Home | Archive | Weekly | Reports

Daily news - 6th May 2025

UK news

University wins national award for drug overdose training partnership

The University of Bradford and New Vision Bradford/Waythrough have won a Student Nursing Times 2025 award for Partnership of the Year for an innovative drug overdose training programme | University of Bradford, UK

MP urges rethink on football stands booze ban

Football needs a "modern approach" to alcohol being drunk in the stands, an MP has said. Legislation from 1985 bans fans from consuming alcohol in view of the pitch in the top five tiers of the men's game in England | BBC, UK

[Open access] Overdose prevention centres (OPCs) have been implemented as a harm reduction response in around 20 countries; with one just opened in the UK. In a context of rising rates of drug-related deaths, this study aimed to assess the need for an OPC in Sandwell, England, by examining the experiences and perspectives of local people who use drugs | IJDP, UK

How much does the absence of the ‘hidden population’ from United Kingdom household surveys underestimate smoking prevalence?

[Open access] Sampling frames used by population surveys may result in an underestimation of smoking prevalence as those not residing in households, also known as the ‘hidden population’, are not sampled. This includes people living in care and residential homes, populations experiencing homelessness, as well as those who have an “absent or “temporary” household status (e.g. bed and breakfasts, unsupported temporary accommodation, and those in prison). This study estimated the impact of including these populations on smoking prevalence in the UK | Addiction, UK

Identifying innovative approaches to the temporal availability of alcohol in Great Britain—a policy analysis

[Open access] In Great Britain, local authorities responsible for alcohol premises licensing produce a statement of licensing policy setting out how they intend to exercise their statutory licensing functions including on trading hours. We aimed to describe and compare these policies on alcohol trading hours, including their interpretation and application of laws and guidance | DEPP, UK

Meet the teens going undercover to tackle illegal vape sales

Thousands of cases of children being illegally sold vapes have been recorded by councils between 2022 and 2024. One way local authorities catch sellers red-handed is by sending undercover teenagers into shops across England. We spoke to some of those who spend their free time trying to catch law breakers in the act | BBC, UK

Children aged 12 hooked on ketamine, police say

Fifteen people have recently been arrested in an operation to tackle the illegal supply of the drug in Burnley and Padiham. Insp Matt Plummer, from Lancashire Police, said illegal ketamine usage was a problem across the whole of the county with many residents reporting their concerns | BBC, UK

Cambridge officially launches research group to advance psychedelic-assisted therapy for mental health

After several years in development, the Cambridge Psychedelic Research Group (CPRG) has officially launched to accelerate research into psychedelic-assisted therapy for mental health, both locally and nationally | Drug Science, UK

Glasgow pals who helped each other recover from drug addiction open food business

Pals Kellymarie Lindsay, 32, and Louis Campbell, 23, launched their potato stall, Hottie Tottie, at the Forge Market in Parkhead today (May 3) after spending years battling against addiction | Glasgow Live, UK

Alcohol Harm

Alcohol harm continues to be a key concern in Scotland. In East and South Ayrshire, an area that I represent, a combined total of 50 lives were lost to alcohol in 2023. Today, a briefing signed by more than 70 organisations has been published, which calls for urgent action on alcohol harm. It states that the current Scottish Government action is not proportionate to the scale of the problem and it makes a range of recommendations around early diagnosis for liver disease and funding for recovery treatment and support services. Will the First Minister consider that important briefing’s proposals as he prepares to publish the programme for government next week? | They work for you, UK

Alcoholism: Death

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking with relevant authorities to help prevent alcohol-related deaths in (a) Romford constituency and (b) England | They work for you, UK

Are alcohol-free drinks worth the price in 2025?

