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Daily news - 11th June 2024 |
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UK news
Research explores measures to reduce alcohol harms without impacting pubs and restaurants
Higher prices in shops and tighter restrictions on online alcohol sales could help to reduce rising alcohol harms whilst minimising impact on hospitality businesses, according to a new study | University of Stirling, UK
8/10 adults believe it is important to have health campaigns on alcohol
8/10 adults (82%) in the North East believe it is important to have health campaigns on alcohol. And 62% of people who drink alcohol are now taking steps to manage consumption. The new research among people in the North East comes as Balance launches the next phase of its award-winning “Alcohol is Toxic” campaign [Monday, June 10] to highlight the fact alcohol is a group one carcinogen causing at least seven types of cancer – including bowel, breast, mouth and throat cancer | Balance NE, UK
Could cannabis be legalised in the UK? #shorts - video
Short video stating how the LibDems and the Greens wish to legalise cannabis while The Conservative and Labour party do not | ITV, UK
For a fair deal - Lib Dem manifesto
The manifesto includes mention of drug policy priorities, focusing on changes in governance, investment, increased use of diversion, and a move towards legal regulation of drugs | Liberal Democrats, UK
Cannabis potency and psychotic experiences with Lindsey Hines - podcast
In this episode, Dr Rob Calder talks to Dr Lindsey Hines about her study using longitudinal data to examine links between cannabis use, cannabis potency and psychotic experiences. Dr Hines talks about using Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) data - also known as 'Children of the Nineties' and discusses why psychosis and cannabis potency are important to measure and some of the challenges of doing so with both | SSA, UK
Vaping and peer pressure: what you need to know
Teen 23 is a survey conducted in the summer of 2023 by Bitesize and BBC Radio 5Live, where over 2000 13-18 year-olds answered questions about the issues important to them. Nearly a third of those surveyed said they have vaped at least once and 55 percent of those said they were worried that vaping could be bad for their health. But what's the deal with vaping and your health? And what can you do if you feel under pressure to start vaping? | BBC Bitesize, UK
The Harbour – celebrating a decade of recovery
Lambeth’s The Harbour drug and alcohol recovery centre celebrates 10 years of helping people with ongoing recovery from problematic substance use | Love Lambeth, UK
Local and national approaches to young people's drug use
Wednesday, June 12 · 7 - 9:30pm GMT+1. SSDP Imperial are excited to welcome volunteers from the Benzo Research Project to announce the launch of two new reports on drug education, support and policy | ICL SSDP, UK
Adverts for UK bookmakers and online casinos ‘need smoking-style warnings’
GambleAware signals collision course with industry as charity brands current warnings ‘inadequate’ | Guardian, UK
International news
Canadian drug advocacy group founders charged with trafficking
Vancouver’s volunteer-led ‘compassion club’ offered users pure drugs like heroin and cocaine to prevent overdose deaths | Guardian, UK
The “Gateway” hypothesis: evaluation of evidence and alternative explanations
[Open access] Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) offer a substantial harm reduction opportunity for adults who smoke and are unlikely to quit. However, a major concern about ENDS is their use by non-smoking youth, and particularly whether ENDS are acting as a “gateway” that leads youth to later start smoking cigarettes. However, evidence for the gateway hypothesis can be interpreted in alternative ways... | Harm Reduction Journal, UK
Outcomes of the LEAP feasibility trial—A low-threshold, exercise programme with protein supplementation to target frailty and poor physical functioning in people experiencing homelessness and addiction issues
[Open access] People experiencing homelessness are more likely to experience poor health with physical functioning deficits and frailty commonly reported. It is not well known how strategies to target physical functioning deficits and frailty work in practice in this group. The primary aim of this study was to explore the feasibility of an exercise intervention with protein supplementation to target physical functioning and frailty in people experiencing homelessness... | PLOS One, UK
The challenge of New Psychoactive Substances – A technical update 2024
