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Daily news - 18th October 2022 |
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UK news
Home Secretary urged to ban consumer sales of laughing gas
The British Compressed Gases Association (BCGA) has written to Suella Braverman, urging her to scrap direct-to-consumer retail sales of nitrous oxide | Evening Standard, UK
‘Lack of Evidence’ of Drugs Use in Parliament Met Concludes
A series of confusing, contradictory statements have been issued about cocaine being found in parliamentary bathrooms, report Sam Bright and Rachel Morris | Byline Times, UK
Liz Truss's chief of staff recuses himself from government smoking strategy due to 'Big Tobacco' links
The government is understood to be looking at halting a plan to tackle smoking in the UK but questions have been raised over the PM's most senior adviser's influence over the strategy as he used to work for the world's biggest tobacco companies | Sky News, UK
Medical cannabis pharmacies – what are your rights as a patient?
Do you know your rights when it comes to choosing where your medication is dispensed? | Cannabis Health News, UK
NHS Addictions Provider Alliance: 2022 Annual Conference
8th November 2022, 9.30 am - 4.00 pm. Online. FREE. Following on from our 2021 conference which focused on spotlighting the problem of stigma and its impact on people with addiction, our 2022 conference aims to build upon its success and the success of our #StigmaKills campaign to put strategies for tackling stigma into real action, both as individuals and across our sector | NHS APA, UK
Family Voices Competition 2022
Entries are now open for the 2022 edition of Adfam’s annual Family Voices Competition. This is a poetry and creative writing competition for anyone affected by the drinking, drug use or gambling of a family member or friend, to share their story in a creative way. Deadline: Tuesday 1st December | Adfam, UK
Exploring gardening interventions within addiction recovery
The use of Social and Therapeutic Horticulture (STH) within a person’s addiction recovery from substance misuse is relatively unexplored phenomena... Andrew is looking for six or seven more participants to build on his research. If you would like to take part please click here | Thrive, UK
Cocaine washed up on beach near Aberystwyth worth £42m
A large number of black bags tied to plastic tubs were found by passers-by on Tan-y-Bwlch beach near Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, on 1 October | BBC, UK
South Yorkshire drugs gang 'cuckooed' vulnerable man's home
Chris (whose name has been changed) was "cuckooed" - a practice which sees criminals threaten people before using their homes as a base to sell drugs | BBC, UK
International news
Research, tech advancements in tobacco and nicotine products provide harm reduction options to smokers, but who’s listening?
Major research effort delivers pragmatic real-life solutions for those willing to discuss the scientific evidence | NE Global, UK
Intoxicating Spaces Virtual Exhibition Launch
Wed, 16 November 2022, 13:00 – 14:00 GMT. Intoxicating Spaces: The Impact of New Intoxicants on Urban Spaces in Europe, 1600–1850 is a three-year research project funded by Humanities in the European Research Area (HERA). It traces the impact of ‘new’ intoxicants – opiates, tobacco, sugar, coffee, tea, and chocolate – on Europe’s urban spaces between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries | Intoxicating Spaces, UK
Ending the silence around alcohol use in the home - toolkit
Awareness raising toolkit for issues faced by those growing up with problematic Alcohol use | Action Ireland, Ireland
Minister defends plan to ban disposable vapes - ‘They’re making the world worse’
The Minister for the Circular Economy said a public consultation will be carried-out before any ban on the disposal nicotine products is finalised, but it could be introduced under the EU single-use plastics directive | Independent, Ireland
Nicotine dose in a single cigarette blocks estrogen production in women's brains
A dose of nicotine, equivalent to that found in a single cigarette blocks estrogen production in women's brains. This may explain several behavioral differences in women who smoke, including why they are more resistant than men to quitting smoking. This work is presented for the first time at the ECNP Congress in Vienna | Medical Xpress, USA
Children not target of 'rainbow fentanyl,' experts say. And adding color may actually protect drug users
Parents may have noticed a disturbing trend on social media this month: claims that fentanyl is being manufactured in colorful tablets that are meant to attract their children | Medical Xpress, USA
Documents highlight role of pharmacies in driving opioid epidemic
Johns Hopkins University and the University of California have added new documents to the Opioid Industry Documents Archive that detail the role of retail pharmacies in the opioid overdose epidemic | Medical Xpress, USA
National Addiction Treatment Week - 17th -23rd October
National Addiction Treatment Week is an initiative that highlights the critical treatment gap between the number of patients who need to addiction treatment and qualified medical professionals available to treat addiction using evidence-based approaches | American Society of Addiction Medicine, USA
How Nikolas Cruz’s defense persuaded a jury to spare his life
The jury instructions listed 41 potential mitigating factors the jury could consider, and the defense returned to a few of them repeatedly. Those mitigating circumstances fall into a few main categories: that Cruz admitted guilt up front; that he was “poisoned” in the womb by his mother’s use of drugs and alcohol; and that the death penalty, for Cruz at least, is immoral and unnecessary | CNN, USA
Does Cocaine Suck Now? A VICE News Investigation
We spoke to cartel members, dealers, and users about why North America’s cocaine seems to be getting worse | VICE, USA
Benzo Withdrawal Terrifies Me. “Treatment” Keeps Requiring It
As a teenager I was always anxious, to the point I never felt comfortable in my own skin. But that all changed when I was introduced to diazepam, a benzodiazepine | Filter Magazine, USA
Statement from the Minister of Health and Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health on the fourth anniversary of the legalization of Cannabis
On this day in 2018, the Cannabis Act came into force, putting in place a new, strictly regulated framework for controlling the sale, possession, production and distribution of legalized and regulated cannabis for non-medical purposes | Government of Canada, Canada
Blogs, comment and opinion
Alcohol Change UK responds to the new Chancellor's announcement on alcohol duty
Responding to today's announcement on alcohol duty from the Chancellor, Dr Richard Piper, Chief Executive at Alcohol Change UK, said:"We welcome today’s announcement to reverse the planned freeze on alcohol duty from February 2023, which, with inflation running at over 10%, would have been a huge real terms cut in alcohol duty... | Alcohol Concern UK, UK
AHA responds to the Chancellor reversing alcohol duty freeze
In response, Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, Chair of the Alcohol Health Alliance UK, said: “We welcome the Government’s recent decision to reverse the planned freeze to alcohol duty. As death rates from alcohol remain at record high levels, alcohol duty is fundamental in reducing the public health burden caused by alcohol... | AHA, UK
Recreational Cannabis legalisation in Europe: Where Are We Now?
Part 2. Referred to as the ‘green wave’, the cannabis sector is undeniably on the rise across Europe, with policy changes in both the medicinal and recreational spheres. BSDA predicts that global cannabis sales will increase by 22 percent in 2022, and then surpass $61 billion in 2026 | Volteface, UK
Gender double standards in drinking
Recently, international reactions to Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s social drinking sparked a conversation around gender double standards | IAS blog, UK