At first glance a non-alcoholic beer looks like a normal pint - the same colour, same glass and often has a similar taste. But the zero and low alcohol beverage sector is one that has "boomed" in popularity across the UK in 2024 and according to global drinks data company IWSR, is a market that could be worth up to £800m in 2028 | BBC, UK

Drugs: Organised Crime

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to (a) disrupt county lines operations and (b) reduce exploitation of vulnerable people in Devon and Cornwall | They work for you, UK

Alcohol Occasional 1: Court-enforced Alcohol Abstinence and Reoffending

Mon, 12 May 2025 12:45 - 14:00 BST. In Scotland there is a keen interest in alcohol problems in the justice system and how best to improve the justice journey of individuals with alcohol use disorder. Whilst Scotland has not yet adopted alcohol tagging technology in criminal justice settings, England and Wales has. Criminal courts in this jurisdiction may make use of alcohol treatment or abstinence requirements as part of a community sentence in cases where alcohol consumption has played a role in a defendant’s offending. The latter may also be backed up by electronic monitoring. This study examined whether these court orders reduce reoffending | SHAAP, UK

Couple jailed over £4m prescription drug ring

A couple have been jailed for raking in £4m through a black market business selling unregulated prescription drugs around the world | BBC, UK

International news

Are heated tobacco products a new health risk?

A new type of tobacco product is finding growing numbers of users around the world, but there are still serious questions about how it affects human health | BBC, UK

Coalition plan to make vapes more widely available ‘exactly what big tobacco wants’, health experts warn

A Dutton government would allow vapes to be legally sold in retail stores rather than restricted to pharmacies in bid to raise $3.6bn in tax revenue | Guardian, UK

Let's talk e-cigarettes, April 2025 - podcast

In the April podcast Eden Evins discusses the findings of their new randomised clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of varenicline for nicotine vaping cessation in 261 treatment seeking youth (16-24 years) who do not smoke tobacco regularly | University of Oxford, UK

[Open access] Pregnant and parenting women who use drugs experience high rates of stigma when navigating the health care system, due to the gendered impacts of punitive drug policies and assumptions that conflate substance use with an inability to parent. There is a lack of research examining how stigma uniquely impacts pregnant and parenting women who use drugs, particularly with regards to self-efficacy and motivations to access health and social services, and other personal experiences of help-seeking processes. This study explores how stigma is internalized, anticipated, and embodied in the context of help-seeking, among pregnant and parenting women who use drugs | IJDP, UK

Mandatory alcohol warning labels could be reconsidered due to tariff impact on industry - Harris

Timeline ‘under consideration’ with eye on US tax impact on drinks industry | Irish Times, Ireland

Welcome to the Parent Hub

Connecting you to Information & Services for Drugs and Alcohol in the West of Ireland | Western Region Drug and Alcohol Task Force, Ireland

Coming soon: European Drug Report 2025 to be released on 5 June

What are the main drug-related threats today? What substances are causing the most concern? How are countries responding to Europe’s changing drug problems? Find out more, on 5 June, when the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA) launches its European Drug Report 2025: Trends and Developments | EUDA, Portugal

The UK’s Impending Disposable Vapes Ban Looks Unenforceable

The United Kingdom is heading for an explosion in the illicit vapes market when it bans single-use devices in June. That warning comes from analysts, politicians, vape advocates and consumer groups, who say the government is ill-prepared for the impending ban | Filter Magazine, USA

Overdoses Involving Medetomidine Mixed with Opioids — Chicago, Illinois, May 2024

Medetomidine, a nonopioid sedative not approved for use in humans, has been detected in illegally manufactured opioids across North America since 2022. Twelve confirmed and 26 probable cases of medetomidine-involved overdose occurred in Chicago, Illinois, during May 11–17, 2024, mostly among non-Hispanic Black or African American men aged 45–64 years. Bradycardia and lack of response to naloxone were defining clinical features. Fentanyl was present in all blood specimens and drug samples that tested positive for medetomidine | CDC, USA

New studies link increased heart disease risk to tobacco and cannabis use

New clinical results from multiple studies show coronary heart disease death associated with tobacco use is anticipated to rise up to 40% in the next five years and people with cannabis use disorder are 50% more likely to experience cardiogenic shock, acute myocardial infarction, and arrhythmias | News Medical, USA

