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Daily news - 5th January 2023 |
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UK news
Student mental health risk 'linked to chosen areas of study'
A student's risk of mental ill-health, drug or alcohol abuse could be linked to the subject they study | BBC, UK
Experts issue warning over danger of low-alcohol and no-alcohol drinks
Millions of people have turned to alcohol-free drinks for Dry January | Wales Online, UK
Prisons: Alcoholic Drinks
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of prisons in which alcohol was distilled in each of the last three years | They work for you, UK
Addiction Audio: The rise of disposable vaping products - podcast
Rob Calder talks to Harry Tattan-Birch from UCL about his article on recent trends in the prevalence of disposable e-cigarette vaping in Great Britain. Rob and Harry discuss the Smoking Toolkit Study, the increase in popularity of disposable vaping products, and emerging hypotheses for this change | SSA, UK
Manchester Arena attack: Friends of bomber jailed for drug enterprise
A drugs conspiracy involving friends of the Manchester Arena suicide bomber was "comfortably" worth £6m, a court has heard | BBC, UK
International news
HSE launches quit smoking campaign amid concerns over stalled rates of reduction
Almost 100 people die in Ireland from smoking-related diseases every week, public health doctors have warned, as the HSE launched its quit-smoking campaign for 2023 | Irish Examiner, Ireland
How to make Dry January a success
Analysis: behavioural science has some helpful tips to get first-timers and seasoned participants to the end of Dry January | RTe, Ireland
SAMHSA Announces National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) Results Detailing Mental Illness and Substance Use Levels in 2021
The 2021 NSDUH national report includes selected estimates by race, ethnicity, and age group. It is the most comprehensive report on substance use and mental health indicators that SAMHSA has released to date | SAMHSA, USA
The relationship between medical and recreational cannabis laws and the state-level prevalence of pediatric asthma in the US
In a recent study published in Preventive Medicine, researchers evaluated the impact of cannabis legalization on pediatric asthma in the United States (US) | Medical Express, USA
Experts seek to understand risks associated with vaping and e-cigarettes
E-cigarette or vaping product use–associated lung injury (EVALI) is a severe pulmonary illness caused by using e-cigarettes or vaping products. In the United States, in 2018, an alarming 25% of youth adopted e-cigarettes, with the overall number being more than 13 million individuals | News Medical, USA
Collaboration to develop a mobile intervention to help Black American smokers with HIV
HIV remains a critical global public health issue and a significant threat to global health security after having claimed more than 40 million lives, according to the World Health Organization. The stark reality is that one in five of the more than one million people living with HIV in the U.S. is unaware of his or her infection, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reported | Medical Xpress, USA
Comparison of Opioids Prescribed by Advanced Practice Clinicians vs Surgeons After Surgical Procedures in the US
In this cross-sectional study of national claims data for 628 197 surgical procedures involving 581 387 adults and children, one-fifth of perioperative opioid prescriptions and one-quarter of refill prescriptions were written by APCs. Perioperative opioid prescriptions written by APCs had higher total dosages compared with those written by surgeons | JAMA Network, USA
‘Gas Station Heroin’ Was Just Banned in Ohio
Ohio is the latest state to ban tianeptine, an antidepressant known as “zaza” or “gas station heroin” because it can mimic the effects of opioids | VICE, USA
High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program 2022 Report to Congress (PDF)
As an important aspect of the National Drug Control Strategy, the HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas) Program coordinates and assists Federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies (LEAs) in each HIDTA-designated region to address regional drug threats with the purpose of reducing drug trafficking and drug production in the United States. This document presents a national overview of the HIDTA Program | The White House, USA
BC Decrim Threshold Was Set for Police, Not People Who Use Drugs
British Columbia is about to become the first Canadian province to decriminalize personal possession of some state-banned drugs—a move that media and government officials are widely touting as progressive. As drug users who work in frontline harm reduction, we do not share this view | Filter Magazine, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Beware the medicalisation of cannabis
Just over four years ago, Britain legalised cannabis. But not all cannabis, just medical. And not for everyone – the NHS are reluctant to prescribe you the sticky green stuff, you must try other medications first. Private clinics are more open-minded, but not everyone can afford them. So while around 17,000 patients in the UK are now prescribed ganja for conditions including pain, depression, insomnia, anxiety, Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis, many still pick up off their dealer | Volteface, UK
Why so few baby boomers are doing Dry January
For my generation, drinking has always been a given. But our relationship with booze is overdue some examination | Guardian opinion, UK
‘I decided to stay sober forever’: How Dry January is changing binge Britain
A month of alcoholic abstinence seems good on paper, but can it really make a difference to your drinking habits long-term? Dry January sceptic Eloise Hendy meets people whose lives have been transformed by just 30 days of sobriety | Independent, UK
Why bottom-up approach is necessary for not-for-profit cannabis associations | Andrew Bonello, Oscar Pares
As Malta nears its one-year anniversary since enacting legislative changes allowing the limited possession and cultivation of cannabis, various questions continue to overshadow this important reform. Primarily, is the why and how not for profit cannabis associations will be established | Malta Today blog, Malta