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Daily news - 25th March 2024 |
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UK news
UK ministers knew of ‘significant’ synthetic opioids threat two years ago
Despite warnings from government’s own advisers to protect people from ‘severe harm’, new controls on potent drugs were delayed for months | Guardian, UK
Fresh warning over street drug so strong a dose the size of a grain of sand can kill you
Nitazenes, some of which are 500 times stronger than morphine, have been detected in at least 20 postcodes around the UK | Independent, UK
How the UK is facing an ‘epidemic of death’ over lethal new drug spreading across the country
Overdoses from a lethal new synthetic opioid are on the rise across the United Kingdom and Ireland and local charities say they are preparing for an ‘epidemic of death’ | Metro, UK
Reducing the harm of shisha and the need for better regulation
This local government policy paper sets out the various health and community issues caused by shisha smoking, including case studies from councils across England. It proposes steps that central government can take to strengthen and reform national legislation through introducing a shisha licensing regime | LGA, UK
Alcohol intake app Drink Less could cut down unhealthy drinking, say scientists
An app that keeps track of how much a person is drinking could help reduce their alcohol intake by around two units a week – equivalent to a medium glass of wine, scientists say | Independent, UK
Why are Britain’s rules around advertising alcohol and tobacco so different?
The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical concepts | Guardian, UK
Sales of vapes to children have reduced - council
A clampdown on the illegal sale of vapes to children in a seaside town is succeeding, a local authority has said | BBC, UK
Alcohol-free Beverages
To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it will consider stocking alcohol-free variants of spirits, wine and other alcoholic beverages in the Scottish Parliament gift shop | They work for you, UK
Parc prison inmates told to throw away drugs after jail deaths
Inmates at HMP Parc in Bridgend have been told to throw away their drugs by the prisons watchdog after six deaths in three weeks | BBC, UK
Labour’s Emily Thornberry laughs as she admits ‘I smoked dope’ in live interview
Labour’s shadow attorney general Emily Thornberry laughed as she admitted “I smoked dope” during a live interview today (22 March). Ms Thornberry appeared on LBC’s breakfast show on Friday and was asked by presenter Nick Ferrari: “Emily Thornberry, did you do drugs at university?” | Independent, UK
Tom Kerridge says his restaurant achievements are amazing ‘because I was drinking’
Tom Kerridge has credited alcohol for the success of his restaurant empire because it helped him relieve the overwhelming pressure of the kitchen | Independent, UK
Woman's DNA was on drugs in car in police compound
Danielle Wilson, 41, from Liverpool, admitted possessing crack cocaine and heroin after her DNA was found on some of the drugs she had helped to bag up | BBC, UK
International news
UNAIDS welcomes the adoption of a crucial resolution recognizing harm reduction measures at the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs
VIENNA/GENEVA, 22 March 2024— UNAIDS welcomes the adoption of a key resolution today at the 67th session of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), recognizing harm reduction for the first time as an important part of an effective public health response. The resolution encourages member states to develop and implement harm reduction measures to minimize the adverse public health and social consequences of the non-medical use of illicit drugs. UNAIDS congratulates the CND and the CND Chair for this historic milestone | UNAIDS, Switzerland
Germany approves partial legalization of cannabis from April
The new law will allow adults to carry up to 25 grams of cannabis for their own consumption and store up to 50 grams at home. It is now slated to come into effect on April 1 | DW, Germany
Drug Overdose Deaths in the United States, 2002–2022
The age-adjusted rate of drug overdose deaths increased from 8.2 deaths per 100,000 standard population in 2002 to 32.6 in 2022; however, the rate did not significantly change between 2021 and 2022 | CDC, USA
Drug overdoses reach another record with almost 108,000 Americans in 2022, CDC says
Nearly 108,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2022, according to final federal figures released Thursday | Medical Xpress, USA
Marijuana farms are increasingly Chinese-run. Why?
Chinese-funded marijuana farms are popping up across the United States. Many of them exploit workers from China. We explore the reasons behind why this is happening | npr, USA
Peer navigation: a pilot study to improve recovery capital for alcohol and other drug telephone helpline callers
[Open access] People with alcohol and other drug (AOD) use problems face multiple barriers to care. Peer navigation may overcome known barriers to care. This pilot study explored the impact of peer navigation integrated into an AOD telephone helpline | DEPP, Australia
Safe beats down under: investigating the support of drug checking at a regional festival in the Northern Territory, Australia
[Open access] In the context of Australian music festivals, including those in the Northern Territory (NT), drug-related harms persist. This study focused on gathering local insights into drug-related behaviours and attitudes, particularly regarding drug checking, among NT festival attendees | DEPP, Australia
Harm reduction behaviours and harm experiences of people who use 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in Aotearoa New Zealand
[Open access] 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is drug of high prevalence in Aotearoa New Zealand and is the primary drug analysed by legal drug checking services. We aimed to address the gap in literature pertaining to MDMA-related harm reduction behaviour and harm experiences within the country | Harm Reduction Journal, New Zealand
Blogs, comment and opinion
Let’s stub out smoking for the next generation
It’s hard to imagine it has been twenty years since the Government published a White Paper proposing a ban on smoking in certain indoor settings that would eventually include all enclosed workplaces and public places. At the time, 115,000 people in the UK were dying each year from smoking-related illnesses, with over a quarter of these tragic deaths attributed to heart and circulatory diseases. Twenty years on, smoke free indoor spaces are now the norm, and the controversy around their acceptance has long faded | BHF blog, UK
COP Out – The World Health Organization Efforts to End the Harms of Tobacco
In 2005, the World Health Organization (WHO) adopted its first treaty, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which was intended to act as an international legal agreement to apply tobacco control initiatives globally. This treaty was aimed at reducing the use of tobacco products and reducing the impact of combustible products on public health | R Street, USA
Lab tests show THC potency inflated on retail marijuana in Colorado
Cannabis flower sold in Colorado claims to contain much more tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, than it actually does, according to my findings published in the peer-reviewed journal Plos One | Conversation, USA
We’ve taken smoking from ‘normal’ to ‘uncommon’ and we can do the same with vaping – here’s how
Vaping is a pressing public health issue. While adult smoking rates continue to fall, vaping rates are rising. Some 7% of adults now vape daily, up nearly three-fold since 2019. Most alarmingly, the rate of current vape use – on a daily, weekly or monthly basis – among 18-to-24-year-olds has climbed from 5% in 2019 to 21% in 2023 | Conversation, Australia