Blog

Drug Science has responded to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drug’s (ACMD’s) call for evidence related to cannabis-based products for medicinal use (CBPMs). We hope that our evidence will inform future policy decisions, develop rational debate, and support further research into these compounds.

Emerging research suggests that prescribed cannabinoids may improve sleep quality both among people with formal diagnoses of insomnia and among those experiencing disturbed sleep in the context of other chronic health conditions.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych) have released a position statement on the efficacy and safety of psychedelics and related substances (PARS), in addition to updated clinical guidance surrounding research into these compounds and a framework for delivering assisted psychotherapy.

The current mechanisms in the United States to research and develop novel reversal agents for substances that can lead to overdose are restricted by regulations placed on the pharmaceutical industry.

To date, there has been a lack of consensus in the field of psychedelic research regarding key terms. It is our hope that development of this lexicon can aid in translating findings across various research groups and improve clarity and precision in our communications with each other and the general public.

Facing a terminal diagnosis is one of life’s most difficult challenges. Beyond the physical burden of illness, patients often experience anxiety, depression, insomnia, and existential distress – a sense of suffering that touches mind and body alike.

In 2013 Wendy Teasdill’s daughter, Ellie Rowe, died at Boomtown festival as a result of taking a combination of ketamine and alcohol. Neither were taken in excess but the combination was fatal. She did not know what she was doing.

Psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) is an emerging treatment that combines pharmacotherapeutic dosing sessions with psychotherapy. Despite limited regulatory approval, treatment seekers can access PAT through various avenues, including ketamine treatment centers and “supported adult use” psilocybin centers in the US, drug tourism, “underground” therapy, and participation in clinical trials.

Substance use at UK music festivals presents a significant public health challenge, with evolving patterns of drug use, associated risk behaviours, and harm reduction practices among attendees.

While the challenge of unbalanced stressful environment is more profound in Middle Eastern regions , the application of self-awareness intervention programs in mental health education is a global gap that is essential to be tackled in a demanding, vulnerable and critical environment of healthcare students.

Drug Science is proud to partner with Prohibition Partners to bring back PSYCH Symposium in December 2025, after two sold-out editions in 2022 and 2023.

For the 2nd year in a row, the Drug Science team was invited to host a discussion around psychedelics at We Out Here Festival, which is held in Wimborne St Giles, Dorset.

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.