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Daily news - 4th April 2024 |
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UK news
Nearly 100,000 drug tests carried out to tackle root causes of drug driven crime
The expansion of testing on arrest across England and Wales has seen nearly 100,000 drug tests on suspects whose behaviour was believed to have been driven by their drug abuse | Home Office and The Rt Hon Chris Philp MP, UK
Social media use linked to increased risk of cigarette and e-cigarette use in teens
The study, led by researchers at the University of Glasgow, found that teens who were on social media for more than two hours a day, were more than two and half times more likely to smoke cigarettes and more than three times more likely to use e-cigarettes, when compared to those who used social media for 1 to less than 30 minutes a day | University of Glasgow, UK
Nitazenes move the needle for drug death distress -audio
Today we're investigating dangerous new drugs which have found their way onto the streets of the UK. Nitazenes are lab made opioids with similar effects for the user as heroin. Their relative strength, however, means it is much more difficult to take them safely and much more likely to result in a fatal overdose. With drug deaths in this country already at a record high, and devestation being wrought by similar substances in the US, we look at a range of solutions for preventing as much harm as possible... | The Naked Scientist, UK
Nitazenes: Imports
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to tackle the importation of nitazenes into the UK | They work for you, UK
Drugs: Sales
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to help tackle the sale of illegal drugs on (a) social media and (b) other websites | They work for you, UK
Women in Psychedelics
Thu, 11 Apr 2024 17:30 - 19:30 BST. Online. Join us for an evening of exploring the different paths each of these women have followed in order to enter the field of psychedelics, including any challenges they have faced along their respective journeys | Drug Science, UK
Street Drugs Discussions: Microdosing Psychedelics
Fri, 12 Apr 2024 16:00 - 18:00 BST. Online. Join us in this webinar for a discussion where we'll explore various aspects from testing the effects of psychedelic microdosing to critically navigating the microdosing evidence. We will discuss the evidence of beneficial effects of microdosing psychedelic drugs and gain valuable insights from the Auckland microdosing trial results and other controlled laboratory studies | Drug Science, UK
Health Benefits of Drinking Moderately: Too Good to be True?
Wed, 17 Apr 2024 18:00 - 19:00 BST. Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh (also Online). Professor Tim Stockwell will discuss the evidence on the belief that drinking small amounts of alcohol can be good for you | SHAAP, UK
What does the future hold for the great British pub?
Friday 26th April. Northumbria University. Landlords, publicans, local authority planners, and members of the public are being invited to an academic workshop at Northumbria University, Newcastle, exploring the future of the British Pub | Newcastle University, UK
HMP Wymott: Concerns raised about inmates' drug use behind bars
Prisoners are developing drug problems behind bars due to long waiting times for mental health services, a report has found | BBC, UK
Suspected Tramadol tablets found on Cloughey beach
Police have urged the public to be vigilant after a "significant" quantity of suspected opiates were found on a County Down beach | BBC, UK
International news
Queensland’s first festival pill-testing service finds ‘Canberra ketamine’ sold as MDMA
Rabbits Eat Lettuce festival, near Warwick, held Australia’s first multi-day festival clinic last weekend | Guardian, UK
How Mexican drug cartels made their own fentanyl crisis (Video, dubbed)
When smuggling into the US all but stopped during the pandemic, the cartels unleashed fentanyl on their own population. Now they’re trying to clean up the mess. Our Latin America Correspondent Guillermo Galdos travelled to Tijuana, to see how it’s going | Channel 4, UK
Biden official claims Ireland changed alcohol labelling rules after US pressure
Irish health officials say nothing changed due to US lobbying despite claim in trade representative’s report | Irish Times, Ireland
'Eroding Belgium's unique beer culture': Brewers resist ban on alcohol advertising
The Belgian Brewers’ Federation has come out in opposition to a complete ban on alcohol advertising, following a recommendation recently reiterated by the country’s Superior Health Council (SHC), which sees this as the “most effective way to mitigate alcohol-related harm” | Brussels Times, Belgium
Public Health Interventions and Overdose-Related Outcomes Among Persons With Opioid Use Disorder
In this decision analytical model, simulated public health interventions, combined, among more than 16 million projected persons with OUD (Opioid Use Disorder) not receiving medication for OUD (MOUD) and nearly 1.7 million projected persons receiving MOUD were estimated to decrease OUD prevalence by 23%, increase the prevalence of MOUD treatment by 137%, and decrease nonfatal and fatal opioid-involved overdoses by 35% and 37%, respectively, between 2021 and 2023 | JAMA Network Open, USA
“Everybody needs to find the best path for them”: Insights into recovery strategies of people who have not used specialty treatment for alcohol use disorder
[Open access] Most people with alcohol use disorder (AUD) do not use treatment services, yet the majority ultimately resolve their AUD. As the phenomenon of untreated recovery remains poorly understood, we investigated the strategies used for recovery without treatment | Alcohol Clinical and Experimental Research, USA
Team moves forward in developing a vaccine for the 'zombie drug' xylazine
Xylazine is an FDA-approved sedative and pain reliever for use in animals, but it has severe adverse effects when used in humans. It is now illicitly being added to opioids, like fentanyl and heroin, as well as cocaine—leading to a sharp rise in overdose deaths | Medical Xpress, USA
“On the same page”? Impact of shared decision making between patients and providers on recovery
Improved retention in addiction treatment is associated with better treatment outcomes, including sustained abstinence. Communication between patients and clinicians is an important factor in treatment retention. This study examined substance use treatment patient preferences in clinical decision making and its association with treatment retention and substance use | Recovery Research Institute, USA
Trauma and emotion regulation effects on cocaine use and depression in treatment-seeking adults
Emotion regulation difficulties and experiencing trauma add complications in addiction treatment. To help inform treatment approaches for individuals with cocaine use disorder, this study examined how trauma experiences and emotion regulation were associated with cocaine use and depressive symptoms | Recovery Research Institute, USA
Anti-smoking groups sue FDA again over menthol ban delays
This is the second lawsuit that the plaintiffs—the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council, Action on Smoking and Health and the National Medical Association—have filed against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration over delays in banning menthol cigarettes | Medical Xpress, USA
Nicotine pouches for your mouth are becoming increasingly popular. Here’s why health experts are concerned
A relatively new nicotine product with a tobacco-free and smokeless design has drawn in a wave of new users in just the past year: oral nicotine pouches that sit at the gums and are nearly undetectable when in use| CNN, USA
New research uncovers support for pill testing in the Northern Territory (PDF)
A new study led by Menzies School of Health Research has uncovered strong support from Northern Territory (NT) festival goers, for drug checking (also known as pill testing) to reduce harm | Menzies, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Whose Death Gets to Be a Tragedy?
On the 19th of December, the Office for National Statistics released its report on 2022 drug-related deaths (DRDs); this report painted a bleak picture of a continuing public health crisis in the UK. DRDs are at their highest levels on record, with 4,907 lives lost, the highest number of deaths since records began in 1993 | Talking Drugs, UK
What is Addiction Counseling?
At this stage of my career, it seems to me that “Addiction Counseling” is one thing made from the following four essential ingredients: listening with the “third ear”; those unique competencies and skills that are particular to the professional addiction counselor; the competencies and skills particular to the recovery coach; and finally, the qualities of a recovery carrier | Recovery Review blog, USA
Why cocaine is considered performance-enhancing for athletes, and why it matters when the athlete took it
Australian Rules Football and illicit drugs have been in the media for all the wrong reasons recently | Conversation, Australia