If you have an idea that could advance the scientific understanding of addiction – and help translate that knowledge into policy and practice – consider applying for an SSA-funded PhD studentship or fellowship tinyurl.com/ssa-funding

Are you an ECR interested in learning how to speak to diverse audiences? Register for this free webinar focused on Science Communication. We have expert speakers on writing for The Conversation, running a podcast and communicating with those working in practice. Book your place tinyurl.com/y4bah836

Sharing, without comment, British newspapers’ depictions of the only Jewish person currently leading a UK political party . Times. Mail. Telegraph. Sun.

The SSA is recruiting people with lived or living experience of addiction to help shape the future of addiction science. -Online meetings (every four to six weeks) -Payment for involvement Apply now: www.addiction-ssa.org/about/joinin... #LivedExperience #AddictionResearch #PublicInvolvement

The EASL–Lancet Liver Commission has published a major new report, that calls for much more action on tackling rising liver disease in Europe, including: - Restricting digital alcohol marketing - Health warnings on alcohol - Aligning alcohol taxes... www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

Our Small Grants Scheme is open! 💷Between £500 and £15,000 ⏰ Up to 12 months 🔍PhD or equivalent, based at a UK university 🖱️https://www.ias.org.uk/small-grants-scheme/ Priority will be given to proposals that align with our long-term vision to reduce alcohol harm: www.ias.org.uk/wp-content/u...

Fantastic new episode of Public Health Disrupted. Listen now: publichealthdisrupted.transistor.fm

Please share! We're still looking for people who work in alcohol treatment and recovery services in the UK to complete our anonymous survey about alcohol-free drinks 👇👇👇 #AlcoholRecovery #AddictionRecovery #MentalHealth #Recovery

The SSA is offering two types of bursaries, designed to support different roles and career stages. Find out more and apply: tinyurl.com/ywhtw46k

What should the UK do about alcohol harms? On Wednesday, the Society for the Study of Addiction will publish a full roundtable discussion on the topic, with leading alcohol policy and research experts. @addiction-ssa.org Watch the trailer:

Revisiting some of my favourite pricing data that the ONS quietly publish each month - here's how the price of a bottle of wine has changed over the last 16 years after adjusting for inflation 📊 Big falls for sparkling and rose wine in particular.

Was surprised to see reports today of rising binge drinking among young adults. But the comparison is current 23 year-olds with themselves when they were 17, not with any previous generation. So we've no idea if binge drinking *in 23 year-olds* is rising or not. www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

The latest paper to be published from our project 'Reforming alcohol taxes in a cost-of-living crisis' was led by @drsarahejackson.bsky.social with @jamiebrown.bsky.social @jholmessheff.bsky.social & @victimofmaths.bsky.social. Find out more about the project here: bit.ly/3OGifN3 #PublicHealth

👀 🍺 👇🏻 👍🏻 www.ias.org.uk/2026/02/10/i...

📣New research from Sheffield Addictions Research Group (SARG)shows that reducing spending on tobacco, gambling & confectionery would boost the economy by keeping ££ in the UK. #HealthEqualsWealth 👀⬇️ sarg-sheffield.ac.uk/news-media/n...

Should young people be drinking more?

 Scott Galloway thinks so, booze providing a route to the connectivity current generations supposedly lack.
 I dug into it w/experts like @melissaoldham.bsky.social @fmeasham.bsky.social and @michaelkill.bsky.social whatareyouon.substack.com/p/should-you...

Many Black-led initiatives in the UK that support the careers of Black researchers provide mentoring, safe spaces, networks and advocacy. But they're often underfunded. That's why we’re launching a new funding programme in partnership with Do it Now Now to help strengthen these initiatives. [1/3]

“These findings provide clear evidence that data collected on MTurk simply cannot be trusted.”

New paper led by @jamesmorris24.bsky.social focused on othering in relation to alcohol consumption. This meta-synthesis seeks to characterise the ‘problematic other’ people use to justify, normalize or protect their own ‘non-problematic’ drinking identity. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Great stuff here from @soozaphone.bsky.social about the flimsiness of arguments being trotted out today against lowering the drink drive limit in England & Wales open.substack.com/pub/suzigage... I might be one of the cynics complaining about enforcement though...

Check out a new publication that TARG member @clairevgarnett.bsky.social contributed to, led by @sharoncox.bsky.social on exploring differences in gradual versus abrupt smoking cessation quit attempts and success by social grade: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

If you are applying for a PhD studentship or fellowship through the SSA, watch our webinars on 'How to get shortlisted': www.youtube.com/@Societyfort... | Featuring @robcalder.bsky.social @melissaoldham.bsky.social @ptoner.bsky.social

Feelings of Guilt and Remorse After Alcohol Consumption Among People Who Drink at Increasing and Higher-Risk Levels @sharoncox.bsky.social, @melissaoldham.bsky.social, @tattanbirch.bsky.social, ... @clairevgarnett.bsky.social, @drsarahejackson.bsky.social doi.org/10.1111/dar....

Another new @addictionjournal.bsky.social paper out today looking at trends in alcohol consumption in England and trying to answer the important question as to whether this has returned to pre-pandemic levels after rising during the first lockdown. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

The SSA is now accepting applications for full-time PhD studentships. Funding will include a stipend (living allowance), tuition fees, and research and training costs. Find out how to apply: tinyurl.com/y3n5dvk2

Today is our annual PhD Symposium – a welcoming space for early career researchers to share work. Thanks to organisers @melissaoldham.bsky.social, @sophieorton.bsky.social, Tsen Vei Lim, and Elle Wadsworth. Read more about the Early Career Research Network: www.addiction-ssa.org/early-career...

