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Daily news - 13th April 2023

UK news

Jacqui Smith, Home Secretary responsible for upgrading cannabis to Class B, joins board of UK cannabis company

A UK company which has been awarded the second Home Office licence to permit the commercial cultivation and distribution of medical cannabis has former Labour Home Secretary Jacqui Smith sitting on its board | Leafie, UK

New cannabis laws 'could be stopped outside of Guernsey'

Government departments in Guernsey are looking at the possible legalisation of cannabis, but any planned laws could be stopped outside of the bailiwick, a senior politician has said | BBC, UK

2022-2023 MCA Legacy Essay Competition

It has been widely reported that youth alcohol consumption has decreased over recent years. What is the evidence to support this view? What are the implications for alcohol related health harm, promotion of safe drinking and health policy? | MCA, UK

Beeston: Cannabis factory found after resident tip-off

Police have seized about 100 cannabis plants from a house in Beeston after a tip-off from a member of the public | BBC, UK

How police used a can of Heineken and a lightbulb to catch cannabis farmer behind £2m drug factory

Fingerprints found on a beer can and a lightbulb allowed police to link a cannabis farmer to factories containing drug harvest which could have been worth £2m | ITV, UK

International news

Germany scales back plans to allow cannabis sale in shops and pharmacies

Health minister says adults will be allowed to grow and consume limited amounts privately or at members’ clubs by end of year | Guardian, UK

[Open access] More than 1.9 million people die from cancer each year in Europe. Alcohol use is a major modifiable risk factor for cancer and poses an economic burden on society. We estimated the cost of productivity lost due to premature death (under 65 years of age) from alcohol-attributable cancer in the European Union (EU) plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom (UK) in 2018 | Cancer Epidemiology, UK

E-cigarette maker Juul agrees to pay $462m to settle claims by six US states

Company did not admit wrongdoing in settlement regarding unlawfully marketing its addictive products to minors | Guardian, UK

Victoria to abolish the crime of public drunkenness starting Melbourne Cup Day

Government sets start date for its move towards a public health approach to public intoxication | Guardian, UK

The trauma doctor: Gabor Maté on happiness, hope and how to heal our deepest wounds

The physician, author and self-help guru came to worldwide prominence when he appeared with Prince Harry last month. He discusses the mind-body connection, the reality of addiction and why trauma can be treated | Guardian, UK

Cork councillors to visit supervised injection centres in Lisbon on fact-finding mission

Councillors, gardaí, and HSE officials will visit the centres in Portugal to examine options for similar facilities in Cork | Irish Examiner, Ireland

Smoking down but nicotine use up among Danish youth

Nicotine products such as snus, nicotine pouches, and vaping devices have become more popular among young people in Denmark in recent years, with fully 35.1 percent of 15- to 29-year-olds using them daily or regularly, up from 26.3 percent as recently as 2020 | Local, Denmark

Biden-⁠Harris Administration Designates Fentanyl Combined with Xylazine as an Emerging Threat to the United States

Xylazine’s growing role in overdose deaths nationwide prompts Administration to make this designation for the first time in U.S. history | White House, USA

Estimated Clinical Outcomes and Cost-effectiveness Associated With Provision of Addiction Treatment in US Primary Care Clinics

In this decision analytical model using the Reducing Infections Related to Drug Use Cost-Effectiveness model, integrating buprenorphine alone extended discounted life expectancy by 0.16 years and buprenorphine combined with harm reduction kits extended discounted life expectancy by 0.17 years. Compared with the status quo, buprenorphine and harm reduction kits reduced drug use–related mortality by 33% and was cost-effective | JAMA Network Open, USA

Effectiveness of Conditioned Open-label Placebo With Methadone in Treatment of Opioid Use DisorderA Randomized Clinical Trial

In this 2-group, single-blind randomized clinical trial including 131 individuals, 90-day retention in treatment and quality of sleep were significantly improved with C-OLP vs treatment as usual. Methadone dose, the prespecified primary outcome, did not differ significantly between groups | JAMA Network Open, USA

Study finds alterations in brain connectivity among young adult cannabis users

Globally, cannabis use has increased in recent years. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 147 million people, or 2.5% of the world population, consume cannabis. The neurobiological mechanisms of cannabis are yet to be identified, particularly in youth | Medical Xpress, USA

Psychiatrist discusses the complexities of ketamine treatment and the risks of at-home use

When administered correctly and under the supervision of a professional, ketamine can be a life-changing treatment for major depression. But following regulatory changes put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic that made telemedicine more accessible, the drug's off-label, unsupervised use has skyrocketed despite limited data supporting the safety and efficacy of that practice | Medical Xpress, USA

Indigenous Harm Reduction Group Behind Free Naloxone Mailing in WI

Any Wisconsin resident can now get free naloxone, the lifesaving opioid-overdose reversal drug, by mail. Like many others, the state has experienced a tragic and preventable rise in overdose deaths. An Indigenous harm reduction group is engaged in launching the mailing program, in the context of Indigenous communities suffering more from Wisconsin’s crisis than any other demographic | Filter Magazine, USA

Blogs, comment and opinion

Is the uk public waking up to the benefits of legal medical cannabis?

Is the UK's legal medical cannabis system seeing an uptick in patients after a slower-than-predicted start? | Volteface, UK

Women in Law Enforcement: Julia’s story

Julia is a new member of LEAP a group of Police, undercover operatives, intelligence service, military and a range of figures from the criminal justice system who are joining together with communities to bring about drug law reform | Anyone's Child blog, UK

Legal adult cannabis use expected in germany by the end of 2023

Following their dialogue with the EU, Germany has announced their highly anticipated updated plans for cannabis legalisation, with the approach altered considerably from the original cornerstone paper released in October 2022. The key takeaways from the new policy are a two-pillared approach that will introduce cannabis social clubs and a 5-year regional pilot project | Volteface, UK

How Do You Get People Into Addiction Treatment if They Don’t Want It?

Fifteen years ago, I was the father of a child who was living on the street, addicted to meth, opioids and other drugs. My son was slowly dying | NYTimes opinion, USA

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