Blog

Drug Science responded to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs’ (ACMD’s) call on Ketamine use, harms and interventions. We hope that our evidence can help to develop rational debate, policy making and scheduling about Ketamine.

Germany has recently taken a landmark step by introducing compassionate access to psilocybin for patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD), marking the first such programme in the European Union.

Despite the resurgence of research into the clinical efficacy and mechanism of action of psychedelic drugs such as such as psilocybin, LSD, DMT, and MDMA they are currently in Schedule 1 of the Misuse of Drugs regulations 2001.

The number of cannabis-related arrests has been increasing in Japan, accompanied by the implementation of stricter legal penalties. However, there has been little investigation into the motivations behind cannabis use or the reasons for continued use among users in Japan.

In 1996, Purdue Pharmaceutical's (Purdue) launched OxyContin, an opioid painkiller, with the largest marketing strategy in pharmaceutical history. Literature has now established that Purdue's marketing of OxyContin was a root cause of the current opioid crisis, responsible for over 600,000 deaths in and beyond North America.

Opioid-related deaths in Ontario remain persistently high, driven largely by an unstable and unregulated drug supply. In response, harm reduction services, such as supervised consumption sites/consumption and treatment services and safer supply programs, have been implemented to reduce the risks of overdose and connect people who use drugs with essential healthcare and social services.

A 2019 study revealed more than 80 products available online with implied benefits to alcohol hangover. Since then, several developments may have influenced the market.

Last week, the Ministry of Health quietly marked a historic milestone: it granted a license to Christchurch-based psychiatrist Professor Cameron Lacey to prescribe psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression. This is the first time the psychedelic compound will be legally prescribed in New Zealand outside of a clinical trial.

We share our deepest condolences with the friends, family, and community of Peter Krykant, a trailblazing harm reduction advocate who sadly passed away last week.

This article discusses how unintended side effects from the international regime of drug criminalization may serve to increase harmful drug use among some population segments and performs systematic scoping reviews of two putative underlying dynamics relating to violence victimization and the forbidden fruit or psychological reactance effect.

The reemergence of psychedelic therapy presents a rare opportunity to reimagine psychiatry’s epistemic foundations. Rather than simply repackaging these substances within a biomedical framework, this moment should prompt critical interrogation of the assumptions underlying dominant models of mental illness and healing.

Current regulation frameworks for medicines struggle to address the combination of pharmacological and psychotherapeutic elements in psychedelic therapy.

Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) has an estimated lifetime prevalence between 1 and 2.3% and is associated with considerable worldwide disability, while in the UK, the annual economic costs of this disorder have been estimated to be in excess of GBP 5 billion.

Drug legislation has never been a neutral or purely scientific matter of public health or criminal justice. Rather, drug laws have long functioned as mechanisms of social control deeply embedded in racialised and colonial systems of domination.

London Drugs Commission (LDC) has released its report on cannabis policy, offering a pragmatic middle ground between full legalisation and the failed status quo of prohibition. While some advocates may argue the recommendations don’t go far enough, this report represents a critical step in the right direction—one that deserves support

Kava is a culturally significant Pacific drink used traditionally with cultural practice as a relaxant, to promote dialog in group settings, to aid in sleep and to manage anxiety. Its anxiolytic and sedative properties may link to the presence of kavalactones which are putative low potency GABA ligands.

The whole Drug Science Team is shocked and incredibly saddened by the news of Hannah Deacon’s passing on May 6th, 2025, after ‘a short and brutal illness’

Stigmatised attitudes, opinions on opioid use, and prior contact with People Who Use Drugs (PWUD) contribute to what policies are publicly supported and implemented to reduce drug-related deaths. This study examined how these variables relate to policy support for the implementation of supervised injection sites, laws protecting bystanders at the scene of an overdose, and over-the-counter naloxone.

We sought to examine nascent trends surrounding the impacts of police drug seizures in the period after a substantial public policy shift surrounding the personal possession of drugs in British Columbia (BC), Canada. We explored the intersection of drug testing and police opioid seizures in Vancouver, BC.

The CPRG officially marked its launch by hosting the 1st Cambridge Psychedelic Research Day on March 12, 2025 at Clare College, the University of Cambridge’s second-oldest college, founded in 1326.

I recently had the privilege of attending a gathering focused on psychedelics hosted by the University of Auckland. Events like these contribute to sensible and informed debate about important issues - like the development of psychedelic therapy.

As our societies grapple with environmental and mental health challenges, investigating potential avenues for restoring relations with nature is more important than ever.