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Daily news - 3rd September 2025 |
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UK news
Drug-related deaths in Scotland, 2024
In 2024, there were 1,017 drug misuse deaths registered in Scotland. This is a decrease of 13% (155 deaths) compared with 2023. Drug misuse deaths in Scotland have increased over the last two decades. The number increased in each year from 2014 to 2020, which was the highest number in the series (1,339 deaths). Overall, the number of deaths has decreased since then with a large decrease (-21%) between 2021 and 2022, followed by an increase (12%) between 2022 and 2023. The latest figure is the lowest number of drug misuse deaths registered in any year since 2017 | National Records of Scotland, UK [See Public Health Scotland's summary of the statistics here]
The figures behind Scotland's drug death toll
Former care worker Karen is nearing the end of her six-month stay at a rehab centre in Glasgow. Battling addiction to heroin, alcohol and cocaine after a succession of family tragedies, this was the second time the 49-year-old was ready for rehab. She said she weighed just four stone when she showed up for treatment. "I never had any energy. I was walking about thinking I was alright, but I was nothing," she told BBC Scotland News | BBC, UK
‘Crisis on top of crisis’: Scotland faces threat from dangerous form of opioids, experts warn
Synthetic opioids such as nitazene, linked to more than 100 deaths, can be hundred times stronger than those used by addicts | Guardian, UK
Energy drinks to be banned for under-16s
The government is planning a new law in England to stop anyone under the age of 16 buying energy drinks such as Red Bull, Monster and Prime from shops, restaurants, cafes, vending machines and online | BBC, UK
Official Statistics - Smoking profile: September 2025 update
An overview of the extent of tobacco use, tobacco-related harm, vaping use and the measures being taken to reduce smoking-related harms at a local level in England | OHID, UK
Official Statistics - Substance misuse and mental health issues: September 2025 update
The ‘Co-occurring substance misuse and mental health issues profile’ on the Fingertips tool includes a range of indicators on people receiving treatment for drug and alcohol treatment and treatment for co-occurring mental health conditions. This update includes routine updates to several existing indicators, as well as adding 3 new indicators. These new indicators were previously published by NHS England and are: 1) hospital admissions for drug-related mental and behavioural disorders, 2) hospital admissions for poisoning by drug misuse and 3) hospital admissions where drug-related mental and behavioural disorders were a factor | OHID, UK
Rapid review of evidence about alcohol marketing and advertising: Influences on consumer attitudes and behaviours, and the effects of regulation on those behaviours
As part of the Scottish Government's commitment to reducing alcohol harm, they commissioned Public Health Scotland to conduct an independent review of research evidence related to the effects and potential restriction of marketing and advertising for alcohol. The aim of this review was to identify potential areas of evidence-based action on alcohol marketing where it may reduce alcohol harm or improve public health, as well as any areas where the evidence base is inconclusive or lacking | Public Health Scotland, UK
National naloxone programme Scotland - Quarterly monitoring bulletin
This release by Public Health Scotland (PHS) presents information on the number of take-home naloxone kits issued by the National Naloxone Programme (NNP) in Scotland. Figures are presented separately for kits issued from community-based services (mainly specialist drug treatment and non-drug treatment services), kits issued in prisons at the point of liberation, kits dispensed via community prescription, and kits issued by Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) | Public Health Scotland, UK
Barod App - Introducing the Barod App — Support, Information & Tools for Young People
Life can be full of choices and challenges. Whether you’re curious about substances, looking for clear harm-reduction advice, or want a safe space to connect with others, the Barod app is here to support you. Designed with young people in mind, the app brings together reliable information, personal tools, and confidential support — all in one place, free to download | Barod, UK
Recovering alcohol addict urges others to get help
Henry Mackley, 46, from Ludlow, said his drinking "spiralled" after the coronavirus pandemic and nearly killed him. Three months ago, he started working for With You, a national charity which supports people with alcohol, drug and mental health issues. He said the advice which helped him the most was: "Don't be embarrassed about it, you're not alone." | BBC, UK
NHSGGC issues new guidance and advice on vaping
