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Daily news - 24th January 2025

UK news

One in 20 adults in England both smoke and vape

Just over one in 20 adults in England both smoke and vape, according to a new study by UCL researchers | UCL, UK

The shape of stigma: reflections for the year ahead

As we step into a new year, it’s natural to reflect on the past and look forward to the future. It’s peak season for reflective blogs, annual reports and the like. But instead of cataloguing everything we’ve done at the Anti-Stigma Network, we want to focus on one key realisation from the past year, which is our thoughts about the shape and scale of stigma and the opportunity we have to address it | DDN, UK

Quantile regression of tobacco tax pass-through in the UK 2017–2021: how have manufacturers passed through tax changes for different tobacco products in small retailers? Analysis at the national level and by neighbourhood of deprivation

The effectiveness of tax increases in reducing tobacco consumption relies on the tobacco retailers and producers passing on increases to consumers (tax pass-through). Previous UK research on supermarkets found heterogeneous levels of tax pass-through across the market segments and price distribution of tobacco products. This study uses data from small retailers across the UK to assess whether recent tax changes have been passed on to consumers and if this varies across the price distribution, between countries of the UK and by neighbourhood deprivation | BMJ Tobacco Control, UK

Alcoholic Drinks: Crime

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many delays there have been in fitting sobriety tags longer than (a) one, (b) seven, (c) 14 and (d) 28 days in each of the last 12 months | They work for you, UK

Cranstoun colleagues walk 100km in one day to raise vital funds for family support

The aim was to support Cranstoun’s M-PACT (Move Parents & Children Together) group programme, which supports parents struggling with substance use to make positive changes, improve communication with their family & build relationships for the future | Carnstoun, UK

International news

Purdue and Sackler family agree $7.4bn opioid settlement

Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family who controlled it have agreed to pay up to $7.4bn (£6bn) to settle claims regarding its powerful prescription painkiller OxyContin | BBC, UK

Musical about trans drug boss leads Oscar nominations

Emilia Pérez, about a Mexican drug lord who changes gender, has 13 nominations in total - although one of its stars, Selena Gomez, missed out | BBC, UK

Jamaican city gripped by violence after police shooting of gang boss

Spanish Town brought to standstill amid gunfire on streets after police kill Othneil ‘Thickman’ Lobban | Guardian, UK

Study finds smoking opioids is associated with lower mortality than injecting but is still high-risk

A new study published in Addiction has found that opioid smoking appears to be associated with lower mortality risk compared with opioid injecting. The authors, however, caution that opioid smoking still carries a substantial overdose risk and that these results should not be interpreted as suggesting that opioid smoking is safe | Medical Xpress, USA

E-cigarettes are not associated with post-acute COVID-19 syndrome among US adults

A cross-sectional study of 107,249 American adults found no independent link between e-cigarette use and PCS after COVID-19 infection. Factors associated with PCS included female gender, cigarette smoking, and other health conditions | Nature, USA

Racial disparities in opioid prescriptions persist despite socioeconomic factors

Non-white communities had significantly less access to opioid medications commonly prescribed for moderate to severe pain than white communities over the decade beginning in 2011, according to a study by Weill Cornell Medicine researchers | Medical Xpress, USA

Evidence supporting cannabis substitution along with liberalized cannabis laws have left recovery homes such as sober living houses (SLHs) in a difficult position regarding policies relating to cannabis use among SLH residents. Moreover, there are few studies of cannabis use among SLH residents that can be used to inform cannabis use policies. Here we assess whether cannabis is related to alcohol use among SLH residents | Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports, USA

Trump’s Ominous Acting-DEA Administrator Appointment

President Donald Trump has appointed Derek Maltz as acting administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Senate confirmation would be required to make Maltz’s position permanent, though it is currently unclear if Trump will pick him for the role. In the meantime, Maltz will be running a drug-war agency of 10,000 employees, with power and influence over enforcement, intelligence and regulations around medical prescribing and the availability of substances for research | Filter Magazine, USA

Skepticism Over FDA Bid to Mandate Very Low-Nicotine Cigarettes

The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has issued a proposed rule that would cap nicotine levels in combustible tobacco products at a very low level. By making cigarettes “minimally or nonaddictive” in this way, the agency declared, “the United States would be the first country globally to take such a bold, life-saving action to prevent and reduce smoking-related disease and death.” | Filter Magazine, USA

Blogs, comment and opinion

Drugs and alcohol in the NY Times

The NY Times had a couple of pieces on alcohol and drug problems this week | Recovery Review blog, USA

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