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Daily news - 11th February 2025 |
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UK news
#COAWeek2025: 9-15 February 2025
COA Week is the annual campaign to raise awareness of children affected by a parent’s drinking | NACOA, UK
The road to a smokefree UK: MLAs in Northern Ireland vote in favour of Tobacco and Vapes Bill
[Yesterday] marks an important and exciting day for our Smokefree UK campaign, with Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) voting in favour of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill in the Northern Ireland Legislative Consent Motion. This marks a significant step towards ending cancers caused by smoking and creating Northern Ireland’s first ever smokefree generation | Cancer Research UK, UK
ACMD appoints new members
Four more experts have been appointed members to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. ACMD member Biographies here | ACMD, UK
Who is Ashley Dalton, the government’s new health minister after Gwynne row?
The government has announced its new health minister after Andrew Gwynne was dismissed following a row over offensive WhatsApp messages | Labour List, UK
The Impact of Alcohol on our Healthcare Services: Explained - video
In England, alcohol is now the leading cause of premature death and ill-health for people aged 15 to 49, and alcohol-related deaths are at the highest number ever recorded. Evidence shows that quality treatment services can save lives and are cost-effective. For every £1 spent on treatment, the return is £3 in savings, rising to £26 over ten years. Despite this, most people struggling with problematic alcohol use aren’t receiving treatment. Chronic underfunding, and fragmented services have left us without an effective approach to addressing alcohol-related harms across our healthcare services | IAS, UK
Get help and Swap to Stop smoking
The Government aims for the country to become ‘smokefree’ by 2030, and is offering a million free ‘Swap to Stop’ vaping kits which, combined with behavioural support, are designed to help them quit smoking | City of Wolverhampton Council, UK
Complaint upheld against Jinro Soju’s promotional activity at summer festival
A complaint against Jinro Soju’s promotional activity at a summer festival has been upheld by the alcohol industry’s Independent Complaints Panel (ICP), after it was found to suggest an association with sexual activity and social success | Portman Group, UK
International news
Do the differing vaping and smoking trends in Australia and New Zealand reflect different regulatory policies?
[Open access] Comparing regulatory models for nicotine vaping products in different countries can provide insights into the most effective regulatory approach but can be confounded by cross-national differences. This study compared two neighbouring countries with very different vaping regulatory models but with similar tobacco control policies and population demographics. Australia has a highly restrictive, prescription-only vaping policy, while New Zealand adopted a regulated consumer model | Addiction, UK
Data indicate that pain is linked with a greater likelihood of tobacco and cannabis use among cancer survivors
Experiencing pain may increase the odds that cancer survivors will use cigarettes and cannabis, according to a study published online in Cancer. The study also found that cigarette smoking and pain are linked to more treatment-related side effects and worse health among cancer survivors | Medical Xpress, USA
Study fails to show that youth vaping causes future smoking
A team of public health researchers has found "very low-certainty evidence" to support a commonly held belief that nicotine vaping is a gateway to cigarette smoking for young people | Medical Xpress
Study shows initial success but long-term challenges of 2019 Medicare opioid safety policy
A new study led by researchers at the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute has found that a 2019 Medicare opioid safety policy showed initial reductions in opioid prescribing to high-risk populations. However, the policy's effectiveness diminished over time | Medical Xpress, USA
New study on drug checking: Trend warnings and alerts
As more Australian jurisdictions begin drug checking trials at festivals and in the community, experts are exploring how the data could reach significantly more people | Medical Xpress, USA
Our Study Spotlights How Vaping Can Reduce Health Disparities
Nicotine vaping can significantly reduce health inequalities for low-income and Indigenous communities, suggests a new study published in the Addiction journal, which I co-authored | Filter Magazine, USA
Hong Kong to ban vaping in public by mid-2026
Hong Kong will ban the possession and use of e-cigarette cartridges in public by mid-2026, the city's top health official said on Sunday as the government pushed ahead with its anti-tobacco agenda | Medical Xpress, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Turning Point launches essay collection by experts on addressing health and care crisis
A series of essays by Professor Sir Michael Marmot and other leading experts launched today provides new insights into resolving the health and social care crisis | Turning Point blog, UK
Singapore Government Censors Anti-Death Penalty Campaign Group
The Transformative Justice Collective (TJC), a social justice and anti-death penalty group based in Singapore, announced on January 21 that it had been forced by the Singaporean government to shut down its website and social media accounts until December 2026 | Talking Drugs, UK
Poor sleep and addiction go hand in hand − understanding how could lead to new treatments for opioid use disorder
A good night’s sleep often sets the stage for a positive day. But for the nearly quarter of American adults struggling with mental illness, a good night’s rest is often elusive | Conversation, USA