HomeHarm Reduction
Harm Reduction
Paracetamol pack sizes reduced in Australia
In new harm-reduction measures from next month, packs of paracetamol sold in Australia will contain fewer tablets, both in pharmacies and other outlets.
The Therapeutic...
UK may reclassify ketamine as illegal use soars
Britain is considering reclassifying the anaesthetic ketamine as a class A drug as illegal use skyrockets to record levels, officials say.
Ketamine, taken by billionaire...
Killer opioid fentanyl detected in SA drug users
Recent drug tests have found people at South African clinics testing positive for fentanyl – the potent opioid causing tens of thousands of deaths...
US bans common carcinogenic chemicals
In a decision welcomed by environmentalists and health advocates, America’s Environmental Protection Agency has banned two solvents found in everyday products that can cause...
US lawmakers want state-wide ‘generational tobacco ban’
A group of lawmakers in Massachusetts are urging their colleagues to support a proposal making the state the first to adopt a ban that...
SA study finds high school vaping ‘off the charts’
Easy access, lack of regulation and ignorance of risks are all to blame for the startling prevalence of vaping among South African high school...
Small study shows immediate vascular impact of vaping
E-cigarettes, or vapes, are punted as being less harmful than cigarettes, however, a new, small study has found that vaping, even without nicotine, has...
Health Department plans medical strategy to tackle heroin crisis
The government is preparing to trial a medically-assisted treatment programme to help heroin users who want to quit the drug – this after long...
Lessons for SA from Sweden's path to a smoke-free society?
Sweden has become the first country in Europe to become smoke-free, writes Ivo Vegter in Daily Friend, who suggests South Africa should rather follow...
British NHS offers pill to help smokers quit
NHS England is to offer hundreds of thousands of smokers a once-a-day pill that increases their likelihood of quitting, and which, say the experts, could save...
Will vaping laws lead to more smokers?
While the government’s tough new Tobacco Bill aims to curtail smoking and vaping by regulating the latter as a tobacco product, and banning public...
UK’s disposable vape ban coming next year
Britain is to enforce its ban on disposable vapes next year, with new laws giving suppliers a deadline of 1 June 2025 to dump...
Meditation may worsen mental health issues, warns expert
Because mindfulness is free, and something you can practise at home, it often sounds like the perfect tonic for stress and mental health issues....
Never too late to quit smoking – and live longer, US study finds
A team of researchers has said that smokers who give up cigarettes, even at 75, could be boosting their life expectancy, and that it’s...
World leaders pledge to slash AMR by 10%
A UN High Level Meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) last week has pledged to reduce – by 10% – deaths from drug-resistant bacteria over...
Alcohol consumption linked to rising cancer cases – US study
Adults under 50 have been developing breast cancer and colorectal cancer at increasingly higher rates over the past few decades, and alcohol use may...
How to tackle South Africa's high suicide rate
Not only does South Africa have the third highest suicide rate in Africa, but Africa itself has higher rates of suicide than any other...
New smoking, vaping Bill proposes 20-year sentences
A stringent set of penalties in proposed new tobacco legislation for South Africa will include fines and/or imprisonment for people who smoke in public...
UK doctors’ union calls for curb on vapes
The British Medical Association is urging Ministers to introduce legislation to curb the “epidemic” of vaping in the UK, saying the devices should only...
Early death risk for regular drinkers over 60 – Spanish study
Findings from a recent large study have suggested that over-60s who regularly drink are risking early death, particularly from cancer or issues related to...
Parliament revives tobacco Bill
The Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill, first introduced in the National Assembly in 2022, has been dusted off by Parliament...
Clinicians urged to routinely ask teens if they use muscle-building supplements
Primary care, family medicine and mental health clinicians should ask every adolescent and young adult they care for if they take muscle-building supplements such...
WHO issues ‘quit tobacco’ guidelines
The World Health Organisation has issued its very first guidelines aimed at helping smokers to give up the habit, and encouraged member states to...
Draft codeine guideline now out for comment
The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) has released its new draft guideline it hopes will help stem the misuse of codeine, and...
Spike in smoking during lockdown, local analysis finds
South Africans puffed away frantically during lockdown, according to a recent local analysis, which also noted an associated increase in waterpipe/hubbly-bubbly use during 2021...
Alcohol is bad for you, despite conflicting research
Conflicting research over the years on alcohol and its supposed benefits – and non-benefits – has resulted in fluctuating messages to millions of drinkers...
FDA takes flak for green-lighting menthol vapes
The US Food & Drug Administration has drawn criticism from public health advocates after giving the go-ahead to the first menthol-flavoured vapes – and...
Australian pharmacists lash out at vape policy turnaround
Furious Australian pharmacists have hit back at a new Bill permitting consumers to buy plain-packaged nicotine vapes from pharmacies without a prescription, saying they...
Passing of Tobacco Bill urged for SA and its 12.7m smokers
Anti-tobacco groups in South Africa – where smokers on average puff on 8.5 cigarettes a day – urged the new government this week to...
Juul e-cig ban rescinded by FDA following court rulings
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had done an about-turn and reversed a ban on e-cigarette products made by Juul Labs, the company...
Council bans vape sales in pharmacies
Pharmacies are banned from selling vapes as aids to quit smoking, the SA Pharmacy Council registrar Vincent Tlale said, with the products now added...
Experts, FDA flag synthetic chemicals in new vapes
Independent researchers as well as the FDA have sounded the alarm over nicotine alternatives used in vapes being launched in the US and abroad,...
Big Tobacco deliberately targeting youth – WHO report
The WHO has accused tobacco companies of continuing to actively target young people via social media, sports and music festivals – and new flavoured...
Plant-based solution may help nicotine-vape addicts quit – US study
“Natural” help may be on the horizon for the 11m American adults who use e-cigarettes to vape nicotine, at least half of whom want...
HSPCA petitioned over big tobacco sponsorship of medical education
The National Council Against Smoking (NCAS) has lodged an objection, with more than 50 signatories, with the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA) over...
SA linked to global scandal as PMI extends Big Tobacco reach
An ambitious deal between a leading global medical education provider and Philip Morris International (PMI) collapsed this week, with Medscape acknowledging its “misjudgment” and...
Toxic lead, uranium levels in teen vapers’ urine – US study
Teenage vapers are exposing their bodies to a host of toxic metals, say researchers, who found that regular vapers aged 13 to 17, and...
US delays ban on menthol cigarettes
In a decision that has been widely criticised, the US Government has put on hold its plan to ban menthol cigarettes, a move that...
No link between suicide and weight loss drugs – EMA
Evidence does not support a causal association between the glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1) – dulaglutide, exenatide, liraglutide, lixisenatide and semaglutide – and suicidal...
Britain takes first step with vote to ban smoking
Britain is on course to ban smoking for an entire generation after a historic vote in the House of Commons this week, which is likely to see the UK...