📣 DULF found guilty for life-saving compassion club 📣 But WAIT! Not so fast… drugdatadecoded.ca/court-finds-...

Alcohol still leading cause of substance-related hospitalizations in Canada, with cannabis now a ‘concerning’ second Hospital data for substance use visits now counts CHS, a growing weed-related illness pressprogress.ca/alcohol-stil...

martlet.ca/potent-synth... "Government intervention in medical decision-making has limited access to pharmaceutical-grade opioid tablets, [so] 'It’s not surprising that people are going to seek those tablets elsewhere.'"

📢 Free Talk On Campus Today 📢 Dr. Hadland will review the landscape of substance use and overdose among adolescents and young adults, highlighting key epidemiologic trends and the unique risks youth face. Presented by @uviccisur.bsky.social

“Also, many young people don’t perceive themselves as ‘people who use opioids,’ so the usual risk messages don’t land." @drscotthadland.bsky.social talks youth overdose prevention in today's @timescolonist.bsky.social www.timescolonist.com/local-news/y... Catch his talk today (Nov 4), 1:30 at #UVic.

Today, the Supreme Court of Canada delivered a landmark ruling affirming that the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act must be interpreted to fulfill its life-saving purpose. Read the press release: drugpolicy.ca/supreme-cour... @aidq.bsky.social @hrna.bsky.social

Researchers at CISUR joined witnesses from @ccsacanada.bsky.social, WHO Europe, @alcoholireland.ie, @cancersociety.bsky.social and CAUDS to testify at the SOCI Senate Committee in support of Bill S-202, which calls for warning labels on alcoholic beverages. senparlvu.parl.gc.ca/harmony/en/p...

🎤Free talk🎤 Scott Hadland: Addressing North America’s Adolescent Overdose Crisis. 1:30PM PT Tues, Nov 4, Snequ House Conference Centre, #uvic Info and registration: events.uvic.ca/cisur/event/...

"Inside the alcohol industry’s global campaign to delay Ireland’s world-first health labels - New documents reveal an organised effort by alcohol giants to pressure the Irish government into delaying landmark cancer warnings." www.thejournal.ie/alcohol-lobb...

"The proposed bill also would require clear labels stating what constitutes a standard drink, the number of drinks per container, and the number of drinks that Health Canada considers a health risk." www.timescolonist.com/national-new...

Development of a high-resolution paper-spray mass spectrometry method using street drugs for the early detection of emerging drugs in the unregulated supply pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a... Open access from Dennis K. Hore, Chris Gill et al @uvic.ca @uviccisur.bsky.social @viuniversity.bsky.social

“The biggest worry is that they are quite potent molecules in comparison to fentanyl, which is a strong opioid as well...And detecting them can be challenging.” Substance's Derek Robinson talking about nitazenes in the @timescolonist.bsky.social this week. www.timescolonist.com/local-news/p...

📣 Reminder about this unique opportunity for @uvic.ca grad. students! Apply for STRIDE — our 10-month mentorship program to develop your research skills & become a leader in your field. 📅 Deadline: Wed. Oct 15, 4PM PT 👉 Apply here: tinyurl.com/bdhpakwe

"Liver harm caused by alcohol is a public health problem. Collectively, we need to take better care of our livers by taking steps to reduce alcohol consumption in the population." CISUR's Tim Naimi in @ca.theconversation.com #alcoholpolicy #alcoholresearch

Huge thanks to Emma Thompson for leading us on this paper with Jeff Collin in @jsadjournal.bsky.social on how the alcohol industry frames conflicts of interest and partnership in WHO consultations. Timely considering the #UNHLM #UNGA @uoe-sps.bsky.social @lhgp.bsky.social @acords.bsky.social

"When you have an illicit market that is highly criminalized, one sample might be totally fine, but then the next sample can be three times stronger.” -Substance Drug Checking's Katy Booth in @victorianews.bsky.social www.vicnews.com/news/the-his...

Doctors for Safer Drug Policy installed two overdose prevention sites near Royal Jubilee Hospital and Nanaimo Regional General Hospital over the weekend.

“We’ve seen this playbook before with the tobacco industry trying to discredit science around smoking’s harms." -CISUR's Tim Stockwell

"After the initial test is conducted, data is sent to Substance Drug Checking in Victoria, which will provide a detail breakdown of the sample’s contents, with percentages. This information is expected to be available within a week, and will be provided to clients, explained Rai."

New paper alert: Alcohol lobbying in Canada: a quantitative analysis of the federal registry of lobbyists academic.oup.com/heapro/artic... The paper, published in Health Promotion International, examined lobbyist registrations in the Canadian Federal Registry of Lobbyists from May 2022-May 2023.

"These findings highlight the need for strategies to mitigate potential harm in low SES groups and the widening of existing inequities."

Only one more week to apply for the new Samit & Resha Sharma Scholarship! If you're a #UVic Graduate Student doing research in substance use and/or mental health, apply here by September 15: www.uvic.ca/graduatestud...

“The key message is that drinking two drinks a day may be moderate from a social perspective, but when it comes to health, it’s a pretty risky amount." CISUR's Tim Naimi in @nytimes.com. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/05/h...

Alcohol's Collateral Damage: Harms From Others' Drinking Are Linked to Academic and Mental Health Challenges Among U.S. College Students (new #openaccess in @jsadjournal.bsky.social 86/5) @argdotorg.bsky.social @publichealthinst.bsky.social @publichealthumd.bsky.social www.jsad.com/doi/full/10....

