Home | Archive | Weekly | Reports
Daily news - 12th January 2024 |
 |
UK news
Overdose Prevention Centres have key role in tackling UK drug-deaths crisis, says new research
Drug overdose prevention centres (OPCs) could prevent thousands of deaths, reduce the spread of serious disease, improve communities, save taxpayer money and with no increase in drug-related crime – according to a major new report | Queen's University Belfast, UK
Sobering Thoughts – have zero regrets for your alcohol ads in 2024
The New Year often kindles a health kick in many of us, with Dry January becoming somewhat of a staple in the last few years – and this year it'll be easier than ever to stick to with the rise of low/no alcohol alternatives. But did you know that there are new rules on the horizon for this type of product? | ASA, UK
Urgent action needed on Liverpool's health, report says
Public Health Director, Professor Matt Ashton examined the health challenges for the city up to 2040 | BBC, UK
Centre for Change - County Durham Drug and Alcohol Recovery Service - video
An insight into the support available from Centre for Change - County Durham Drug and Alcohol Recovery Service. Hear from members of the team and people with lived experience who are a part of the service | Humankind, UK
Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the potential reasons for the increase in people accessing alcohol support services post-covid | They work for you, UK
Prisons: Drugs
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the volume of illegal drugs found in prisons between (a) 2014 and 2018 and (b) 2019 and 2023 | They work for you, UK
New Ethical Guidelines for Drugs Research
Wednesday, January 17 · 1 - 2:30pm GMT. 43 Woodland Road Bristol BS8 1SR. The University Ethics of Research Committee has recently adopted Best Practice Guidelines for Research on Drugs Issues to guide those who do research on drugs across different disciplines when they are submitting university ethics applications, and to support Research Ethics Committees who assess and advise research on this topic. Join us to explore how these guidelines can support your work and research and open up future research on drugs issues | J Slater (Transform Drug Policy Foundation), UK
Guernsey Police welcome plans to update drug driving laws
The plans would enable police to carry out road-side drug tests on motorists with portable testing equipment. New legal limits would create an offence of "driving whilst over the prescribed limit for specified drugs" | BBC, UK
Pregabalin: Man arrested following £450k drugs seizure
A man has been arrested after suspected counterfeit drugs worth an estimated £450,000 were seized in Belfast | BBC, UK
International news
Restricting alcohol marketing to reduce alcohol consumption: A systematic review of the empirical evidence for one of the ‘best buys’
Even though a ban of alcohol marketing has been declared a ‘best buy’ of alcohol control policy, comprehensive systematic reviews on its effectiveness to reduce consumption are lacking. The aim of this paper was to systematically review the evidence for effects of total and partial bans of alcohol marketing on alcohol consumption | Addiction, UK
Runners enjoyed their workouts more after using cannabis, but physically floundered
Smoking cannabis before a workout may make the experience more enjoyable, but it may feel harder, a small study suggests | Live Science, UK
Sri Lanka: stop abusive anti-drug operation and release those arbitrarily detained
[Letter] We, the undersigned organisations, are deeply concerned about the drastic intensification of anti-drug operations in Sri Lanka leading to significant human rights violations... | HRI, UK
Gardaí liaison officers working with national police services tackling drug importation and exportation
As part of its contribution to the war against international drug trafficking, Gardaí have dispatched liaison officers to work with national police services who are tackling drug importation and exportation | Irish Examiner, Ireland
Doctors are as vulnerable to addiction as anyone: California grapples with a response
As addiction and overdose deaths command headlines across the nation, the Medical Board of California, which licenses MDs, is developing a new program to treat and monitor doctors with alcohol and drug problems. But a fault line has appeared over whether those who join the new program without being ordered to by the board should be subject to public disclosure | Medical Xpress, USA
Childhood Trauma, Emotional Awareness, and Neural Correlates of Long-Term Nicotine Smoking
In this cross-sectional study of 102 individuals who smoked nicotine long term matched with 102 healthy controls, individuals who smoked nicotine spent more time in the frontoinsular default mode brain network. Alexithymia mediated the association between childhood trauma and time spent in the frontoinsular default mode network only in individuals who smoked nicotine | JAMA Network Open, USA
WHO Renews Tobacco Harm Reduction Attacks in Runup to COP10
Postponing its 10th Conference of the Parties (COP10) to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control hasn’t stopped the World Health Organization (WHO) from doubling down on its efforts to ban safer alternatives to cigarettes | Filter Magazine, USA
Psychedelic Mushrooms Existed Millions of Years Before Humans, Largest-Ever Study Reveals
The largest genomic study of "magic" mushrooms reveals they evolved 65 million years ago and deepens our understanding of their psychedelic compounds | VICE, USA
Prescribing opioids to people with opioid use disorder prevented deaths in B.C.
People with an opioid use disorder who were prescribed at least one day’s supply of opioids as part of the Province of British Columbia’s Risk Mitigation Guidance were 61 per cent less likely to die in the following week when compared to a similar group of people who did not receive a prescription | BCCDC, Canada
MDMA and other stimulants in hot environments
Nine people recently became unwell after using MDMA at a music event. Some were also exposed to PMMA, synthetic cathinones and/or methamphetamine. Consuming these substances at a hot, humid music event will increase the risk of life-threatening hyperthermia | Victoria Department of Health, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Our priorities for the next government
2024 is set to be a crucial year for the drug and alcohol treatment and recovery system. The forthcoming general election is likely to take place this year, bringing potential political change. We will all also be keenly aware of the fast approaching funding cliff edge facing services in our sector, as we prepare to enter the 24/25 financial year and come closer to the end of the initial three year funding period announced alongside the ten year drug strategy | Collective Voice blog, UK
Nitrous oxide may be harmful for ‘heavy users’ according to new review, but more research needed
Nitrous oxide (more commonly known as laughing gas) is a widely used drug in the UK and many other European countries. This colourless, sweet tasting gas has been used for over a hundred years recreationally and in medicine as an anaesthetic and for pain | Mental Elf blog, UK
Across Europe, drugs policies need a rethink
Robin Prior says current policies make the drug trade more profitable, while Bill Nightingale thinks the evidence for the approach advocated by the mayor of Amsterdam is overwhelming | Guardian letters, UK