Alcohol prevention reduces risky drinking and related harms in adulthood

The Matilda Centre

26 November 2021

Adolescents who received 'Climate Schools' or 'PreVenture' school-based preventative interventions report up to 96% reduced-odds of hazardous alcohol use, and up to 87% reduced the odds of experiencing alcohol-related harms, when compared to young people who received 'health education as usual', researchers from the Matilda Centre have found.

Inside ice addiction by Sydney woman, 31, who was ‘loved back to life’ after five years of drug dependence

7Life

20 November 2021

Ten years ago you couldn’t walk around the streets of Penrith without seeing smiling images of successful real estate agent Jessica Gaddes, 31, plastered on open-home signs. Until one day she tried the drug ice. “It took my soul,” Jessica told 7Life.

Let’s break the link between alcohol and mental health conversations

The Age

8 November 2021

As a society, we need to rid the myth of making it comfortable for people to talk about mental health by using alcohol. Alcohol acts as a catalyst for magnifying further challenges with mental health. Is alcohol consumption so normalised in this country that people cannot see that part of the conversation?

Read AFL superstar's extraordinary handwritten note opening up on drug and gambling addictions

Daily Mail

25 October 2021

Former AFL superstar Dayne Beams has shared his confronting drug and gambling addictions that prematurely ended his career. The Collingwood midfielder shocked the AFL in the middle of the 2019 season when he announced he was taking indefinite leave to battle depression.

$5 million in funding awarded to expert multidisciplinary team to develop new treatments for alcohol use disorder

Monash University

22 October 2021

An interdisciplinary team of researchers from Monash University, Turning Point, the University of Sydney, the University of New South Wales and the Florey Institute have been awarded a $5 million NHMRC Synergy Grant over five years to investigate new treatments for alcohol use disorder. The project will bridge clinical and basic science discovery to identify new treatment options for people with alcohol problems and to develop approaches for personalised treatment.

Fewer suicides, but alcohol-related deaths rose in first pandemic year

Sydney Morning Herald

29 September 2021

Spending on alcohol home delivery boomed across the country, alcohol-related deaths also rose, increasing by 8.3 per cent compared to 2019, according to the ABS, or an increase of about 103 deaths.

Injecting hope: A game-changing treatment in the opioid-dependence fight

Monash University

22 September 2021

Launched in Melbourne in 2001, International Overdose Awareness Day – which was marked on 31 August – is the world’s largest annual campaign to end overdose. It’s a day to remember those who have lost their lives, and acknowledge the grief of family, friends and loved ones left behind.

Keith Urban opens up about 15 years of sobriety and effects of dad's alcohol struggles

Today

9 September 2021

The country music star spoke to the Australian edition of Rolling Stone about getting sober 15 years ago after having grown up with a father who had his own issues with alcoholism. Kidman, 54, staged an intervention just four months after they tied the knot.

Overdose deaths remain stubbornly high: we need to do more to save lives

Croakey

31 August 2021

International Overdose Awareness Day, being marked today (31 August), is proclaimed as the world’s largest annual campaign to end overdose, remember without stigma those who have died and acknowledge the grief of the family and friends left behind.

Lazy drug journalism 101: The petty crime montage

AOD Media Watch

30 August 2021

Last year, AOD Media Watch published a piece about the Cranbourne Leader naming and shaming people who had committed petty drug-related crimes on their Facebook page.

Parents warned against allowing teens to drink as study reveals underage alcohol use in Australia

The Guardian

12 August 2021

More than a quarter of Australians aged 16 and 17 are allowed to drink at home, a study shows, with researchers warning parents against supervised consumption.

Problem gambling spirals across Queensland

ABC

28 July 2021

Twenty-one years ago when David McAnalen entered a licensed venue with a gaming room, it wasn't unusual for him to lose thousands of dollars.

Advocates say most gamblers are losing more than ever

ABC

16 May 2021

The week before Australia's first COVID-19 lockdown, Barry* lost $3,000 on the pokies. He is among many telling their story under a pseudonym due to the stigma around gambling.

Victorian coroner recommends drug purity testing after investigating deaths of five men

ABC

7 April 2021

The Victorian coroner has recommended the Victorian State Government urgently introduce drug testing for the first time, after the deaths of five young men who thought they were taking MDMA.

Am I an alcoholic?’: the blurred line between a daily drink and a drinking problem

The Guardian

22 November 2021

The lines become blurred when it comes to deciding if a person has a problem with alcohol and whether they have developed an alcohol use disorder (formerly known as alcohol dependence). This is colloquially known as being an alcoholic – a term we avoid in addiction psychiatry. It’s not surprising to hear that people with AUD are told their drinking is a problem by family, partners or work colleagues.

More people drank excessively during the pandemic. The world must tackle its alcohol problem

World Economic Forum

11 November 2021

Every year, excessive drinking takes a huge toll on people’s lives and health across the world. “Alcohol consumption contributes to 3 million deaths each year globally, as well as to the disabilities and poor health of millions of people,” the World Health Organization (WHO) reports.

Multiple barriers to ‘brief interventions’ for alcohol in primary care

RACGP

26 October 2021

A lack of time, resources and low community awareness of alcohol harms influence uptake of brief interventions, according to new research.

Marisa made it through lockdowns without turning back to addiction, but it wasn't easy

Turning Point

21 October 2021

"I'm almost 11 years clean and sober, I haven't had a single drop of alcohol or a single drug. It's never been harder than during lockdowns to keep it this way."

