DrugWise Daily |
9th November 2026 |
Thank you to our Premium sponsors:
|
|
Could you sponsor DrugWise Daily? Please Email Harry Shapiro to discuss |
|
UK news
Public Health Scotland annual report and accounts for the year to 31 March 2026
The Annual Report and Accounts provides information to highlight our purpose, the key risks to the achievement of our objectives and how we have performed during the year. Includes commentary on the response to alcohol and other drugs | PHS, UK
Medicinal cannabis supplies at risk as firm fails
A boy whose family fought for the cannabis oil he needs to treat his epileptic seizures face supplies running out after the firm that makes the drug went bust | BBC, UK
Impact of psychedelic drugs 'could be linked to age'
Age could play an important role in how psychedelic drug use relates to mental health, according to new research. Researchers from Durham University found adults with a history of using classic psychedelics, such as psilocybin (magic mushrooms) and LSD, reported lower levels of anxiety and depression than non-users - but only in younger age groups | BBC, UK
Clinical features of mental imagery in substance use disorders: A mixed-methods analysis
[Open access] In a mixed-methods study of adults attending a community drug and alcohol treatment service, craving-related mental imagery was commonly reported and was predominantly visual, often recurrent, closely linked to autobiographical memory and associated with perceived urges to use substances | Addiction, UK
Multiple 'code blues' at prison amid laced drug fears
There have been nearly 30 "code blues" at a prison where a contaminated batch of illegal drugs is feared to have caused two deaths. Multiple ambulances have been called to HMP Ranby - a Category C prison in Nottinghamshire - between Tuesday and Thursday. At least 25 inmates are believed to have been "under the influence". Sources also told the BBC the "bad batch" of Mamba, a synthetic cannabinoid, had most likely been delivered by drone | BBC, UK
Vapes, pouches and now tablets: The tobacco industry’s newest nicotine product worries public health advocates
The makers of Zyn Melts and Perlz say they’re for adults. But experts worry their resemblance to mints could make them appealing to kids | The Examination, UK
‘Miracle’ drug helping people quit smoking and vaping comes with 'unsettling' side effect
Varenicline is prescribed to help those addicted to nicotine but there are 'disturbing' side effects which should be carefully monitored | Lad Bible, UK
Forward Trust Calendar 2027 - Seeing the world through the eyes of people in recovery
The Forward Trust supports more than 40,000 people a year across England and Wales to recover from addiction, move away from crime and build brighter futures. This year, we invited our recovery community to explore their creativity and share their stories through photography. The response was inspiring with more than 300 photographs! | Forward Trust, UK
Spotlight on Services: Addictions Counselling Inverness Recovery Services
In this Spotlight post, we feature Addictions Counselling Inverness (ACI) Recovery Services, who have been working for 40 years providing counselling support for people with addictions and their families in the Highlands and Islands | AFS, UK
2026 IAS Small Grants Scheme recipients announced
We are delighted to announce that three projects have been selected for funding as part of the IAS Small Grants Scheme. The scheme is designed to support early career researchers interested in carrying out innovative research on topics relevant to UK alcohol policy | IAS, UK
SOS UK - Collective Voice: Student Drug and Alcohol Awareness Week Webinar
Tuesday, 17 November, 12:00 pm. Online. Keen to learn about how your organisation can work more closely with universities and students' unions? Join our free webinar as we explore how treatment providers, third sector organisations and higher education can work together to improve outcomes for students | Collective Voice, UK
Alcohol Remote Selling Services webinar
Thursday, November 26, 1- 2pm. Online. Join us for a webinar presenting 'Enabling our isolation', a new qualitative study exploring people’s experiences of alcohol direct-to-customer services. Drawing on focus groups with people in recovery, the report examines how rapid deliveries and online marketing can reinforce isolation and make recovery more difficult | IAS, UK
We’re recruiting new trustees
The Chair of our Board, Rosanna O’Connor, introduces the opportunity to become a trustee of Collective Voice | Collective Voice, UK
Nitrous oxide cannister amnesty hailed a success
A Nitrous oxide canister amnesty in Warwickshire saw nearly 17 tonnes of the hazardous canisters safely disposed of | Leamington Observer, UK
Watch: £80m cocaine smuggler arrested at airport
Police found packages of cocaine in the back of a lorry parked near Northampton in November 2021. The lorry had been sealed before leaving Mexico and was followed by three people from the Port of Felixstowe in Suffolk | BBC, UK
County sees 2,000 drug-driving arrests in 2026
The number of people arrested on suspicion of drug-driving in Essex in the first 10 months of 2026 was more than double the total arrested for drink-driving, according to police | BBC, UK
Couple in their 70s sentenced for growing cannabis
A husband and wife in their 70s who had a cannabis-growing operation in their home worth tens of thousands of pounds have been sentenced | BBC, UK
International news
