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Daily news - 7th March 2024

UK news

Jeremy Hunt plans to tax vaping products and raise tobacco duty

Campaigners say measure will help tackle ‘pocket money’ pricing that attracts young children to vaping | Guardian, UK

Vape shop fears new tax could put customers off

A Worcestershire vape shop has admitted it has concerns that some customers could give up vaping due to a new tax | BBC, UK

Budget 2024: alcohol freeze 'not enough' says Upham Inns pub chain

The freeze in alcohol duty announced in the budget will not address all the cost pressures facing the hospitality sector, a pub group director has said | BBC, UK

Spring Budget 2024: a short-sighted move

Alcohol Change UK is deeply disappointed with the announcement in today's Spring Budget by Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on the freeze in alcohol duty | Alcohol Change UK, UK

Trends in Exclusive Non-Cigarette Tobacco Smoking in England: A Population Survey 2013–2023

[Open access] The UK Government intends to implement a “smokefree generation” policy prohibiting the sale of all tobacco products to people born after 2008. National surveys provide comprehensive data on cigarette smoking, but little is known about patterns of non-cigarette tobacco smoking across key population groups | Nicotine & Tobacco Research, UK

Regaining control: A longer-lasting alternative to methadone for treating heroin addiction is rapidly gaining in popularity

At one point in his life, Jonathan Scott was so reliant on heroin that much of his time would revolve around how and where he could find his next fix, regardless of the cost | 1919 Magazine, UK

New children’s story book published to help families affected by substance use: freely available resource

Children, parents, teachers, and researchers at Newcastle University have worked with an author and illustrator to co-produce a children’s storybook called, 'Twinkle, Twinkle Arti'. This book was written for young children who have a parent or caregiver who uses substances, as a way of opening up conversations between children and trusted adults | NIHR, UK

Tobacco and Vaping: Legislation

To ask the Secretary of State for Health When she plans to introduce a tobacco and vapes bill | They work for you, UK

Paul Gascoigne says he is a ‘sad drunk’ and lives in his agent’s spare room

Paul Gascoigne has described himself as a “sad drunk” and said he is living in his agent’s spare room, as the football legend revealed the extent of his battle with alcohol addiction | Guardian, UK

Young people in the UK: tell us about your (non-cigarette) smoking habits

We’d like to hear from young people over 18 living in the UK who have taken up smoking cigars, shisha, cigarillos and pipes | Guardian, UK

How can we raise awareness of the link between alcohol and breast cancer?

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 13:00 - 14:00 GMT. Join our webinar at 1pm on 21st March to find out about our research on raising awareness of alcohol and breast cancer risk | Emma Davies, UK

Doncaster drug dealer who used secret messaging platform jailed

Jamie Bermingham, 44, used Encrochat to distribute heroin, cocaine and cannabis, Sheffield Crown Court heard | BBC, UK

Boy accused of Luton drug deal murder bought 63 knives, trial hears

A teenage drug dealer accused of murdering a man with a bayonet-style hunting knife had bought 63 knives in the months leading up to the killing, a court heard | BBC, UK

International news

More than 13m cigarettes seized at Dublin Port

The cigarettes have an estimated value of more than €11m (£9.4m) representing a potential loss to the Irish Exchequer of €8.9m | BBC, UK

San Francisco appears to pass measure for welfare recipients to be drug-tested

Proposition F would require single adults without dependents who receive welfare benefits and use illegal drugs to undergo treatment | Guardian, UK

Comprehensive vaping bans are associated with lower odds of initiation into electronic nicotine delivery systems use among young people

[Open access] E-cigarette and other electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) use has grown considerably over the past decade, with notable increases among young people. US state policy contexts for ENDS and tobacco may shape initiation into ENDS use among adolescents as they age into early adulthood. We aimed to determine whether state-level comprehensive vaping ban policies reduce the odds of youth initiation into ENDS use, net of additional state-level ENDS and tobacco policies, as well as the youth's cigarette smoking status | Addiction, UK

Michigan man given three years’ prison for not reporting illicit drug profits

Matthew D Adams must also pay more than $3m in restitution for scheme in which he and an accomplice tried to launder funds | Guardian, UK

British American Tobacco makes largest donation to Nationals in over a decade amid vaping crackdown

British American Tobacco has publicly donated to an Australian political party for the first time in more than a decade, as the Albanese government prepared to introduce vaping reforms | Guardian, UK

What’s behind the stunning rise in alcohol-related deaths - audio

Alcohol is one of the most commonly used drugs in America, and it is also one of the deadliest, with more and more people losing their lives to alcohol-related causes over the last two decades. A new report reveals how the problem has become more acute in recent years. Keith Humphreys, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University, joins William Brangham to discuss | PBS, USA

Lung cancer cells protected from cigarette smoke damage, researchers find

Lung cancer cells survive better and exhibit less cell damage when exposed to cigarette smoke in cell culture experiments compared to non-cancerous lung cells. New research by a team of undergraduate students led by a Penn State molecular biologist may have revealed how lung cancer cells can persist in smoke. The mechanism could be related to how cancer cells develop resistance to pharmaceutical treatments as well | Medical Xpress, USA

Regular e-cigarette use could lead to premature vascular dysfunction, study finds

Regular electronic cigarette use has been linked with signs of premature vascular dysfunction, raising concerns about potential long-term health effects, according to a study by Virginia Commonwealth University researchers | Medical Xpress, USA

Can Court Cases Turn the Tide for Canadian Harm Reduction?

Amid a wave of hostile public and political discourse, several cases before the courts in British Columbia and Canada could see advances in, or protections of, drug users’ rights | Filter Magazine, USA

[Open access] Tobacco sales in alcohol-licenced premises present a very problematic trigger for tobacco sales—a trigger that is particularly problematic for attempting quitters and people who smoke occasionally. This study reports on the attitudes, beliefs, and experiences of owners or managers of alcohol-licenced venues that sell tobacco exclusively through vending machines | Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, Australia

Personality and mental health factors linked to vaping uptake

University of Otago researchers have discovered three psychological factors that predict if a non-smoker will start vaping...They found people who reported greater mental distress, lower self-control, and more social tendencies (higher “extraversion”) were more likely to take up vaping as non-smoking adults, compared to people with better mental health, higher self-control, and less social tendencies | University of Otago, New Zealand

Blogs, comment and opinion

Nitazenes represent a growing threat to public health in Europe

Adam Holland and colleagues reported in their Comment that nitazenes could be exacerbating the crisis in drug-related deaths in the UK. Their Comment reinforces concerns we, at the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, have raised—that nitazenes pose a credible threat and that predicted changes in heroin availability in Europe could herald an increase in the use of synthetic opioids with possibly profound implications for public health | Lancet correspondence, UK

The ‘saint tax’ on vaping

Why is Jeremy Hunt punishing people for giving up smoking? | Spiked, UK

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