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has launched a new advice pack on vaping to help users of all ages understand the risks and plan to cut down or quit | NHSGCC, UK
Prescription Drugs: Women
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of allowing qualified non-medical prescribers to prescribe (a) dihydrocodeine, (b) testosterone and (c) other controlled drugs on women’s healthcare | They work for you, UK
Pan-Bedfordshire Recovery Walk (PDF)
Saturday 20th September, Wardown Park, Luton. Join us in celebrating recovery, inclusion and hope at Bedfordshire's first Recovery Walk | Luton Borough Council, Central Bedfordshire Council and Bedford Borough Council, UK
Cannabis worth an estimated £1m found in raid
Officers seized more than 1,000 plants from the property on Deepdale Road, including hundreds of seedlings which they believe were likely to be moved to different locations to be grown to maturity | BBC, UK
Children's nurse caught in £200k drug raid jailed
A children's nurse who admitted being involved in supplying cocaine and ecstasy has been jailed for four years | BBC, UK
International news
Drug Overdose Deaths Involving Stimulants ― United States, January 2018–June 2024
During January 2021–June 2024, 59.0% of overdose deaths involved stimulants, 43.1% co-involved stimulants and opioids, and 15.9% involved stimulants and no opioids. Persons who died of overdoses involving stimulants and no opioids were older and more frequently had a history of cardiovascular disease than those who died of overdoses involving stimulants and opioids | CDC, USA
Dad's childhood passive smoking may confer lifelong poor lung health onto his kids
A father's exposure to passive smoking as a child may impair the lifelong lung function of his children, putting them at risk of COPD—a risk that is heightened further if they are childhood passive smokers themselves—finds research published online in the respiratory journal Thorax | Medical Xpress, USA
“It beats the hell out of going to a hospital”: service user experiences of telemedicine-based symptom-triggered alcohol withdrawal management
Already known from this study was that managing withdrawal from alcohol at home via video contact with a clinician is feasible, can be safe, and often leads to abstinence. This new report reveals that patients also see it as more convenient and less disruptive than having to attend a clinic | Addiction Science & Clinical Practice, USA
Virtual Reality in Prevention and Treatment of Substance-Related Disorders: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials
[Open access] If compulsive substance use can be an escape from difficult realities, re-introducing those realities in virtual form may safely pave the way to undermining the roots of compulsion. When such approaches have been rigorously tested, the results have been promising | Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, USA
Despite relaxed prescribing rules, opioid addiction treatment still hard to find at pharmacies
Faced with a worsening drug crisis, policymakers in recent years have made it much easier for doctors to prescribe the highly effective opioid addiction treatment buprenorphine. However, many patients may still struggle to find pharmacies carrying the treatment, finds new research led by the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics | Medical Xpress, USA
California CA Bridge program expands opioid treatment across most emergency departments
A comprehensive study shows that California's CA Bridge program has successfully implemented opioid use disorder treatment services across more than 80% of the state's emergency departments, reaching over 165,000 patients and providing nearly 45,000 instances of buprenorphine treatment from July 2022 through December 2023 alone. The initiative proves that emergency departments can serve as a critical entry point for addiction care when provided with proper funding, training, and patient navigation support | News Medical, USA
“Balance Your Buzz”—A Student-Led Alcohol Harm Reduction Initiative
Alcohol plays a role in the lives of many college students, and is often experienced as pleasurable or beneficial. Like any form of drug use, it also comes with risks, which can be exacerbated if the drinker is inexperienced | Filter Magazine, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Amid Europe’s worst drug crisis, Glasgow is changing course
Health officials say the U.K’s first supervised drug clinic is saving lives. They’re still fighting to convince locals | Politico, UK
The effects of alcohol on employment and social outcomes in the UK
Drinking can influence employment outcomes. For instance, it affects people’s ability to hold down a job. There is also evidence supporting effects in the opposite direction, i.e. personal circumstances influencing alcohol consumption. In addition, alcohol-employment associations may be driven by shared upstream factors. For instance, economic recession might cause both unemployment and changes in drinking habits | IAS blog, UK