Inside the French drug gangs recruiting children to kill
Although she had just bought hashish from a drug dealer, the woman decided to call the police. It was because, along with the illegal drugs, she had been handed a note by the young seller during their brief meeting on a Marseille housing estate in 2022. "We're being held captive and need help. We are 15-years-old," it read | BBC, UK [Iplayer documentary]
Stimulant overdoses on the rise as opioid deaths decline, but treatment is complex
More people recognize opioid overdoses, but education about stimulant overdoses hasn’t been as clear-cut | Guardian, UK
Herbal supplement linked to decline in excessive alcohol consumption
Taking supplements made from kudzu root, which is a vine that originally comes from East Asia, limited the number of days people with alcohol use disorder practiced binge drinking, University of California-San Francisco researchers said | Independent, UK
Japan’s Psychedelic Analogue Market: Alive And Tripping
Alternative medicine with psychoactive substances has been a difficult issue to explore in Japan. Like many countries, new compounds made their way into the country through headshops: historically these have been synthetic cannabinoids, but psychedelic compounds are increasingly appearing on the market | Talking Drugs, UK
Kenya seizes 454kg of meth in drug crackdown
Kenyan police have seized 454kg (1,000lb) of methamphetamine worth an estimated $27m (£20m) in an operation targeting international drug trafficking networks | BBC, UK
An Assessment of the Evidence Support System for Health Policy-Making in Ireland (RESSA)
This report presents the findings of a Rapid Evidence Support System Assessment (RESSA) of Ireland’s evidence support system for health policy-making. Evidence support systems encompass the people, processes, structures, and resources that enable decision-makers to access and use research evidence, data, and analysis in a timely, transparent, and effective manner | HRB, Ireland
For the community, by the community: Fanny Bäverstam Marklund on #utanskyddsnät’s harm reduction work in Stockholm
#utanskyddsnät is a peer-led NGO for girls, women, and trans people with lived and living experience of drug use, criminalisation, and/or sex in exchange, and the violence connected to these contexts. They recently joined our Network as a new Focal Point, contributing insight into Stockholm’s harm reduction landscape. We spoke with board member Fanny Bäverstam Marklund about their outreach work, their approach to human rights, and Sweden’s harm reduction environment | C-EHRN, The Netherlands
Occasional male cannabis users experience stronger effects than women
Men who use cannabis occasionally reacted more strongly to smoked cannabis than women with similar use habits, even though the amount of THC in their blood was about the same, according to a new study from UCLA Health. The findings run counter to earlier research suggesting that women are more sensitive to cannabis | News Medical, USA
Mindfulness therapy assisted by ketamine may strengthen body awareness to reduce opioid cravings
Researchers from the University of California San Diego School of Medicine have found that adding ketamine to a mindfulness-based treatment for opioid use disorder may strengthen people's ability to recognize and respond to signals from their bodies—changes that may help reduce opioid cravings | Medical Xpress, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Expert comment: New figures on drug deaths reveal 'growing inequalities'
Dr James Morgan, course leader for Addiction and Mental Health MSc at London Metropolitan University, analyses some of the key findings from new Office for National Statistics figures on deaths related to drug poisoning in England and Wales in 2025 | London Metropolitan University, UK
If we ask more of our veterans, we need to be ready to support them too
“I think 2027 is going to be a particularly difficult year, with continued pressure on the cost of living and an increasingly uncertain geopolitical situation. The outlook remains challenging, so I think we need to be looking ahead now at what this could mean for the Armed Forces Community and how we position ourselves to respond.” - Andy Craze, National Armed Forces Programme Lead | WithYou, UK
There is no ‘magic pill’ to fix young women’s anxiety. I should know – I once took propranolol myself
Prescriptions for these beta blockers are soaring among England’s teenage girls. But they deserve more than this sticking-plaster approach | Guardian opinion, UK
A wake-up call for the EU: is it time for a renewed policy to combat illicit tobacco trade?
The European Court of Auditors (ECA) is the European Union’s external auditor, established to perform independent and high-quality audits to improve the EU’s governance, accountability, transparency and sound financial management. ECA reports can have consequences. For example, in 1994, the ECA criticised European Union (EU) subsidies for tobacco production as undermining public health objectives. A decade later, the EU began phasing out subsidies | BMJ Tobacco Control, UK
30 Years, 30 Decisions – Dark Conspiracy
Over the last 30 years of the Code of Practice, the majority of complaints that have been investigated by the Independent Complaints Panel have been regarding packaging. However, it is important for producers to remember that the Code applies beyond just packaging and includes on-trade staples like pump clips | Portman Group, UK