The @addiction-ssa.org will soon begin advertising new PhD and Fellowship opportunities. The SSA’s Early Career Research Network has organised two webinars to support and provide tips for potential applicants... www.addiction-ssa.org/news/webinar...

The UK Government has announced £10 million in funding to support the next generation of leaders in addiction research. Find out more about the Addiction Healthcare Goals Research Leadership Programme: tinyurl.com/2sveeum8

We want the media and politicians to recognise that there is a large number of women who are supportive of the trans+ community 🏳️‍⚧️ We call on them to report truthfully about the sources of violence against women and to address the systems that perpetuate harm. notinourname.org.uk/petition/not...

If you are a current #PhD student or have recently submitted your thesis, apply to attend the SSA's annual PhD Symposium in Newcastle upon Tyne on Wednesday 5 November tinyurl.com/355ersv2

Nice to have this out in popNAD. It summarises key ideas around declines in youth drinking that we explore in our book. Worth a read for overview of this body of work! @amypennay.bsky.social @soc-researcher.bsky.social @jholmessheff.bsky.social @capraustralia.bsky.social tinyurl.com/bdzajx8c

In this article UCL IEHC expert Dr Melissa Oldham, who tracks drinking trends in the UK, talks about why younger generations are avoiding alcohol consumption 🍺 🍷 www.dailymail.co.uk/health/artic...

Nice coverage of @ucl-targ.bsky.social's Alcohol Toolkit Study in this article.. www.alcoholinengland.info/graphs/month... I would (and did!) say though that any population declines we are seeing are being driven by declining consumption among younger people.. www.dailymail.co.uk/health/artic...

Gen Z seem to be drinking less alcohol than older generations. Why is this—and could it be a public health opportunity? @emahase.bsky.social reports www.bmj.com/content/390/...

New paper! We used focus groups and arts-based methods to explore whether people ‘other’ when making judgements about harmful drinking and the drinking contexts and features of drinking contexts perceived as being indicative of harmful drinking. bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Pleased to be featured in this interesting article by @emahase.bsky.social looking at declines in alcohol consumption among young people, discussing some of the work led by @jholmessheff.bsky.social and @sarg-scharr.bsky.social www.bmj.com/content/390/...

Do we know if the decline in youth drinking follows through into people's 20s? Learn all you need to know about the decline in youth drinking in our latest podcast with Prof @jholmessheff.bsky.social and Dr @amypennay.bsky.social Listen here: www.ias.org.uk/podcast/why-...

New inflation figures yesterday and I haven't posted this graph for a while, so here we go - average changes in price of food and drink categories since Jan 2021 relative to overall inflation. Wine, spirits and beer have all risen below inflation and less than most other food and drink.

Book your place at a free science communication webinar, featuring talks on writing press releases, preparing for televised news interviews, and capitalising on the influence of blogs and podcasts tinyurl.com/3bcw8juu | @tattanbirch.bsky.social @melissaoldham.bsky.social

Big news. @leverhulme.ac.uk are investing £100m in blue skies research and doctoral scholarships, as set out here in @timeshighered.bsky.social www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ps100-m...

The UK alcohol industry says it's “part of the solution” - but a new report says otherwise. In our latest blog, Emma Thompson explores findings from 'Spin the Bottle', revealing how industry groups mislead on health, the environment, and the economy. www.ias.org.uk/2025/07/07/b...

Discover how to share your #research across traditional and contemporary media platforms with our free lunchtime webinar tinyurl.com/3bcw8juu | Featuring @melissaoldham.bsky.social, Mark Greaves, @tattanbirch.bsky.social, and Suzi Gage

Join us 15 July, 12–1pm for a free webinar. Whether you're curious about starting a podcast, pitching your work to journalists, or responding when they come to you.. this event will offer practical insight on sharing your research with integrity, impact, and confidence. Sign up: tinyurl.com/3bcw8juu

Ever so pleased and surprised to have been promoted to Principal Research Fellow at UCL. Feeling very grateful for my incredibly supportive mentors and colleagues @ucl-targ.bsky.social and the referees who generously gave up their time to review my application.

Great story here in @nature.com from @helenpearson.bsky.social on the state of health in the US and what happens when RFK's Make America Healthy Again rhetoric meets the evidence on what actually needs to change. Ft. this shocking graph on US health exceptionalism: www.nature.com/articles/d41...

🚨📄 The final synopsis from our evaluation of the effectiveness of the Drink Less app has now been published on the NIHR Journals Library website, available here: www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/phr/LNNB8060 - this draws together all seven of the published scientific papers relating to the award...

DHSC have released the latest health trends in England including life expectancy, smoking rates and alcohol harms. Alarmingly, deaths from alcoholic liver disease for people aged<75 jumped from 7.5 per 100,000 in 2001 to 12.0 per 100,000 in 2023. fingertips.phe.org.uk/static-repor...

Converting a protocol into a manuscript quickly for a conference deadline and thought it would be worth seeing if AI could check for and correct any instances of not updating the tense to past, but apparently forgot to tell it to stop acting as Cletus.

Great piece on the importance of narratives about alcohol not being determined by industry. 🤞 we might see a comprehensive plan for alcohol harm reduction in July, particularly in the context of record numbers of alcohol deaths. www.thelancet.com/journals/lan... www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Abstract submission for the SSA PhD symposium closes on 28th May, so only one week left to get your submissions in. You can do so here... www.addiction-ssa.org/events/phd-s...