Daily news - 15th July 2014 |
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Correspondence - Use of psychoactive substances in research: letter
Letter to chair of Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs regarding scoping exercise to assess whether legislation is impeding legitimate scientific research | Home Office, Norman Baker, UK
The Links between Mephedrone Use, Violence and other Harms in South Wales (PDF)
Broadly, the research detailed in this report was undertaken in order to provide the first detailed assessment of the possible links between mephedrone use, violence and other harms in South Wales. The research combines data from a survey of 67 users across South Wales with in-depth semi-structured interviews with 12 mephedrone users and 20 ‘expert’ practitioners who work with users in order to further unravel the various impacts of mephedrone and, specifically, its links to violence | Wales.gov, UK
Long-term smokers find plain-packaged cigarettes taste worse
Australian study also finds smokers can no longer differentiate between brands, saying they all taste the same | Guardian, UK
UK only 'scratching the surface' on 'legal high' misuse
Legal highs are so popular the only option is to "educate people who are using them" about how they can make safer choices about the drugs they take, an addiction specialist told Good Morning Britain | ITV.com, UK
Smoking cannabis DOES increase the risk of anxiety and depression
Smoking cannabis does increase the risk of depression and anxiety, a new study has concluded. U.S. researchers found the brains of users were less able to react to dopamine - the feel-good chemical that inspires a spirit of get-up-and-go | Mail Online, UK
Too many pregnant women smoking, says child mortality report
Too many women are still smoking while pregnant, paediatricians have warned | BBC, UK
FOI release: Statistics on ESA claimants by LA and ICD10 code for mental and behavioural disorders: Nov 2013
FOI response for statistics on ESA claimants by LA and ICD10 code for mental and behavioural disorders: Nov 2013 | DWP, UK
High Five
Doncaster Public Health has commissioned a short film entitled High Five which promotes the 5 ways to wellbeing in relation to drug and alcohol recovery. It features real life stories, and people from Doncaster who are in recovery explaining how each of the 5 ways is helping them maintain and enhance their recovery | Public Health, Doncaster Council, UK
Nottingham bars police levy is approved
Pubs and bars in Nottingham will have to pay a levy towards policing the city at night | BBC, UK
Rapper in Tulisa drugs trial admits supplying cocaine
A friend of the former X Factor judge Tulisa Contostavlos has admitted supplying cocaine to an undercover reporter | BBC, UK
Paul John Greenhalgh jailed over heroin stash
A man who was caught with heroin with a street value of about £70,000 has been jailed for three years and four months | BBC, UK
Ipswich drug dealer Johnny Callie wins deportation battle
A convicted drug dealer, who claimed he could not afford health care in his native United States, has won his fight to stay in the UK | BBC, UK
Addiction research – letting us down?
One of the clear recommendations to come out of the recent hard-hitting Expert Review on delivering Opioid Replacement Therapies in Scotland was to do with research. It seems there’s not much addiction research going on in Scotland | Recovery Review Blog, UK
Encouraging safer sexual behaviour with high quality services
We know that young adults remain the age group most at risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in England. Public Health England’s latest national data show that, in 2013, 15-24 year olds experienced around two thirds of all chlamydia cases and over half of all gonorrhoea cases diagnosed among heterosexuals in genitourinary medicine clinics | PHE Blog, UK
Ella’s Story
I guess you could say that I had a lucky escape. I am 20 now and thanks to Blenheim, I am back on track. I had what I thought was a pretty idyllic childhood. My father was a very successful and wealthy businessman and I grew up with my two brothers in Chelsea. I didn’t think that I was spoilt because all my friends were just like me | Blenheim CDP Blog, UK
Residential treatment for drug use in Europe
In most European countries, residential treatment programmes form an important element of the range of treatment and rehabilitation options for drug users. The aim of this paper is to provide a Europe-wide overview of the history and availability of residential drug treatment within wider national drug treatment systems | EMCDDA, Portugal
First Global Forum on nicotine [conference presentations]
The first GFN international conference on nicotine took place in Warsaw, Poland, in June 2014. The event attracted approx. 200 people from 25+ countries. The discussions were shaped by presentations from the world’s leading nicotine researchers and policy analysts | GFN, Poland
UEA research reveals how cannabis compound could slow tumour growth
Scientists at the University of East Anglia have shown how the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis could reduce tumor growth in cancer patients | EurekAlert, USA
Critique 142: A large study of alcohol consumption and mortality
To investigate the role of factors that modulate the association between alcohol and mortality, and to provide estimates of absolute risk of death | Boston University School of Medicine, USA
Rehab Clinics Say Smartphones Can Exacerbate Addictions
Smartphones have made scoring drugs or delving into porn easier, while making recovery harder | Fix, USA
Drug Testing and Racial Profiling
Check out the stats below: whites trump blacks in all drug use except crack. So why do so many employers assume that black job applicants are drug users? | Fix, USA
Substance Abuse in Canada: Childhood and Adolescent Pathways to Substance Use Disorders (PDF)
CCSA launched the Substance Abuse in Canada series in 2005 to draw attention to key substance abuse issues and highlight areas for action in both policy and practice. Published biennially, each edition is developed through review and analysis of the latest research evidence. The publications are targeted at policy makers, program development personnel, researchers, educators and health professionals | CCSA, Canada