The Welsh Government will introduce a minimum unit price for alcohol of 50p from 2 March 2020, with regulations today being approved by the National Assembly for Wales.
The new law supports the Welsh Government’s work to address harmful...
In 2018, the Scottish Government released the Rights, Respect and Recovery: Scotland's Alcohol and Drug Treatment Strategy.
Scotland's first drugs strategy for a decade focuses on treating the issue as a public health concern rather than a...
The physical and psychological harm caused by heavy alcohol consumption to the individual drinking is often clear. What is often less obvious, is the damage an individuals alcohol consumption can have to the people around them.
A recent...
In England the clearest impact of financial incentives to screen primary care patients for risky drinking was the plummeting screening rate after the incentives were withdrawn. If these results are applicable to England as a whole, over the...
Tobacco contains nicotine, which is highly addictive and can cause dependence. Although many people understand the negative health consequences of smoking for themselves and those around them, cutting down or stopping smoking can be highly...
In 2008 the UK introduced a ‘duty escalator’ which meant alcohol duties (government tax collected by HM Customs and Excise) would rise by 2% above inflation each year until 2012. However, since then the preceding governments have abolished...
It is recognised that harmful alcohol consumption is more common amongst those who have served in the UK armed forces.
However this is not just an issue for the individual who has served in the army. In a recent study conducted by...
Alcohol Change UK has gathered statistics related to alcohol consumption in the 
United Kingdom.
The report provides information on:
Some key...
It is well documented that people with severe mental health issues are more likely to smoke compared to the general population. Smoking reduces physical wellbeing and is a key modifiable risk factor for health inequality. Despite this...
The National Health Service has been closely following the smoking, drinking and drug use trends amongst young people in England.
The series of surveys began in 1982. The most recent 2018 survey questioned 13,664 year 7 to 11 pupils...
Alcohol use during the teenage years is related to a wide range of health and social problems. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has developed new guidelines to help schools and colleges when teaching their pupils about...
Deaths in England directly caused by alcohol rose by 11% between 2006 and 2017. During the same period, hospital admissions in which alcohol misuse was a primary factor increased by 17%.
In 2017 alone almost 1 million hospital admissions...
Excessive alcohol consumption is a continuous global public health concern.
It is believed that glass size can influence pouring behaviour, with larger glasses resulting in more alcohol being poured into them, and also by influencing...
Although alcohol consumption among young people in the UK has been declining there remains a concerning level of binge drinking amongst 16–24-year-olds.
One intervention, that is cost-effective and has a wide reach, is the inclusion of...
This report, published by the National Records of Scotland, provides statistics of drug-related deaths in 2018 and earlier years, broken down by age, sex, selected drugs reported, the underlying cause of death and NHS board and council...
Adolescence is a critical period of vulnerability to substance use. Recent research has shown that gender differences in adolescence substance use are complex and in constant flux. The present study aims to investigate gender...
Objectives: This study aims to assess the prevalence of health problems (eg, insomnia, binge-eating, substance use and ill health) among UK doctors and to investigate whether occupational distress increases the risk of health...
Objectives: Brief interventions (BI) for smoking and risky drinking are effective and cost-effective policy approaches to reducing alcohol harm currently used in primary care in England; however, little is known about their...
The internet is full of misinformation about recreational drugs - both legal and illegal.
Dr Suzi Gage, a psychologist interested in understanding associations between substance use and mental health, tackles one substance per episode -...
