Home | Archive | Weekly | Reports
Daily news - 2nd February 2026 |
 |
UK news
Digital transformation of the harm reduction sector—“Here4UScotland” a case study of a virtual supervised consumption
[Open access] This study explores the potential of digital technologies in reducing drug-related deaths through virtual supervised drug consumption. It assesses barriers, enablers, and strategies for adopting a remote supervision service app, Here4UScotland, fostering user engagement and ownership | Digital Health, UK
New research highlights BMI as risk factor in drug-related deaths
The NHS Addictions Provider Alliance spoke with Martin Smith, Recovery Lead at Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, about a study exploring the link between body mass index (BMI) and mortality among people using drugs. Contrary to common assumptions, the research found that the majority of overdose deaths occurred in people with a high BMI, often alongside co-morbidities such as COPD, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, liver disease, and sleep apnoea. Low BMI was more associated with deaths from infections or chronic conditions | NHS APA, UK
CNWL: The Breathe Stop Smoking Service
A new case study from the Breathe Stop Smoking Service, delivered by Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust across Camden and Islington, shows what’s possible when services are designed around people’s real lives. Breathe offers a flexible, three-tiered model of support, from light-touch digital guidance to intensive one-to-one behavioural support, shaped by a simple but powerful ethos: your support, your way | NHS APA, UK
The Loop - Facebook Reel [requires a Facebook account]
A reel reflecting on 18 months of our drug checking service. Since January 2024, we’ve been doing what is really important to The Loop - connecting with people directly to offer free, confidential and non-judgemental information about drugs, informed by testing | Facebook, UK
Ketamine
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions has he had with the Home Secretary on the reclassification of ketamine as a Class A substance | They work for you, UK
New weekly ketamine support group launches in Wrexham
A new ketamine support group is launching in Wrexham to help people who are worried about their drug use, amid a sharp rise in ketamine-related harm across North Wales | The Leader, UK
Ex-British army chief calls on ministers to back MDMA-assisted therapy for veteran
Nick Carter says easing controls on MDMA will allow drug to be used as alternative treatment for those with PTSD | Guardian, UK
I’ve never taken drugs or drunk alcohol, says Zack Polanski
Green party leader wants to legalise all drugs, regulate their use and not be ‘the fun police’ | Guardian, UK
'Going blind stopped my alcohol addiction'
A man who once drank up to four bottles of vodka every day has told how he only managed to quit alcohol after developing a visual impairment | BBC, UK
How new alcohol duty increase is set to affect drink prices in the UK
Drinkers across the UK are set to face higher prices for wine and spirits as a significant increase in alcohol duty comes into effect this Sunday, 1 February | Independent, UK
Welsh horror film shot in England due to smoking ban
A horror about mythical Welsh fairies had filming relocated to north Yorkshire after crew found out about strict non-smoking rules on sets in Wales | BBC, UK
Let's talk e-cigarettes, January 2026 - podcast
Jamie Hartmann-Boyce and Nicola Lindson discuss emerging evidence in e-cigarette research and discuss the living systematic review process | University of Oxford, UK
Results of festive enforcement campaign
More than 3,500 drink and drug driving tests were carried out by Police Scotland officers during the festive enforcement campaign | Police Scotland, UK
One injured in explosion at suspected cannabis farm
A man has suffered life-changing burns after an explosion at a suspected cannabis farm in Chesterfield | BBC, UK
‘It’s ridiculous’: publicans bemused by rise of single-file queues to get served
Bar owners say they struggle to dissuade people from forming a line as behavioural experts point to post-pandemic ‘new norms’ | Guardian, UK
International news
'My ketamine addiction put me in a Japanese prison'
The night before her flight to Japan, Izabel Rose consumed the last of her large stash of ketamine with the genuine intention of having "one last hurrah" | BBC, UK
Trio appear in court charged with €10m seizure
A joint operation by the Irish Revenue Customs Service and the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau seized 506kg of cannabis in a raid on a property in County Louth on Friday | BBC, UK
EU takes action to control three harmful new drugs
New EU legal measures, which entered into force this month, will see three harmful new psychoactive substances (NPS) brought under control across the EU. The substances — all new synthetic cathinones — are: 2-methylmethcathinone (2-MMC), 4-bromomethcathinone (4-BMC) and N-ethylnorpentedrone (NEP). These are now classified as controlled ‘drugs’ under EU law | EUDA, Portugal
EUDA kicks off 2026 presidency of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Agencies’ Network
