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Daily news - 1st September 2025 |
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UK news
Taking Action on Addiction Launches the Road to Recovery Campaign
This September, to mark Recovery Month 2025, Taking Action on Addiction (TAOA), led by The Forward Trust, is launching an inspiring new campaign: The Road to Recovery.The campaign invites people to celebrate their recovery by adding a “brick” to a virtual pathway. Each brick represents the number of recovery days and carries a message of encouragement to someone still finding their way | Forward Trust, UK
Children and young people are being saturated by online alcohol advertising
Balance has raised serious concerns following a major new study revealing that more than one in three young people aged 11 and over report being exposed to alcohol-related online promotions from companies and influencers | Balance North East, UK
PHA would be 'open to considering' drug testing at concerts
The Public Health Agency (PHA) "would be open to considering" drug testing at concerts and festivals, a director at the organisation has said. It comes after police issued a warning about upcoming music events and said they were committed to "tackling the illegal supply and use of illicit drugs". They are investigating the deaths of two young people following the Emerge dance festival in Belfast last weekend, but have not commented on whether their investigations involve a drugs link | BBC, UK
We Out Here Festival 2025 - Psychedelics and Connectedness
For the 3rd year in a row, the Drug Science team was invited to host a discussion around psychedelics at We Out Here Festival, which is held in Wimborne St Giles, Dorset. The title of the talk was was: "Psychedelics and Connectedness - explore the therapeutic role of psychedelics as tools for connection to self, others and the world" | Drug Science, UK
Trial date set over 'drug-laced sweets' at camp
A trial date has been set for a man who was arrested after children fell ill at a summer camp, where sweets were allegedly laced with sedatives | BBC, UK
International news
As beer sales fall, young Germans develop taste for alcohol-free lager
Germany's Destatis federal statistics office says non-alcoholic sales have more than doubled in recent years - up 109% since 2013 - even though beer sales more broadly are at their lowest level in more than 30 years | BBC, UK
US Coast Guard shows off ‘largest cocaine offload in history’ in 76,000lbs drugs haul
More than 76,000lbs of illegal drugs were unloaded in Florida on Monday, 25 August, the US Coast Guard said. Officials said this was the largest cocaine offload to date in Coast Guard history, with the assistance of partner agencies, during counterdrug operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea. Approximately 61,740 pounds of cocaine and approximately 14,400 pounds of marijuana were offloaded | Independent, UK
Singapore is worried about a rise in drug-laced vaping. What is happening, and what is the drug etomidate?
Vaping has been banned since 2018, but now authorities are seeing a rise in young people using them to take an anaesthetic agent | Guardian, UK
HSE launches life-saving drug in Cork to help reverse overdoses
The HSE has said it is going to provide naloxone, a medicine that can reverse an opioid overdose, directly to people who have overdosed but decline ambulance transport to hospital. Ahead of International Overdose Awareness Day on Sunday, the HSE said the National Ambulance Service’s (NAS) alternative pre-hospital pathway (APP) team, led by Dr Daragh Mathews at Cork University Hospital, will provide the medication | Echo Live, Ireland
Irish teenagers ‘more likely to use cocaine’ if they do not play sport regularly
The findings show teenagers were about 50pc more likely to use cocaine and 54pc more likely to use ecstasy if they weren’t regularly involved in sport | Independent, Ireland
Overdose deaths in Europe: new EUDA resource flags cocaine, nitazenes and polysubstance use as growing concerns
Overdose continues to claim thousands of lives in Europe. In the run-up to International Overdose Awareness Day (31 August), the EUDA has updated its resource ‘Frequently asked questions (FAQs): drug-induced deaths in Europe’. The resource highlights the scale of the problem and points to cocaine, new synthetic opioids (nitazenes) and polysubstance use as growing concerns. Drawing on the latest data from the 27 EU Member States, Norway and Türkiye, the FAQs answer the questions most often asked about overdose deaths in Europe | EUDA, Portugal
Association between Concurrent Substance Use and Genetic Variation in Individuals with Heroin Dependence
[Open access] The goal of the study was to find an associ-
ation between polydrug use and genetic factors among indi-
viduals with heroin dependence | Clinical Social Work and Health Intervention, USA
Collaborative Care for Opioid Use Disorder in Primary Care
[Open access] In this cluster randomized clinical trial including 254 participants, collaborative care that treats both opioid use disorder and co-occurring mental health symptoms is more effective at reducing the number of days of nonmedical use of opioids (but not mental health–related quality of life) than collaborative care that only treats co-occurring mental health symptoms | JAMA Psychiatry, USA
Kentucky Republican proposes studying psychedelic drug ibogaine to curb addiction
