DrugWise Daily |
20th April 2026 |
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UK news
Care homes and alcohol: finding the right balance
A new study, funded by Alcohol Change UK and the Welsh Government, looks at how care homes for older people seek to manage alcohol use, and offers practical tools for improvement | Alcohol Change UK, UK
Drug Education Forum Event – Summer 2026
Thursday 21 May • 15:30 - 17 GMT+1. Join our online Drug Education Forum this Summer to learn, share, and connect about drug awareness! The summer Drug Education Forum speaker event will provide an opportunity for drug education providers, practitioners and policy makers from across the UK to come together with a focus on the provision of excellent, evidence-based, age-appropriate drug education and harm reduction for young people | DEF, UK
Man, 61, admits intent to supply thousands of litres of drug linked to spiking
A 61-year-old man has admitted intent to supply more than 2,000 litres of GBL, a drug linked to spiking and the chemsex scene, the Metropolitan police have said | Independent, UK
Met Police sergeant sacked after drink driving on Iranian embassy protection duty
A Metropolitan Police officer has been sacked after it was determined his behaviour amounted to gross misconduct | Independent, UK
Inmate died from drugs in 'volatile' prison
Patrick Maughan, 50, died after collapsing in a different prisoner's cell at HMP Lowdham Grange in Nottinghamshire on 17 November 2024 | BBC, UK
Police seize £2.3m of drugs over 12 months
Police have seized more than £2.3m-worth of drugs and closed down 38 county lines operations in Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire over the past year | BBC, UK
International news
‘I was fighting two wars’: Ukraine’s soldiers confront their addiction struggles
Troops frequently use substances to help cope with untreated PTSD and anxiety, producing a negative spiral | Guardian, UK
Trump announces reforms to accelerate access to psychedelic drug treatments
President signed executive order directing FDA to expedite review of psychedelic drugs including ibogaine | Guardian, UK
How Australia’s other half heals: all aboard the superyacht where rehab costs $600,000 a week
While an estimated 500,000 people battling addiction miss out on treatment each year, those who can afford it can access private care within hours | Guardian, UK
Adolescent Cannabis Use After Cannabis Legalization and the COVID-19 Pandemic
This cross-sectional study of 1 308 655 questionnaires from adolescents universally screened for past-year cannabis use during standard well-child visits from 2011 to 2024 found that rates of adolescent cannabis use increased after recreational cannabis legalization passage and continued to increase after implementation of legal retail sales, then decreased after the COVID-19 pandemic | JAMA Network Open, USA
Teen cannabis use linked to slower growth in memory and thinking
Researchers from University of California San Diego have found that teenagers who begin using cannabis show slower gains in thinking and memory skills as they grow. The study, published on April 20, 2026 in Neuropsychopharmacology, analyzed data from more than 11,000 participants in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, the largest long-term study of brain development in U.S. youth | News Medical, USA
Q&A: Psychiatrists on the unintended, fatal consequences of mixing psychiatric meds
While the U.S. has seen a decline in the overall number of overdose deaths, the news on drug use is not all trending positively, and researchers at Brown University's Warren Alpert Medical School are focused on an emerging contributor to fatal overdoses | Medical Xpress, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
People in England consuming 123,000 kg of cocaine a year
The Home Office has just (13 April 2026) published the latest findings from its Wastewater Analysis for Narcotics Detection (WAND) Programme which takes samples from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs, or sites) across England and Scotland. WAND utilises wastewater analysis, which is a method used internationally, to provide robust and timely estimates of drug consumption in England and Scotland | Russell Webster, UK
Alcoholism is our worst substance use problem: Don’t cut research funding
When Americans think about the nation’s substance use crisis, opioids, fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine dominate the conversation. But the substance causing the greatest harm is not illicit. It is alcohol — legal, normalized and often overlooked | The Hill opinion, USA
Cannabis legalization spurs innovation, but not always in ways that benefit patients or public health
Innovation in health care saves lives. But not all health innovations have enough evidence to actually benefit patients. Barriers to innovation are often higher in illicit or restricted markets, including cannabis, stem cells and cryptocurrencies. Researchers face higher costs, limited access to raw materials and data, and stricter regulations | Conversation, USA