Policy
Building Smart Cannabis Policy from the Science Up
ABSTRACT Social attitudes and cultural norms around the issue of substance abuse are shifting rapidly around the world, leading to complex and unpredictable consequences. On the positive side, efforts to more intensely disseminate the...
Alcohol and Cannabis: Comparing their Adverse Health Effects and Regulatory Regimes
ABSTRACT The claim that the adverse health effects of cannabis are much less serious than those of alcohol has been central to the case for cannabis legalisation. Regulators in US states that have legalised cannabis have adopted regulatory...
2017 UNODC World Drug Report
Now in its 20th year of publication, the UNODC World Drug Report for 2017 is now available. It consists of 5 accessible booklets: Booklet 1 provides a summary of the subsequent 4 booklets. It also discusses the policy implications of the...
Marijuana on the Mind? The Impact of Marijuana on Cognition, Brain Structure, and Brain Function, and Related Public Policy Implications
Abstract Although marijuana (MJ) has been used for thousands of years, the public’s opinion of MJ has shifted drastically over the past century, leaving many wondering about its potential risks and benefits. This article summarizes research...
Alcohol Interventions in Primary Care Settings: What Works, What Doesn’t and What's Next?
This week saw the seminar launch at Edinburgh’s Royal College of Physicians of two key reports on alcohol interventions in primary care settings published by the Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP) in collaboration with the...
Life in Recovery from Addiction in Canada
The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) has recently teamed up with the National Recovery Advisory Committee to produce the first Canadian survey of people in recovery from drug addiction and/or alcoholism. The findings...
European Drug Report 2017
The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) has recently released its European Drug Report for 2017. The document offers an overview of the drug situation across the continent. It covers drug supply and use as well...
Field Guide to Drug Demand Reduction Program Development, 2nd ed.
The Field Guide to Drug Demand Reduction (DDR) Development is an annual publication by the U.S. Department of State primarily for its Embassy personnel abroad to guide in the development of substance use prevention and treatment programming...
The Societal Cost of Heroin Use Disorder in the United States
ABSTRACT Objective Heroin use in the United States has reached epidemic proportions. The objective of this paper is to estimate the annual societal cost of heroin use disorder in the United States in 2015 US dollars. Methods An analytic...
Preventing Violence Through Alcohol Consumption Reduction Measures
The World Health Organization has released a series of briefings on violence prevention. Of particular interest is Chapter 3: Preventing Violence by Reducing Availability and Harmful Use of Alcohol. ‘Harmful use of alcohol is a major...
