Daily news - 13th July 2021


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UK news

Deadly Serious

Annemarie Ward tells the story of the groundbreaking ‘You Keep Talking, We Keep Dying’ campaign | DDN, UK

Video support sessions for families affected by substance use

Peter Cartwright, in collaboration with Adfam, has produced a series of online support video sessions for families affected by a loved one's substance use | Adfam, UK

Bristol Recovery Orchestra presents free three day workshop: Reconnect Recharge Recover

15th – 17th July, Redland Park URC, Whiteladies Road, Bristol, BS6 6SA. Booking for the event is essential. BDP is excited to host 3 days of FREE summer music workshops for anyone affected by drug and alcohol problems who can play an acoustic instrument to beginners standard | BDP, UK

Drinking Culture: The women calling out sexism in the alcohol industry - audio

Over the past year, women working in different parts of the drinks industry have been sharing their stories and experiences to try to change the way women are treated | BBC, UK

Why gin is still fizzing - audio

From its early reputation as mothers’ ruin to its prime spot in upscale cocktail bars, we tell the story of the juniper-infused spirit | BBC, UK

 

International news

Innocent woman held in Kuwait prison over drugs charge

The family of an innocent woman in a Kuwait prison have said they do not know when she will be released | BBC, UK

Sha'Carri Richardson set to return in Diamond League Prefontaine Classic

American sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson will run the 100 and 200 metres in the Diamond League Prefontaine Classic after completing a one-month ban | BBC, UK

Bizarre illness dubbed ‘scromiting’ linked to the rise of more potent cannabis in US

‘It felt like Edwards Scissorhands was trying to grab my intestines and pull them out,’ says someone who suffered from condition | Independent, UK

Study shows mental health, support, not just substance misuse key in parental neglect

Substance use disorder has long been considered a key factor in cases of parental neglect. But new research from the University of Kansas shows that such substance abuse does not happen in a vacuum | EurekAlert, USA

Atlantic City is poised to shut down its syringe exchange — amid warnings of dire public health consequences

Founded after years of high HIV rates in Atlantic City, Oasis was New Jersey’s first needle exchange, and is still its largest, serving some 1,200 clients | Philadelphia Inquirer, USA

With Rhode Island Safe Consumption Win, Pressure Mounts on New York

New York keeps trailing behind its neighbors on vital drug policy issues. From adult-use marijuana to decriminalization of psychedelics, nearby states like New Jersey and Massachusetts have so far done more to dismantle the drug war. Now, Rhode Island has become the first state to authorize safe consumption sites (SCS) | Filter Magazine, USA

Compliance With Cannabis Act Regulations Regarding Online Promotion Among Canadian Commercial Cannabis-Licensed Firms

In this cross-sectional study of 261 Canadian cannabis-licensed firms, 86.3% with an online platform had at least 1 violation, which was significantly more likely to occur on social media compared with a website. A lack of age restrictions for youth, unsubstantiated claims, omission of risk information, and glamorization of cannabis products were found | JAMA Network Open, USA

Preventing A Drug Overdose

Tue, Jul 13, 2021, 11:00 PM – Wed, Jul 14, 2021, 1:00 AM BST. You can reverse an overdose if you know what to do and you act in time. Whether you use drugs, love someone who does, or just care about the people in your community, it’s important to be prepared if you encounter someone who is overdosing | National Harm Reduction Coalition, USA

B.C. to provide regulated substances under safe supply directive to mitigate drug overdoses

British Columbia will require all health authorities to develop programs that provide pharmaceutical-grade opioids, stimulants and other addictive substances to street-drug users, under a policy directive on safe supply aimed at curbing overdose deaths | Globe and Mail, Canada

Fines on the cards as Australia tightens vaping product standards

Businesses will face fines of up to $11 million from later this year if they supply nicotine vaping products that fall foul of a strict new set of safety guidelines from the medicines regulator | Sydney Morning Herald, Australia

A decade on from plain packaging, what is the result?

Cigarettes today are sold in drab olive-brown boxes, replete with yellow warning labels that shout “SMOKING KILLS” next to ugly photographs of gangrenous and rotting toes | Sydney Morning Herald, Australia

 

Blogs, comment and opinion

Collective Voice members respond to review of drugs

Last Thursday 8th July, the second part of Dame Carol Black’s landmark independent review of drugs was published. The review makes 32 wide-ranging recommendations that, if acted on, would signal the biggest shake-up in a generation for drug treatment, recovery and prevention | Collective Voice, UK

Science is critical for improving the effectiveness of addiction treatment

Part 1 of the Independent Review of Drugs, highlighted the increasing severity of the UK’s drug problem and its run-down treatment and rehabilitation services. Part 2 recommends new funding and new accountability systems to rebuild addiction treatment and recovery services across England and Wales. This plan is more likely to succeed if the UK’s under-nourished addiction science receives proper attention and resources | BMJ opinion, UK

Alcohol and bipolar: how does heavy alcohol use predict the course of bipolar disorder?

Danielle Windget and Sammy Eden review a recent study on the patterns and clinical correlates of lifetime alcohol consumption in women and men with bipolar disorder  | Mental Elf blog, UK

Turn on, or tune out? Is psilocybin assisted therapy close to becoming a first-line treatment for depression?

James Rucker and Sameer Jauhar summarise a recent RCT on the effectiveness of psilocybin assisted therapy versus escitalopram assisted therapy for major depressive disorder | Mental Elf blog, UK

Arrested for Vaping? Police Treatment of Teens Raises Questions

Police Department in Maryland harassed a group of teens visiting the shore from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania | Inside Sources, USA

Rethinking Punishing Drug Use in Murder Cases

Awoman who bought heroin with her sister and a friend, who suffered a fatal overdose on the drug later that night, is not a murderer, according to the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals | LA Progressive, USA

Demonising vaping: The Tele and APC threaten public health

The Daily Telegraph recently reported on a distraught mother whose son had suffered a suspected seizure and stopped breathing after vaping nicotine. The mother blamed vaping for her son’s seizure and warned readers that vaping “is dangerous and can be fatal” | AOD MediaWatch, Australia