A Kentucky lawmaker wants to revisit a previously abandoned idea for the state to fund research of an illegal psychedelic drug for its potential to treat drug addiction | Medical Xpress, USA
Just a Reminder That Drug Users Aren’t Zombies
The White House is promoting a new fentanyl awareness ad campaign. “Make America Fentanyl Free” launched August 25, and though described only as “privately funded” it drops a lot of references to “working with President Trump” directly. While its website isn’t particularly ambitious in terms of written information, a lot more investment has clearly gone into the handful of PSA-style videos featuring actors in various stages of zombie makeup | Filter Magazine, USA
Overdoses Should Be Termed “Prohibition-Related Deaths”
Another International Overdose Awareness Day arrives on August 31. It’s a time for us to reflect once more on a global tragedy that has reached unprecedented levels in recent decades | Filter Magazine, USA
Australia's Annual Overdose Report
The 2025 edition of Australia's Annual Overdose Report demonstrates overdose remains a national crisis, claiming the lives of over 6 Australians every day. The urgency for action remains as strong as ever | Oenington Institute, Australia
Drug Trends output: GP access among two samples of people who regularly use illicit drugs in Australia, 2019-2024
The Ecstasy and Related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS) and the Illicit Drugs Reporting System (IDRS) are national drug monitoring systems intended to identify emerging trends of local and national concern in illicit drug use and markets. These systems form part of the broader Drug Trends program. This bulletin presents findings on GP access among IDRS and EDRS participants between 2019 and 2024 | NDARC, Australia
Drug Trends output: Concomitant GHB and stimulant use among a national sample of people who regularly inject drugs in Australia, 2024
This bulletin examines the characteristics and patterns of use of concomitant GHB and stimulant use within a sentinel group of people who inject drugs in Australia | NDARC, Australia
Drug Trends output: Sexualised drug use among cisgender heterosexual and LGBTQ+ people who regularly use illicit stimulants in Australia
This bulletin aims to examine engagement in, and factors associated with, sexualised drug use among a sample of cisgender heterosexual and LGBTQ+ people who regularly use ecstasy and other illicit stimulants in Australia | NDARC, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Naloxone Saves Lives – But Stigma Still Stands in the Way
On Overdose Awareness Day, we remember those we’ve lost, celebrate every life saved, and shine a light on how stigma continues to put people at risk. One of the most powerful tools we have against overdose is naloxone – a simple, safe, and effective medication that reverses opioid overdoses. But stigma still prevents too many people from carrying it, using it, or even talking about it | AntiStigma Network, UK
Evidence submission: LGBT+ health evidence review
We have submitted evidence to the NHS England LGBT+ health evidence review, to help tackle health inequalities experienced by LGBT+ people. The aim of the evidence review is to help the NHS understand how it can do more to meet the needs of LGBT+ people, including understanding barriers to accessing healthcare and the impact of LGBT+ health inequalities on outcomes and patient safety. Due to the nature of our work, our response outlines evidence about alcohol harm among LGBT+ people, with a focus on access and experiences of alcohol treatment services | Alcohol Change UK, UK
Dear Viv review – this fascinating tribute to The Vivienne is astonishingly candid
Family, friends and fellow queens create a warm portrait of a funny, sharp joy giver – and are impressively honest about their personal struggles | Guardian, UK
Balancing kratom’s potential benefits and risks − new legislation in Colorado seeks to minimize harm
David Bregger had never heard of kratom before his son, Daniel, 33, died in Denver in 2021 from using what he thought was a natural and safe remedy for anxiety. By his father’s account, Daniel didn’t know that the herbal product could kill him. The product listed no ingredients or safe-dosing information on the label. And it had no warning that it should not be combined with other sedating drugs, such as the over-the-counter antihistamine diphenhydramine, which is the active ingredient in Benadryl and other sleep aids | Conversation, USA
New data shows a jump in older people dying from drug overdoses
When we talk about drug overdose deaths, many of us imagine a problem that affects young people. But new data from Australia’s Annual Overdose Report, published on Sunday, reveals a significant jump in the number of older adults dying from an overdose, compared to two decades ago. Since 2001, unintentional overdose deaths have declined by about one-third among people under 30. But deaths in those aged 50–59 have increased three-fold. Among 60–69 year olds, deaths have nearly doubled | Conversation, Australia
Can kids overdose on melatonin gummies? Yes, and an online store has suspended sales
US-based online store iHerb has suspended sales of melatonin gummies to Australia. This comes after a rise in reports of non-fatal overdoses in Western Australia in children who took these popular supplements. This latest move raises fresh concerns about the safety of these non-prescription sleep aids | Conversation, Australia