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Daily news - 30th July 2025 |
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UK news
Drug-related harms increase across Scotland
Public Health Scotland (PHS) has published its latest Rapid Action Drug Alerts and Response (RADAR) quarterly report. The report shows drug-related harms are higher compared to the previous quarter, including naloxone administration incidents (45% increase) and emergency department attendances (19%). A rise was also seen in suspected drug deaths, which were 15% higher than the previous quarter and 7% higher than the same period in 2024. A global challenge that Scotland needs to respond to is the emergence of new drugs, such as nitazene-type opioids. First detected in Scotland in 2022, these drugs were present in 6% of all deaths in the first quarter of 2025. People who use drugs and those who support them should be aware of the increased health risks these substances pose | Public Health Scotland, UK
Risk of adolescent cigarette use in three UK birth cohorts before and after e-cigarettes
[Open access] UK teens who currently vape are as likely to take up smoking as their peers in the 1970s, despite a substantial fall in the prevalence of teenage smoking over the past 50 years, suggests a long term intergenerational study | BMJ Tobacco Control, UK
Third of UK teenagers who vape will go on to start smoking, research shows
[See item above] Findings suggest e-cigarettes increasingly act as ‘gateway’ to nicotine for children, undermining earlier falling rates | Guardian, UK
Calls to reinvest money from minimum alcohol pricing to help addicts
Any income made from increasing the minimum unit price for alcohol in Wales should be reinvested in addiction services, the chair of a Senedd committee has said | BBC, UK
Fatal drug overdoses in healthcare workers: A thematic framework analysis of coroner reports
[Open access] Healthcare workers face specific vulnerabilities for drug overdose due to their unique access to medications, clinical knowledge and work-related stress. This study aimed to understand the characteristics of fatal overdoses in healthcare workers with a view to providing guidance for preventative strategies | Addiction, UK
Lifestyle changes and vaccination ‘could prevent most liver cancer cases’
The Lancet Commission says that three in five cancer cases are preventable with action on obesity, alcohol and hepatitis | Guardian, UK
NHS launches first ever review to tackle LGBT+ health inequalities
The NHS has launched its first ever review to tackle health inequalities experienced by LGBT+ people, including access to mental health care, cancer screening and primary care services. The six-month review will examine data and evidence from a range of research and clinical settings, including mental health, sexual and reproductive health, HIV, perinatal care, primary care and cancer screening as well as smoking, alcohol and drug prevention services | NHS England, UK
International news
Top medical body concerned over RFK Jr’s reported plans to cut preventive health panel
American Medical Association writes to health secretary after reports he aims to overhaul taskforce for being ‘woke’ | Guardian, UK
A systematic review of reviews on comprehensive community initiatives to prevent or reduce alcohol and other drug harms
Although the available evidence regarding comprehensive community initiatives is largely inconsistent, the addition of parenting-related activities to existing school-based education campaigns is likely to improve effectiveness. A media campaign may extend their reach to those outside school settings. Future evaluation of CCIs should measure impact of activities in isolation where possible and incorporate process measures to gauge community engagement and empowerment | Addiction, UK
Vaping cartoon aims to prevent generation of addiction
Anti-vaping program OurFutures has been approved for the national curriculum until 2028, involving an interactive cartoon co-designed by students and teachers telling early teens about the effects of vaping and how to refuse one | Mail Online, UK
Ministers for Health announce that HHC is now classified as an illegal drug
The Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, the Minister for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy, Jennifer Murnane O’Connor and the Minister for Mental Health, Mary Butler have announced that the drug Hexahydrocannabinol (HHC) has been categorised as a Schedule 1 controlled drug Misuse of Drugs Act 1977. This means that the import, export, production, possession, sale, and supply of products containing HHC is now illegal | Gov.ie, Ireland
Ireland finally bans HCC 'but we must be vigilant about new drugs’
HHC has now been classified as an illegal drug after health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill brought a memo to Cabinet on Tuesday seeking to have it categorised as a Schedule 1 drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977. It is one of 14 substances, including synthetic opioids and semi-synthetic cannabinoids, newly classified as controlled drugs, after the EU and the UN Commission for Narcotic Drugs identified them as posing a serious risk to public health | Irish Examiner, Ireland
Review of the Evaluation of the National Drug Strategy “Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery 2017-2025 (PDF)
Alcohol Action Ireland appreciated the opportunity to engage with the consultation reviewing and evaluating the National Drug and Alcohol Strategy - Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery 2017-2025 (NDS). The overarching goal of the evaluation was to determine how effectively the NDS delivered a health-led, whole-of-government response to drug and alcohol use and to inform the development of the next iteration of the NDS by identifying accomplishments, areas for improvement, and future recommendations | Alcohol Action Ireland, Ireland
After hopeful decline, drug deaths are rising in these Bay Area counties
In some areas, more people are dying of methamphetamines than fentanyl | Times Herald, USA
Cannabis Use Disorder Triples Risk of Oral Cancer
A recent study by researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine has found that individuals with cannabis use disorder (CUD) are more than three times more likely to develop oral cancer within five years compared to those without CUD. The study highlights the potential long-term health risks associated with problematic cannabis use | UCSD, USA
Study examines how often adults with opioid use disorder begin and stay on treatment
Opioid use disorder (OUD) medication treatment saves lives, yet fewer than one-third of people with OUD receive evidence-based treatment with medication. Researchers examined how often adults who report opioid use and moderate or severe substance-use symptoms begin, and stay on, OUD medication | News Medical, USA
Judge Rules Safehouse Philly Can Use Religious Rights Defense Against DOJ
A federal appeals court sided with a nonprofit attempting to open an overdose prevention center (OPC) in Philadelphia, reversing a lower court decision and ruling that religious freedom and free exercise protections are applicable to nearly any group claiming a religious motivation for its actions | Filter Magazine, USA
Expanding behavioral interventions through cancer warning labels in India: from cigarette packs to alcohol bottles
Behavioral interventions instituted by means of alcohol warning labels may prove to be effective in affecting positive changes in the consumption habits of individuals belonging to this age group particularly in Low- and Middle-Income Countries where it is all the more important for certain sections of society to be educated and sensitized toward the consequences of substance use | Frontiers in Public Health, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Australia’s war on nicotine is failing. A smarter strategy is needed
The government is entrenching smoking, exposing the public to unregulated products, and creating fertile ground for organised crime | Crikey, Australia