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Daily news - 11th August 2022 |
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UK news
Covid lockdowns normalised harmful drinking, medic says
Harmful levels of drinking were normalised through the Covid pandemic, charities and medical staff have said. Substance misuse charity Barod said referrals for alcohol addiction increased by 41% compared with before the pandemic | BBC, UK
Briefing: Premature mortality in people affected by co-occurring homelessness, criminal justice involvement, opioid dependence, and psychosis (PDF)
People affected by homelessness, involvement in the criminal justice system, problem use of opioids (such as heroin), or psychosis tend to have poorer health and a higher risk of dying early. However, previous research has tended to study these experiences individually, despite the fact they often go hand-in-hand | University of Glasgow MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, UK
Making funding work: second report
[Yesterday], MEAM has published a second report on how government and other interested stakeholders can make funding work better for people facing multiple disadvantage | MEAM, UK
Players’ addiction to sleeping tablets concerns ‘clean’ Ryan Cresswell
The former defender is on the up but has been ‘in the depths of despair’ | Independent, UK
Gardening project brings the countryside to urban Sheffield
Volunteers from the Peak District National Trust and Mears Group have come together to create an urban garden for vulnerable people to enjoy | Mears Group, UK
Cannabis farm spread over three storeys found inside old school building in Gloucester
A large cannabis factory has been discovered inside a disused primary school in Gloucester | ITV, UK
International news
The Taliban Vowed to End Afghanistan's Heroin Trade. What Happened Next?
A year on from the Taliban’s takeover, VICE World News looks at what impact the regime has had on global drug supply | VICE, UK
Australian doctors campaigning to reveal what is really inside vapes claim comparisons with smoking are 'wrong'
Two Australian doctors trying to teach Australians what is actually inside vapes say the risks associated with the popular practice are drastically low when compared to smoking cigarettes | Mail Online, UK
The next steps for the naloxone service
David Lynch examines a recent report [ Naloxone Administration by Addiction and Homeless Service Providers in Ireland: 2018-2020, (PDF) ] on the naloxone service, which has saved more than 20 lives in three years | Medical Independent, Ireland
High school athletes in contact sports more likely to misuse prescription stimulants throughout their 20s
High school seniors who play contact sports are roughly 50% more likely to misuse prescription stimulants in the next decade after graduation, compared to those who do not participate in these types of sports, a new University of Michigan study found | Medical Xpress, USA
Daily cannabis users less likely to consider heavy tobacco use dangerous
A growing number of Americans are using cannabis as it becomes legalized for recreational use in a rapidly increasing number of U.S. states. Questions abound about what impact legalization will have on adult and youth health | EurekAlert, USA
Longitudinal Assessments of Neurocognitive Performance and Brain Structure Associated With Initiation of Tobacco Use in Children, 2016 to 2021
In this national cohort study of 17 073 children with neuroimaging outcomes, a significant association was found of early-age initiation of tobacco use with lower crystalized cognition composite score and impaired brain development in total cortical area and volume. Region of interest analysis also revealed smaller cortical area and volume across frontal, parietal, and temporal lobes | JAMA Network Open, USA
Weed vs. Greed: How America Botched Legalizing Pot
Thanks to overregulation and overtaxation, the U.S. government has blown the easiest revenue opportunity ever—legalized drugs. But it’s not too late to save the $72 billion cannabis industry from the perils of prohibition | Forbes, USA
The FDA’s Early Plan to Expedite Open-System Vape Marketing Applications
Documents obtained by Filter provide insight into how the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) originally intended to handle an avalanche of incoming premarket tobacco product applications (PMTA) for open-system vapes | Filter Magazine, USA
Missouri Will Vote on Marijuana Legalization in November
Missouri officials announced on August 9 that an initiative to legalize marijuana will appear on the state’s November ballot | Filter Magazine, USA
Call for improved alcohol labelling as new study reveals 'better-for-you' claims may mislead consumers
Cancer Council Victoria is warning consumers to beware of health-oriented marketing claims for alcohol products, with new research finding alcohol products that feature these claims still tend to be classified as full-strength and just over 10% provide any nutrition information | OBC, Australia
Could Big Tobacco return to its old tricks with vapes?
As a proposal to offer incentives for pharmacists to stock a particular vape stalls, newsGP looks at the likelihood of similar tactics re-emerging | RACGP, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Drug deaths in England, Wales and Scotland are still soaring
Last week the Office of National Statistics (ONS) released the latest drug-related death statistics for England and Wales in 2021. This came shortly after Scotland’s figures were also released | Transform blog, UK
Is Colombia’s ‘War on Drugs’ Coming to an End?
When Gustavo Petro began his four-year term as Colombia’s new president on 7 August, he inherited a huge, but old problem: how to tackle Colombia’s drug problem. Despite billions of dollars of US-backed approaches spanning four decades, Colombia is still the world’s largest producer of cocaine, criminal gangs are thriving, and global drug consumption remains high. “The war on drugs has utterly failed,” Petro said as he was sworn into office, advocating for a new international approach to a domestic and global problem | Volteface, UK
Like many of my fellow Gen Zers, getting drunk is not on my agenda
Many of us are drinking less and Zooming more – and when we go out there seems to be less need for a confidence blanket of alcohol | Guardian, UK