuana | Independent, UK

Comparison of Water Pipes vs Other Modes of Cannabis Consumption and Subsequent Illicit Drug Use in a Longitudinal Cohort of Young Swiss Men

In this longitudinal cohort study of 1108 men, both unadjusted and adjusted models showed that consumption of cannabis with a water pipe at baseline was associated with the use of other illicit drugs at follow-up compared with not using a water pipe | JAMA Network, USA

Opioid Overdoses from the Toxicology Investigators Consortium (ToxIC) Fentalog Study Group (PDF)

This report provides new information regarding comprehensive drug testing of clinical biological specimens collected after suspected opioid overdoses in various cities across the United States | NPS Discovery, USA

Why New 12-Step Members May Avoid Carrying Naloxone

For new members of 12-step programs like Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous, naloxone can still seem like a symbol of drug use, according to new research | Filter Magazine, USA

Growing Cannabis Indoors Has A Big Climate Impact. So Why Doesn’t The Industry Go Outside?

Chris Baca wants to be upfront about the climate impact of his warehouse | CPR, USA

Neighborhood influences on intent to quit smoking among Asian-American males

Some subpopulations in the United States, including Asian-American men with limited English proficiency, smoke at troublingly high rates | BASIS, USA

Exclusive: ACLU Sues NY County Over Methadone Access in Prison

The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) and American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit against Jefferson County in Upstate New York on April 5. It seeks to compel the Jefferson County Correctional Facility to provide access to methadone treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD) | Filter Magazine, USA

Study shows the substantial benefits of banning menthol cigarettes across Canada

Bans on menthol cigarettes across Canada from 2016 to 2017 led to a significant increase in the number of smokers who attempted to quit, smokers who quit successfully, and lower rates of relapse among former smokers, according to a new research study from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project (the ITC Project) at the University of Waterloo | News Medical, USA

Coroner calls for urgent drug testing services in Victoria

Victorian Coroner Paresa Spanos is calling for the urgent implementation of public services that check the content and purity of illicit drugs, following an investigation into the harrowing deaths of five young men | Coroner's Court of Victoria, Australia

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