This report is an update of the UNODC publication “The challenge of new psychoactive substances, 2013”, which focuses on the new psychoactive substances (NPS) encountered on the market. The report is structured by effect groups of NPS with descriptions of mechanism of action, form/preparations, routes of administration and scheduled substances within each group. In addition, the content for each NPS group looks at substructural chemical classification and evolution through modification of core structures including effects of structural change on activity | UNODC, USA
New research describes the leisure motivations that underpin young US adults' recreational cannabis use
As of 2024, 24 states, including Virginia and Maryland, and DC have legalized the adult recreational use of cannabis. As laws change, citizens' perceptions of the drug and reasons for using the drug have also shifted | Medical Xpress, USA
Clinical trial shows promising results in a two-drug combination that curbs methamphetamine use
A clinical trial on a two-drug therapy for methamphetamine use disorder reduced use of the highly addictive drug for up to 12 weeks after initiation of treatment, UCLA-led research suggests | Medical Xpress, USA
International guideline aims to help taper off opioids safely
In Australia, opioid use is common, with approximately 13.3 million opioid prescriptions dispensed to provide pain relief for almost 3 million people between 2021–22. With opioids being so widely prescribed, it's not surprising that in 2022 they were the most common drug class identified in toxicology for drug-induced deaths according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics | Medical Xpress, USA
Opioid giant's tactics to influence doctors revealed in court documents
Opioid giant Mallinckrodt, selling more than Purdue Pharma in the US, was forced by the courts to publish more than 1.3 million internal documents | Medical Xpress, USA
Baltimore City wins $45 million settlement with Allergan, seeks billions in suits vs. other opioid distributors
Baltimore went its own way and has won the first leg of a potentially billion-dollar lawsuit against opioid distributors | Medical Xpress, USA
Storm in a Teacup Over Soccer Stars’ Snus Use
“I used to have the odd cigarette on a night out,” wrote Jamie Vardy, the Leicester City striker and 2016 Premier League winner, in his autobiography, “but one of the lads introduced me to snus when I signed for Leicester and I found they helped me chill out.” | Filter Magazine, USA
South Africa legalises cannabis use. Will the rest of Africa follow?
It’s now legal for South Africans to grow and use cannabis. The next battle — making it legal to trade. A continent is watching | AlJazeera, Qatar
New national campaign launched to help young people quit vaping
The Australian Government has launched a new public health campaign to encourage young people to stop vaping – and not take it up in the first place | Australian Government, Australia
Blohs, comment and opinion
NHS Confederation responds to the latest Health Survey figures
Responding to part 1 of the latest Health Survey statistics, Dr Layla McCay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation said: "While it is encouraging to see the continued fall in adults, children and young people who smoke and drink alcohol these figures do raise some concerns. The fact that a higher proportion of adults are drinking at increasing or higher risk levels and more children are vaping is something that health leaders will want to keep a close eye on | NHS Confederation, UK
The rare condition that causes the body to produce its own alcohol
Imagine you turn up to the hospital looking for help because you feel dizzy and can’t stop slurring your speech – only to be told that you’re simply drunk. Yet, you haven’t had a drop of alcohol | Conversation, UK
‘You Talk, We Die’: A book review
Ben Scher reviews ‘You Talk, We Die’ – Judy Ryan’s new book about fighting to open the first safe injecting facility in Victoria (Australia). The book is a “must-read for anyone interested in better understanding how one can affect positive change in their local community” | SSA, UK
We know how to save Black Americans from overdoses. Will Congress actually do it?
My brother Phillip has fought a long battle against addiction and overdose. I talk publicly about his struggle in an effort to end the stigma surrounding treatment | USA Today opinion, USA
Why DULF’s Founders Deserve Awards, Not Arrests
We wish to add our voices to those who are protesting the arrest of two members of the Drug User Liberation Front, Eris Nyx and Jeremy Kalicum, who have been operating a compassion club in Vancouver since 2021 | The Tyee opinion, Canada