Duchess of Cambridge warns addiction can happen to anyone

BBC

20 October 2021

"None of us are immune" to addiction, the Duchess of Cambridge warned as she highlighted the "devastating impact" of the pandemic on addiction rates. She said that by understanding what lies beneath addiction "we can help remove the taboo and shame that sadly surrounds it".

It is time to treat drug addiction as a mental health issue

Canberra Times

27 September 2021

In the US, "drug addiction is starting to be treated as a health problem". I look forward to that change in Australia so that young people afflicted in this way will no longer need to crawl to shelter through our dog doors.

September 11 terrorist attacks sparked 20-year battle for victim's twin brother

ABC

10 September 2021

"Alcohol was something that I used to numb the pain and, many years down the track, it was anything to get me out of myself," he said. "There was shopping, gambling and alcohol — and then drugs.

WA leads the nation with the highest number of drug overdose deaths

ABC

1 September 2021

Do you know someone who has accidentally overdosed? New research has today revealed that since the turn of this century there have been more than 34,000 overdose deaths in Australia and most of them are unintentional.

International Overdose Awareness Day

Penington Institute

31 August 2021

International Overdose Awareness Day is the world’s largest annual campaign to end overdose, remember without stigma those who have died and acknowledge the grief of the family and friends left behind. Time to Remember. Time to Act. The event has been run by the Penington Institute since 2012.

The uncomfortable truth about drug overdose and suicide

Monash University

29 August 2021

For the fifth consecutive year, more than 2000 Australians have died as a result of a drug overdose, highlighting the urgent need to prioritise public health interventions and policies that work.

If you’re drinking or betting more in lockdown, you’re not alone. But watch for these signs of addiction

The Conversation

11 August 2021

For the millions of Australians currently living under lockdowns — many without clarity on when things might return to “normal” — there’s no doubt the restrictions on our day-to-day lives present a variety of challenges and hardships. But for people who have addictions, or who are at risk of developing an addiction, lockdowns can pose a unique set of difficulties.

'Huge stigma' attached to ice addiction prevents people from seeking help, treatment

ABC

25 July 2021

Jack Nagle was 19 when he was introduced to crystal methamphetamine, or ice, for the first time. As his use increased, Jack experienced periods of psychosis, often remembering little, if anything, of those episodes. The toll it took on his health and on his relationships was devastating.

Pressure to limit opening hours to prevent problem gambling

ABC

3 May 2021

"You don't want people to know that you are gambling money away because people don't understand it, that it is an illness."

Lockdowns affected our relationship with alcohol. Here’s what comes next

The New Daily

21 November 2021

New guidelines developed by the National Health and Medical Research Council recommend no more than 10 standard drinks per week and no more than four standard drinks on any given day.

Rethink Addiction November Campaign Update

Rethink Addiction

11 November 2021

Get the latest information on the campaign to #RethinkAddiction. Check out our new partners and recent events.

Time to prevent and minimise gambling harms

Turning Point

26 October 2021

The Royal Commission found that 7.5% of people struggling with gambling reported that their gambling had contributed to or caused a suicide attempt or ideation. That’s 2,112 suicide attempts or ideation among high-risk gamblers, and a further 8,802 suicide attempts or ideation among low to medium risk gamblers, within the previous 12 months.

Three finalist films are shortlisted for the 2021 Walkley Documentary Award

The Walkleys

21 October 2021

The Walkley Foundation announced finalists for the 2021 Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism, with Addicted Australia shortlisted for the Documentary Award.

Kevin Rudd's ex-bodyguard Gary Fahey reveals how he squandered $1.7million on a gambling addictio

Daily Mail Australia

19 October 2021

Fahey is now rebuilding his life and works as a gym owner focusing on men's health and addiction. 'I've been to the depths of hell in my own life,' he said to the camera. 'I let down everybody. I want my family to know that their faith in me wasn't misled.

Alcohol use in children, and how parents can make a difference

Matilda Centre

26 September 2021

Australian research and also research in the US and Europe is starting to show, that giving a child any alcohol at all is increasing their chance of binge drinking, and it's actually then increasing their chance of seeking alcohol elsewhere.

Push to ban credit cards in online gambling

News.com.au

10 September 2021

There are calls to ban the use of credit cards in online betting platforms over fears they are causing irreparable financial harm.

Urgent call to combat crisis killing more Aussies than Covid-19

News.com.au

31 August 2021

While deaths from drug overdoses are largely hidden from the public eye, chilling data has revealed just how urgently the issue needs addressing as a national health crisis.

Urgent call to combat crisis killing more Aussies than Covid-19

Penington Institute

31 August 2021

For six consecutive years, drug-related fatalities have surpassed 2000 — more than the road toll and deaths related to Covid-19, according to findings released by the Penington Institute.

The uncomfortable truth about drug overdose and suicide

Monash University

29 August 2021

For the fifth consecutive year, more than 2000 Australians have died as a result of a drug overdose, highlighting the urgent need to prioritise public health interventions and policies that work.

Study shows COVID-19 restrictions leads to increased alcohol-related harms

Monash University

5 August 2021

New research examining ambulance attendances for alcohol-related harms during COVID-19 restrictions in Victoria has found that attendances to homes increased by 9 percent in 2020, with those from more socioeconomic advantaged areas showing the largest percentage change.

How can opioid deaths be reduced?

RACGP

3 June 2021

It is no revelation that death rates among people with opioid dependence is higher than that of the general population.

How to know if you can quit alcohol alone or need professional help

ABC

7 April 2021

Whether you're planning to go completely sober or just cut down on the amount you drink, in some cases you can succeed using tried-and-true strategies such as avoiding social triggers and building support networks. But in other cases, seeing your doctor — or another professional — is essential. Here, two experts show how to know the difference.