This month, the EUDA assumed the year-long presidency of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Agencies’ Network (JHAAN), which is composed of nine agencies: CEPOL, EIGE, EUAA, EUDA, EU-LISA, EUROJUST, EUROPOL, FRA and FRONTEX. The presidency theme, ‘One Safety — building preparedness and resilient communities’, promotes a cross-sector integrated approach to building a safer, fairer and more resilient EU. The theme reflects the interconnected nature of today’s security challenges and builds on the complementary expertise of the JHAAN agencies | EUDA, Portugal
Before Crisis Strikes — Smartwatch Tracks Triggers For Opioid Misuse
Opioid overdoses continue to take a devastating toll across the United States. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2023, the nation recorded roughly 105,000 drug overdose deaths overall, with nearly 80,000 deaths involving opioids. Worldwide, opioids are also responsible for the majority of drug-related deaths. A University of California San Diego study is working on a potentially life-saving measure that may be as simple as strapping on a smartwatch | UC San Diego, USA
Pain and recreational drug use stand out as potent triggers for late alcohol use disorder relapse
Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is one of the leading causes of preventable death in the United States and worldwide, and leads to substantial disease and medical complications. While treatments are available that can help patients with this disorder achieve stability and initial remission, relapses are common as people grapple with the demands of recovery | Medical Xpress, USA
Supreme Court to Decide Firearms Ban for Marijuana Users
Currently being briefed before the U.S. Supreme Court on the merits is a test of the federal statutory ban, with severe felony penalties, for any marijuana "user" who possess a firearm or even a single round of ammunition | Reason, USA
Neighborhood violence linked to higher substance use among one in four US teens
One in four U.S. adolescents is exposed to violence in their neighborhood, and those teens are more than twice as likely to use cigarettes, alcohol, or drugs to cope, according to a new study from the University of Texas at Arlington | Medical Xpress, USA
Fatal Overdose Fell 26 Percent in 2024, the Largest Decrease Ever Recorded
Overdose deaths in the United States dropped dramatically between 2023 and 2024, with decreases that far surpass what was recorded for the previous 12-month period when the crisis first began to turn around. A January 29 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows deaths falling across all census demographics and all drug types, with particularly large decreases among young people, Black people and deaths involving fentanyl | Filter Magazine, USA
The Role of NRT Fatally Undermines the Anti-Vape Case
Public health authorities insist they are guided by science. But when it comes to nicotine, policy is driven less by toxicology than by symbolism. Regulators approve long-term daily nicotine use through patches, gum and lozenges, while portraying nicotine as inherently dangerous when delivered through consumer products like vapes or pouches. This contradiction is neither subtle nor tenable | Filter Magazine, USA
Cannabis shows anti-migraine benefits
In a recent study, published in Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine demonstrate for the first time in a placebo-controlled clinical trial that cannabis is effective to treat acute migraine | News Medical, USA
Needle service provider trends for image and performance enhancing drugs in Queensland, Australia 2016–2023
[Open access] Image and performance-enhancing drug (IPED) use is an emerging health concern in Australia, particularly within needle and syringe programs (NSPs). This study examined trends in IPED equipment access, demographic shifts, and metropolitan–regional disparities in Queensland (2016–2023) | DEPP, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
UK vaping policy modelling: key findings from the SPIRE project
The UK is currently undergoing a landmark shift in tobacco and vaping regulation . Legislative measures like the 'smokefree generation' and the 2025 ban on disposable vapes represent a significant change in the government's approach to tobacco and e-cigarette products. Computer models are frequently used to help policymakers evaluate the effectiveness of interventions, predict how different policies might impact specific groups of people and determine who should be targeted with new regulations, but the UK currently lacks a dedicated vaping policy model. Furthermore, we lack a clear overview of the data available to build one | University of Sheffield, UK
Let's embrace the nanny state. Shouldn't the government care about our health?
It's time for stronger interventions to treat the nation's poor health, writes Sarah Woolnough | LBC blog, UK
Should medical marijuana be less stringently regulated? A drug policy expert explains what’s at stake
Medical marijuana could soon be reclassified into a medical category that includes prescription drugs like Tylenol with codeine, ketamine and anabolic steroids. That’s because in December 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to reschedule marijuana to a less restricted category, continuing a process initiated by President Joe Biden in 2022 | Conversation, USA