Higher cigarette taxes could save thousands of children's lives

A higher tax on cigarettes in low and middle-income countries can help to reduce child mortality, especially amongst the poorest children, a new study led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and published in The Lancet Public Health suggests | News Medical, USA

Effectiveness of a Mobile Phone-Delivered Multiple Health Behavior Change Intervention (LIFE4YOUth) in Adolescents: Randomized Controlled Trial

The efficiency and convenience of an internet- and phone-based intervention coupled with addressing multiple risk factors seems a promising way to reduce lifestyle-related disease. This Swedish trial found evidence of an impact on diet, but no significant evidence that smoking and drinking were curtailed among secondary school children | JMIR, USA

The efficacy of conventional and technology assisted cue exposure therapy for treating substance use disorders: a qualitative systematic review

Cue exposure programmes expose patients to simulated cues for substance use (like passing a pub) but in environments where use is not possible. The advance made by this review was to compare usual programmes to those which made cues more realistic by using virtual reality or similar technologies. It found these did indeed seem to get better results | Frontiers in Psychiatry, USA

Medicaid unwinding linked to disruptions in opioid addiction treatment

The massive national effort to return the Medicaid enrollment process to its pre-pandemic rules starting in April 2023 may have disrupted the care of people receiving treatment for opioid addiction, a new University of Michigan study suggests | Medical Xpress, USA

Certain traits in romantic partners can amplify the impact of a person's genetic risk for alcohol problems

A study led by Virginia Commonwealth University and Rutgers University has revealed new insights into how romantic partners can influence a person's genetic predisposition to unhealthy alcohol use. The research team specifically found that the substance use habits, personality traits and mental health status of long-term partners can enhance or diminish the impact of a person's genetic risk for binge drinking | Medical Xpress, USA

Reuters wins Pulitzer for fentanyl investigation; New York Times takes four prizes

Reuters won the Pulitzer Prize in investigative reporting on Monday for a series of stories that penetrated the international trade in the chemicals used to make fentanyl, the drug at the heart of a crisis that has killed some 450,000 Americans and counting | Reuters, USA

'I don’t know what we should have done differently’: A qualitative study on the dilemmas of ‘tough love’ and toxic drugs in British Columbia, Canada

[Open access] In British Columbia, Canada, a public health emergency of unregulated drug deaths presents a fraught backdrop for concerned significant others (CSOs) | DEPP, USA

Drug Trends output: Patterns of non-prescribed cannabis use among two samples of people who regularly use drugs in Australia, 2014-2024

This bulletin examines the recent use (2014-2024) of non-prescribed cannabis and/or cannabinoid-related products among two samples of people who regularly use drugs in Australia, including routes of administration and the types of products used | NDARC, Australia

Blogs, comment and opinion

Will we ever see real action on chronic pain and drug deaths?

Your recent articles on the chronic pain crisis (“Hundreds of chronic pain sufferers have died while on NHS wait lists”, The Herald, April 26 and “Scots couple fear ‘a waking hell’ if chronic pain meds are cut”, April 27) offer a devastating insight into a culture of secrecy, exclusion and failure inside Scottish public health policy | Herald letters, UK

How Patients Became Collateral Damage in Mexico’s War on Fentanyl

The current fentanyl crisis in the United States has had various and powerful consequences for Mexico. In the past month, President Trump has threatened to impose additional tariffs on Mexican imports due to the state’s failure — purposeful or not — to stop the flow of synthetic drugs, specifically illicitly manufactured fentanyl, into the US | Talking Drugs, UK

“Starting to Brew”: How Decriminalisation Impacts People Using Drugs in Canada

Stigma is a common experience in the lives of people who use drugs. It affects how they are treated by others, how they access healthcare and other supports, and even how they see themselves. Feeling judged, criminalised, or ashamed can stop people from getting the help they need, and these experiences are often made worse by drug policies that punish people who use drugs instead of supporting them | Talking Drugs, UK

We know how to end smoking

But governments, the World Health Organization and so-called public interest groups stand in the way | Marc Gunther, USA

Extend Studio