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Daily news - 4th February 2025 |
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UK news
Research and analysis - Synthetic cathinones: an updated harms assessment
ACMD has written an updated harms assessment describing the use and harms of synthetic cathinones following a government commission | ACMD, UK
How will alcohol duty changes affect the price of drinks?
Tax is to be cut on draught pints but will escalate on stronger wines, alongside an inflationary rise. Will we feel the difference? | Guardian, UK
The cost of smoking - audio
Campaign group ASH claims that smoking costs Norfolk over £700 million every year | BBC Sounds, UK
Alcohol misuse nurse crashed drink-driving to work
A substance misuse nurse has been suspended for 12 months after she crashed her car on the way to work while at twice the legal alcohol limit, a misconduct panel has heard | BBC, UK
Large cannabis farm found in mill
Hundreds of cannabis plants have been found at a mill, after police suspected there may be criminal activity in the area when chasing a suspect across some nearby land | BBC, UK
Police killer jailed over £13m drugs plot
A man who killed an off-duty police officer in Liverpool is back in prison over a £13m cocaine and heroin trafficking operation | BBC, UK
International news
The Global Story: Syria's illegal drugs empire - audio
The deposed president Bashar al-Assad has been linked to the multi-billion dollar trade of a narcotic called Captagon. Syria's new rebel leaders have promised to stamp it out. So what will it take to end the country's association with the drug? On this episode, presenter Caitríona Perry speaks to the BBC's Emir Nader, who has been reporting on the drugs trade in the Middle East | BBC Sounds, UK
How fortunes turned flat at Johnnie Walker and Guinness owner Diageo
With crucial results looming, investors fear 25 years of dividend growth may stall this week as drinks firm battles major headwinds | Guardian, UK
Stores across Canada to pull American booze from shelves as trade war escalates
In a shocking move, Ontario Premier Doug Ford will remove American liquor from shelves across his province | Independent, UK
Should alcohol sold in Australia carry cancer warnings?
The belief that a few glasses of wine help to protect against heart disease has persisted – despite evidence showing that the benefits have been overestimated | Guardian, UK
Confronting Betty Ford’s addiction - audio
In 1978, former first lady of the United States, Betty Ford, announced that she had an addiction to alcohol and prescription medication, and would be seeking treatment. Wife of the 38th US president Gerald Ford, her openness and honesty about her addictions was remarkable for its time and was headline news. But it was her daughter, Susan Ford, who had organised the family intervention to confront her mother about her addiction, prompting her to seek help | BBC Sounds, UK
General dental practitioners' knowledge, attitudes and practice towards psychoactive substance use screening: A systematic review
[Open access] Dentists can play a key role in screening for psychoactive substances use. This systematic review aimed to identify the knowledge, attitudes and practices of dentists related to screening for use of psychoactive substances and the facilitating factors and barriers | DAR, USA
What Is Journavx, the New Opioid-Free Painkiller from Vertex?
The nonaddictive painkiller suzetrigine (Journavx) is as effective for acute pain as a common opioid treatment | Scientific American, USA
Hepatologist explains how alcohol affects your liver
Excessive alcohol use can harm the body in many ways, including an increase in the risk of various cancers. It damages liver cells, leading to inflammation, scarring and serious conditions such as cirrhosis | Medical Xpress, USA
Scientists discover how genetic risk for alcoholism changes brain cell behavior
Rutgers Health researchers have discovered that brain immune cells from people with a high genetic risk for alcohol use disorder (AUD) behave differently than cells from low-risk people when exposed to alcohol | Medical Xpress, USA
Nearly Half BC’s New “Substance-Use Treatment Beds” Provide No Treatment
British Columbia recently unveiled 26 publicly funded “substance-use treatment beds” in four communities across the province. Six of the beds are reserved for people who have “completed treatment,” however, and another six will require people to travel off-site to receive any | Filter Magazine, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Addicted: how the world got hooked on illicit drugs – and why we need to view this as a global threat like climate change
It has taken decades for some to accept the devastating effects of climate change on our planet. Despite scientific evidence that was available years ago, many people were reluctant to make the connection between increasing use of fossil fuels, rising global temperatures and devastating weather events. A key reason for this reluctance is the dislocation of cause and effect, both in time and geography. And here there are clear parallels with another deadly human activity that is causing increasing levels of suffering across the planet: the production, trafficking and consumption of illicit drugs | Conversation, UK
France is next EU country poised to ban disposable vapes amid regulatory push
France’s decision to ban disposable vaping devices aligns with Europe’s escalating efforts to tackle youth vaping and reduce environmental harm from single-use products, positioning the country as one of the key players in the growing push for stricter vaping regulations across the continent | Ecig Intelligence blog, UK
Eliminating Inequities for Black Mothers With Substance Use Disorder
Between 2010 and 2017, the U.S. saw a 131% increase in maternal opioid use disorder at delivery. There also was an 83% rise in cases of neonatal abstinence syndrome due to prenatal opioid exposure. Additionally, between 2016 and 2020, there was a 3.6% increase in prenatal substance exposure, including alcohol, with significant variation across states | Recovery Review blog, USA