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Daily news - 3rd May 2023

UK news

Open consultation - Nitrous oxide: legitimate uses and appropriate controls

This consultation closes at 11:59pm on 27 June 2023. This consultation is aimed at organisations or individuals that manufacture, sell or use nitrous oxide as part of their business or for those who use it in a personal capacity where it is not used for its psychoactive effects, for example when used in home cooking and car maintenance | Home Office, UK

‘Protect our Patients’ campaign launched

A new campaign calling for GPs to be allowed to prescribe medical cannabis to their patients has been launched by a group of leading industry organisations. The campaign, led by the Cannabis Industry Council (CIC), the Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society (MCCS), Volteface, and Maple Tree Consultants, is calling for GPs to have the same rights as consultants | Cannabis Industry Council (CIC) et al, UK

Mental Health Awareness: 'I will always be in recovery' says former heroin addict

Cathy Doyle, from Liverpool, first tried heroin when she was 15 to escape her traumatic childhood | ITV, UK

Medical cannabis used to treat brain tumours during ‘world first trial’ in Leeds

Researchers have just recruited their first patient who will receive an oral spray, containing the cannabinoid-based drug nabiximols | Yorkshire Post, UK

Nitrous oxide: why the environment isn’t amused about laughing gas

Nitrous oxide is a powerful greenhouse gas writes Mark Lorch, Professor of Public Engagement and Science Communication in the Faculty of Science and Engineering | University of Hull, UK

Drug gangs on Teesside 'branding' children to show ownership

Family law barrister Helen Scourfield also said drug gangs on Teesside are recruiting children more readily than ever before while police officers working on the ground told ITV Tyne Tees that the use of young people in crime is emerging as a serious problem | ITV, UK

International news

Medicinal cannabis helps cancer pain - study

Medicinal cannabis can help relieve pain caused by cancer and reduce the number of drugs patients need, Canadian research suggests | BBC, UK

[Open access] Groups who have been least exposed to cannabis before legalization may be most susceptible to increased availability. In jurisdictions with legal cannabis markets, restrictions on the number of legal cannabis retailers, especially in densely populated areas, appear warranted | IJDP, UK

Lawsuit demands access to Prince Harry's US visa record after drug admissions

An American thinktank is planning on suing the US government for access to Prince Harry's immigration records to see if he admitted to illegal drug use on his visa application | ITV, UK

India police force tells heavy-drinking officers to leave

Officials in the Indian state of Assam are asking about 300 police officers who they deem to have an alcohol problem to quit the force | BBC, UK

Albanese government to raise tobacco tax by 5% a year to make smoking ‘more unattractive’

Health minister announces new tax measures shortly after revealing sweeping reforms to crack down on vaping | Guardian, UK

Australia’s new vaping import ban: what we do and don’t know so far

A range of new restrictions on vape products have been announced. Here is what’s being proposed – and what is yet to be decided | Guardian, UK

‘Real risk’ Ireland’s health label plans will stop small French winemakers selling to us, warns ambassador

There is a “real risk” that small French winemakers will stop selling into the Irish market if new cigarette-style health labels are introduced, France’s ambassador to Ireland has warned | Independent, Ireland

EMCDDA Webinar: Teens and substance use — what can parents do?

8 MAY 2023. To help adults manage risks relating to adolescent substance use in line with evidence-based prevention principles | EMCDDA, Portugal

Estimates of Drug Overdose Deaths Involving Fentanyl, Methamphetamine, Cocaine, Heroin, and Oxycodone: United States, 2021 (PDF)

From 2016 through 2021, age-adjusted drug overdose death rates involving fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine increased, while drug overdose death rates involving oxycodone decreased | CDC, USA

State Senate approves ban of supervised injection sites in Pa.

