Sourcing unbiased information about the health effects of using cannabis has always been difficult. Government-sponsored propaganda was evident as far back as the 1930s in the film Reefer Madness, which…
Articles on Illicit drugs
Displaying 141 - 160 of 175 articles
The global burden of death and illness attributable to mental disorders and illicit drug abuse has risen steadily in the last 20 years, two new studies have shown, but experts say policy is not keeping…
People who use LSD and other psychedelic drugs show fewer mental health problems, according to a large population-based study. Researchers from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology analysed…
Fears that online drug marketplaces are flooding communities with illicit drugs may be unfounded, according to the first Australian survey of such websites. While the survey found the number of online…
Deaths, arrests, missing passports, hospitalisations, rapes and sexual assaults - it’s holiday season and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has published its annual report on British behaviour…
Australian governments are spending more on law enforcement against illicit drugs than treatment and prevention, according to a report released today by the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre. The…
For decades, cannabis has remained the most popular illicit drug among Australians. The strong demand among cannabis and other drug users for methods to evade detection and legal trouble has made online…
More commonly known by the street names speed, ice or crystal meth, both amphetamine and methamphetamine belong to a group of stimulant drugs called amphetamines. Australia has one of the highest rates…
It was a bonding session that involved prank phone calls, knocking on doors late at night and other acts of “harmless fun”. The men’s 4x100m Olympic freestyle relay team made it sound like they were boys…
According to the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, Australians are now the world’s eighth highest per capita users of cocaine. Cocaine use within the wealthier echelons of society is so unremarkable…
The use of banned performance enhancing substances and illicit drugs is widespread in Australian sport and sometimes supported by coaches and scientists, according to a new report released by the Australian…
The AFL’s approach to illicit drugs was championed as a world leader of drugs-in-sport policy when it was implemented in 2005. It was fair, humane and had been effective in reducing match day and out-of-season…
A study published today in the scholarly journal PNAS questions the conclusion of a paper from last year that was widely seen as greatly strengthening the evidence that regular cannabis use beginning in…
The drug ketamine has been used for medical purposes since it was developed in the 1960s, but it is perhaps more widely known for its illicit use as a hallucinogenic tranquiliser. Now we’re beginning to…
Here we go again. Another high profile sportsperson has been implicated in the latest drugs in sport “scandal”. This time the finger is being pointed at Collingwood Brownlow medallist Dane Swan. The same…
Alcohol continues to account for nearly half of government-funded substance abuse treatment in Australia. A report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) shows 47% of drug treatments…
Synthetic cannabis is a lab-made product that mimics the effects of cannabis to give users a high when smoked. It has been sold in Australia since 2011 under various brand names, with a range of chemical…
Once again, overdose deaths from opioids are increasing in Australia. And once again, we are in danger of ignoring effective, evidence-based interventions. According to the National Drug and Alcohol Research…
Comparing cocaine’s effects on rats who have given birth to rats who haven’t has shown differences in brain chemistry and…
Sixteen years ago the premier of Victoria, Jeff Kennett, asked me to conduct an inquiry into drug policy. At the time, deaths from heroin overdoses were high and the use of cannabis and other drugs continued…
Top contributors
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Adjunct Professor at the National Drug Research Institute (Melbourne based), Curtin University
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Honorary Fellow, Department of Health Sciences, University of York
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Lecturer, RMIT University
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Associate Professor, National Drug Research Institute / enAble Institute, Curtin University
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Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology Sydney
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Senior Lecturer of Addiction, Edith Cowan University
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Professor, Deakin Law School, Deakin University
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Emeritus Professor of Neuropharmacology, University of Lancashire
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Associate Professor in Criminology, Deakin University
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Associate Professor in Criminal Justice and Criminology, Bond University
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Emeritus Consultant, St Vincent's Hospital, Darlinghurst
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Professor in Substance Use, Liverpool John Moores University
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Hon. Professor Drug Policy, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
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Senior lecturer, Australian National University
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Professor, Mental Health and Addiction, Rural Health Research Institute, Charles Sturt University