"For this story, I spoke with three of the six authors of the study: Martinez, Keyes, and co-author Tim Naimi, an alcohol researcher affiliated with @uvic.ca and Boston University. They all emphasized that they had sought to conduct a study that would fairly represent America’s alcohol consumption."

NEW ISSUE @cjphrcsp.bsky.social Volume 116, Issue 3 Special Section on the Public Health Response to the Overdose Crisis in Canada link.springer.com/journal/4199...

“The Tyee is just learning about this now because it took 16 months for the Vancouver Police Department to release requested data about how many of its officers were trained on decriminalization.” thetyee.ca/News/2025/08...

“I do believe the change in public sentiment is a good reflection of the change in science — and that the risks of alcohol, in what some people might have previously considered low levels, are higher than previously appreciated." -CISUR Director Tim Naimi www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...

ICYMI: Study from @uviccisur.bsky.social using data from over 147K Canadians from 2000-2017 shows alcohol has: ❌ No health benefits ⬆️ Dose-response relationship with all-cause & alcohol-related mortality Supports Canada's reduction in Low-Risk Alcohol Advice. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

This short video is a couple years old & worth a re-share, IMHO. A lot of misinformation is circulated about prescribed alternatives & this lays out some of the facts plainly. As we approach #IOAD25, it's worth taking the time to understand the many ways #HarmReductionWorks youtu.be/iRuXM8aS-4U

"Two public gatherings in Victoria this month will honour lives lost to toxic drug poisonings and call for stronger action to address the ongoing crisis." Aug 17: BC Legislature Aug 31: Broad View United Church (3703 St Aidans St.). More info: www.vicnews.com/local-news/g...

A record-low 54% of Americans say they consume alcohol.

Webinar series: Alcohol policy in Canadian municipalities...launching early September 2025! More info and registration: onlineacademiccommunity.uvic.ca/municipalalc...

"We need to shift the focus from individual behavioural factors to see how broader social and structural conditions affect people’s health, and design policies to address these."

Latest BC Coroners Service data: at least 145 and 147 illicit drug deaths in May and June, respectively (about 5 deaths/day). New data on occupation industry:

"There's been a shift in the awareness out there in the public … about the health impacts," -CISUR's Tim Stockwell. www.cbc.ca/news/health/...

New @ijdrugpolicy.bsky.social paper featuring CISUR researchers: "Exploring models of #safersupply provision: A qualitative study on the preferences of people who access the unregulated drug market" www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Are you an academically outstanding #uvic grad student whose focus of research builds and supports community-wide knowledge that promotes wellbeing with reference to substance use and mental health? Apply for the new Samit & Resha Sharma Scholarship! Open until Sept 15. www.uvic.ca/graduatestud...

“It’s a particularly precarious time for violent incidents to occur, and if people are inebriated, they don’t deal with conflicts as well,” said Stockwell. www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/va...

The International Scientific Forum on Alcohol Research (ISFAR) critiques of alcohol research: Promoting health benefits and downplaying harms

"Every year in Ireland, about 1,000 people will get a diagnosis of cancer which arises from alcohol. So, we're talking now about a four-year delay. That's 4,000 more people who will be getting that diagnosis." [email protected] www.rte.ie/news/2025/07...

"Lifelong patterns of alcohol use can begin in college, and findings indicate that state alcohol policies are a foundation on which community- and campus-level preventive efforts can build."

"Studies supporting an industry-friendly narrative were ten times more likely to receive a positive review from International Scientific Forum on [industry-linked] Alcohol Research than those suggesting otherwise," found a new study. @uviccisur.bsky.social onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

If you’re heading to a festival this summer, take time to plan ahead. WILD Collaborative Harm Reduction Services makes it easier to stay safe. Find them at: - Pachena Bay Music Festival - Sunfest Country - Laketown Amphitheatre - Phillips Backyard - Rifflandia Learn more: ow.ly/4VZr50WnYzA

“Evidence for harms from alcohol has been with us for decades and has only strengthened,” said Stockwell. “Commercial vested interests have always dominated the policy sphere.” www.canadianaffairs.news/2025/07/08/g...

Three expert reports. Three very different conclusions about alcohol and health. Why the confusion? In our latest blog, Stockwell, Priore & @beckyim.bsky.social unpack the methods behind the headlines - and show how alcohol’s risks keep being downplayed. www.ias.org.uk/2025/07/09/a...

“We’ve seen this playbook before with the tobacco industry trying to discredit science around smoking’s harms.” -CISUR scientist Tim Stockwell.

"The letter — signed by eight people from organizations such as the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research and Canadian Alcohol Policy Evaluation Project — has been sent to Premier Tim Houston and members of the legislature." www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Getting whiplash? A short guide to recent contradictory reports on moderate alcohol use & health (new @jsadjournal.bsky.social FastTakes) "strong grounds for skepticism about health benefits from low-volume alcohol use" @uvic.ca @uviccisur.bsky.social @oxpop.bsky.social www.jsad.com/do/10.15288/...

More alcohol, more harm. CPHA urges Nova Scotia to stop plans to expand alcohol sales to convenience stores. Increased access means more illness, more hospital visits, and more deaths. We need smarter alcohol policy—not more outlets. www.cpha.ca/ns-alcohol-e... #PublicHealth #HarmReduction