Pennsylvania's GOP-controlled state Senate passed a bipartisan bill to ban supervised injection sites anywhere in the state by a 41-9 vote. The legislation now moves to the House | Philadelphia Inquirer, USA

Study suggests psilocybin could help treat fear-based and other mental disorders

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition triggered by a terrifying event. Its symptoms include flashbacks, nightmares, and severe anxiety. Most people experience PTSD at some point in their lives, with symptoms slowly resolving with time. For many, however, the symptoms are persistent, debilitating, and difficult to treat | Medical Xpress, USA

CA Bill to Legalize Psychedelics Possession Expedited to Senate Floor

ACalifornia bill to legalize the possession and facilitated use of certain psychedelics is heading to the Senate floor, under an accelerated process that’s allowing it to skip further committee consideration | Filter Magazine, USA

Characteristics and circumstances of volatile solvent misuse-related death in Australia, 2000–2021

[Open access] Volatile solvent misuse-related death is associated with neuropsychiatric, cardiovascular, respiratory and renal pathology, as well as sudden death. The study aimed to determine: (1) the circumstances of death and case characteristics of volatile solvent misuse-related death in Australia, 2000–2021; (2) the toxicological profile of cases; and (3) the major autopsy findings | Clinical Toxicology, Australia

Blogs, comment and opinion

Drug law reform is crucial to address racism in the UK

With drug-related deaths on the rise and criminalisation having little effect on drug use, it has become increasingly evident that the UK’s drug policy has failed on its own merits. In this piece, Senior Legal Adviser and solicitor, Phillipa Gelland, and Legal Caseworker and human rights specialist, Aminah Chowdhury, from the leading drugs charity Release make the case for a harm reduction approach | Revolving Doors blog, UK

Remove barriers to clinical research for schedule 1 drugs with therapeutic potential

Regulation of clinical research on schedule 1 drugs with therapeutic potential should be reviewed, argue Leslie King, David Nutt and David Nichols | BMJ opinion, UK

Microdosing: Fake or Fluke?

Does microdosing work? Taking microdoses of psychedelics like shrooms or LSD has become more popular, but what evidence is there for its effectiveness? | Volteface, UK

Public awareness of the relationship between alcohol use and breast cancer risk

Breast cancer is the third most common cancer in Ireland, and the most common among women. Alcohol use is estimated to be attributable to approximately 7% of these breast cancer cases. Almost half of women in Ireland drink alcohol on a weekly basis (48%) and approximately 1 in every 5 women report binge drinking on a typical drinking occasion (19%). However, despite alcohol being classified as a Group 1 carcinogen (cancer causing) since 1988, many appear unaware of this fact | IAS blog, UK

Letters to the Editor: We should be proud of our stance on alcohol labelling

Extensive coverage was recently given to alcohol industry views on Ireland’s health information labelling regulations claiming “real risks” to their business (‘Health labels “could affect French wine imports” here’, Irish Independent, Business, May 1) | Independent letters, Ireland

Buprenorphine and retention

JAMA published new research on buprenorphine initiation and retention and the findings are disappointing | Recovery Review blog, USA

French Connections: London-Paris linkages in interwar drug culture

In the early hours of the morning of 1st July 1937, Gerald Edward Mary O’Brien was detained by police officers on the ferry returning from Dieppe. He had crossed the channel with six grammes of high-quality heroin concealed about his person. It was the last of what had been a regular series of trips to Paris from his home in London, and he had sourced the heroin from two young Americans living in a hotel in the Pigalle, which was the entertainment and ‘vice’ district of the French capital | Points blog, USA

Self-reported drug use: is it reliable?

NDARC's Chrianna Bharat explains the implications behind a recently published study that looks at the reliability of self-reported drug use compared to biological test results | NDARC blog, Australia

Can vaping help people quit smoking? It’s unlikely

Australian Health Minister Mark Butler has announced a major policy shift on vaping. Its two primary objectives are to make it harder for children and non-smokers to access vapes and to allow people trying to quit smoking to access nicotine vapes with a prescription | Conversation, Australia

An Aotearoa drug policy for the 21st Century

It’s time to overhaul New Zealand’s outdated and harmful drug laws in favour of a health-based, Te Tiriti-aligned approach that not only reduces harm but saves tax money and police time, argue Dr Rose Crossin and Professor Joe Boden | Newsroom opinion, New Zealand

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