Home | Archive | Weekly | Reports
Weekly news - 26th September 2025 |
 |
In date order, Monday to Friday
Inequality Landscape: Health and Socio-economic Inequality in Scotland
This is the second annual report from the Health Foundation funded Scottish Health Equity Research Unit (SHERU). This year we have split the report into two sections: Part 1 provides a stock-take of key data that capture health inequality trends and the underpinning socio-economic conditions that shape population health in Scotland. Part 2 offers a deep dive into deaths from drugs, alcohol and suicide and highlights young adult men experiencing socio-economic deprivation as a population group at high risk of these preventable deaths | Scottish Health Equity Research Unit (SHERU), UK
Call for plain packaging for vapes to reduce appeal to children
Experts say that using plain packaging could reduce the number of children who take up vaping while still being used by adults as a tool to quit smoking. But adults are still likely to buy e-cigarettes sold in plain packs, researchers found | ITV, UK
Spate of drugs deaths may be linked to crack cocaine 'laced with spice'
Officials believe the drug has been contaminated with synthetic cannabinoids, or spice, causing seizures and even death | STV, UK
The Women’s Treatment Working Group launches its Womanifesto
The Women’s Treatment Working Group is a group of women in leadership roles, working together to improve support for women affected by drug and alcohol use. We come from both specialist and mainstream services and are united in challenging inequality and enhancing services for women. We are committed to learning from lived and living experience, and aim to work alongside women to create change. Download the full report, or the executive summary | Collective Voice, UK
Britain is not yet an opioid nation but rising drug deaths demand a new approach
Policymakers are alert to the growing menace of opioids, if not to the most effective solutions | Observer, UK
The effect of standardised packaging and limited flavour descriptors of vape pods among adults and youth in Great Britain: a cross-sectional between-subjects experimental study
Vape packaging often includes colourful designs and conceptual flavour names, which appeal to youth. We examined the impact of standardised vape packaging and flavour names on appeal to youth and adults | Lancet, UK
Edinburgh to hold public consultation on drug consumption room
Two potential sites have been identified in Edinburgh's Old Town. The consultation expected to begin early next year | BBC, UK
'Right to rehab' bill for drug users rejected by Scottish Parliament committee
The majority of a Holyrood Committee has not agreed to recommend the general principles of the right to addiction Bill for drug users | Daily Record, UK
Our actions are dictated by 'autopilot' not choice, finds study
The study found that 65% of daily behaviors were habitually initiated, meaning people were prompted to do them out of routine rather than making a conscious decision | Medical Xpress, UK
'All door staff should carry life-saving drug'
A door supervisor has said a life-saving drug should be carried as standard by security staff, after he helped a man during an overdose. Charlie Smith used a syringe filled with naloxone to reverse the effects of a drug overdose while working in Sheffield earlier this year. The 24-year-old said he was "terrified" when the man collapsed in a doorway on Division Street - but he was able to administer the drug thanks to training | BBC, UK
Decrease in alcohol-specific deaths
Drugs and Alcohol Policy Minister Maree Todd has underlined her unwavering commitment to continue reducing alcohol harms, as new figures show the number of alcohol-specific deaths at a five-year low. According to statistics released by National Records of Scotland (NRS), the number of alcohol-specific deaths fell by 7% to 1,185 in 2024 | Scottish Government, UK
Scottish alcohol deaths at lowest rate for five years
The statistics from National Records of Scotland (NRS) revealed that 1,185 people died from alcohol-specific causes in 2024, a 7% decrease from 2023's 15-year record high | BBC, UK
Any alcohol use increases dementia risk, study finds
The University of Oxford, Yale University, and the University of Cambridge have described their research into alcohol consumption and dementia risk as the most comprehensive to date. The findings, published in BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine, suggest that alcohol use, even at moderate levels, may have no safe threshold when it comes to brain health | BBC, UK
Trends in use of alcohol-free or low alcohol drinks in attempts to reduce alcohol consumption in Great Britain, 2020-2024: a population-based study
[Open access] Sales and availability of alcohol-free and low alcohol drinks have increased in the UK since 2020. This study aimed to assess trends in the use of alcohol-free and low alcohol drinks to reduce alcohol consumption among people who drink at increasing and higher risk in Great Britain. The study compared trajectories across different subgroups from 2020 to 2024 | BMJ Public Health, UK
New report reveals further growth and key trends in alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks market
A second Monitoring Report from the Sheffield Addictions Research Group has been published, revealing further growth in the alcohol-free and low-alcohol (no/lo) drinks market and offering new insights into consumer behaviour and pricin | SHAAP, UK
Heavy drinkers buy more alcohol-free drinks - study
Research from the University of Sheffield found one third of adults have had an alcohol-free or low volume drink in the last year. But the report found those who drank alcohol at "risky" levels were more likely to consume them regularly | BBC, UK
Addiction charity's gallery show to mark recovery
A charity which helps people struggling with addiction and homelessness is to take over an art gallery after hours to celebrate its recovery month | BBC, UK
Urgent improvements must be made to hospital treatment for alcohol problems, say healthcare experts
Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP), the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Scotland and Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych) Scotland are today calling for better support and treatment for people with alcohol problems in hospitals across Scotland | SHAAP, UK
Professionalism, professional identity and community pharmacy culture: The context of substance dependency through the lens of student and early career pharmacists
[Open access] Stigmatisation of people with substance dependency attending a pharmacy was a prominent observation. This included negative stereotyping, adverse treatment because of judgements made about substance use and structural stigma relating to barriers to accessing care. Positive care provision in pharmacies was evident. Pharmacy staff who were empathetic, respectful, professional and who formed long-term relationships with people with substance dependency were valuable role models for students | Addiction, UK
Smoking cessation toolkit launched ahead of ‘Stoptober’
Ahead of Stoptober, the annual 28-day quit event, a smoking cessation campaign toolkit has been launched by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) | Pharmacist, UK
Our Message Our Voice Update
Earlier this year the Our Message Our Voice project ran a survey for people with lived experience of alcohol addiction and launched our co-produced short film. We would now like to share our new resources including our project summary and engagement toolkit, full survey responses, and messages of hope, available on our new website our message our voice. We are delighted to move forwards with becoming an independent community group, please do get in touch | Our Message Our Voice, UK
Majority of teachers in Wales concerned about children using nicotine pouches, say NASUWT
On the door of a vape shop in Cardiff, there is a large poster which tells me under 18s will not be served. That isn't strictly true though. It is illegal in Wales to sell under-18s vapes or tobacco, but there's another product for sale in this shop that doesn't fit that description: nicotine pouches, sometimes incorrectly referred to as snus. They're regulated differently to tobacco and vapes and therefore it's perfectly legal to sell to a teenager | ITV, UK
Trends in US Adolescent Use of Vaping and Flavored Solutions for Marijuana Consumption, 2021–2024
[Open access] The percentage of US adolescents who vaped flavored marijuana solutions increased from 2021 to 2024, one of very few drug outcomes that increased since the pandemic onset. With this increase, adolescents who used flavors to vape marijuana shifted from a minority to a majority and vaping became more common among adolescents who used marijuana | J Adolesc Health, USA
2025 Drug Trends reports highlight demand for drug checking
Lead author, Dr Rachel Sutherland said the 2025 national reports show that drug checking remains common among people who use drugs like ecstasy. “Nearly two fifths (39%) of people who use drugs like ecstasy and 15% of people who inject drugs reported testing their illicit drugs in the last year” Dr Sutherland said | NDARC, Australia