Latest news with #SheilaDuffy
Daily Record
03-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
New learning module for drug and alcohol support workers can help people in West Lothian kick tobacco
'When a cigarette burns it releases a dangerous cocktail of more than 5,000 chemicals' A charity's e-learning module can help people in West Lothian who are receiving support for alcohol and drug use to live tobacco-free. ASH Scotland's new e-module provides vital information for alcohol and drug workers, and volunteers, to encourage smokers who are being supported to reduce their use of alcohol and other drugs to seek assistance to give up tobacco products. Statistics show the level of smoking for people entering treatment for problematic substance use is substantially higher than the rate of the general adult population and the new learning aid can inform how to best support service users who want to quit smoking. The health charity's Smoking and Problematic Substance Use module covers a range of topics including details about the linked behaviours between smoking and drinking alcohol or using drugs, the impacts of smoking on psychotropic drugs which may be provided during treatment, raising the issue of smoking and signposting to NHS Scotland's free specialist Quit Your Way service. Sheila Duffy, Chief Executive for ASH Scotland, said: 'Our new e-learning module is designed to increase awareness and provide essential opportunities to learn about the negative impacts that tobacco use can have on the lives of people who are being supported to reduce consumption of alcohol and other drugs. 'For example, nicotine can be as addictive as heroin or cocaine and, when a cigarette burns, it releases a dangerous cocktail of more than 5,000 chemicals – 250 which are toxic and around 70 that are known to cause cancer. 'Smoking also reduces the effectiveness of medicated psychotropic drugs, such as benzodiazepines, clozapine and most antidepressants, by up to 50 per cent which means people receiving treatment may need higher doses that could put them at higher risk of experiencing side effects. 'Our e-learning module is a vital resource for alcohol and drug support workers and volunteers to build their knowledge and confidence in starting conversations to empower clients across West Lothian to make informed choices about giving up smoking to live healthier lives.' ASH Scotland's 'Smoking and problematic substance use' e-learning module is available for free at For quit smoking support, visit or call the Quit Your Way Scotland free helpline on 0800 84 84 84.
Daily Record
30-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Record
Single use vape ban in Scotland to take effect from Sunday amid 'litter emergency'
The Record led the campaign for a crackdown on disposable vapes which littered our streets and got youngsters hooked. Single use vapes will finally be banned in Scotland this weekend in a move that could be transformative for public health and the environment. An estimated 26 million disposable e-cigarettes are thrown away by Scots each year, with more than half not recycled and 10 per cent dumped on the street. The Record joined environmental activists in calling for an end to sale and supply of single use vapes in a bid to clean-up our communities. It's also hoped the ban on throwaway e-cigs - which takes effect from June 1 - will discourage more youngsters getting hooked on the brightly-coloured, sweetly-flavoured vapes and impacting their health. A quarter of 11-15-year-olds have admitted they have tried the devices at least once. The ban on the sale of disposable vapes will apply UK-wide after agreement was reached between Westminster and the devolved governments. SNP ministers announced in February 2024 they would commit to a crackdown in a victory for the Record's campaign. Barry Fisher, chief executive of Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: "We first became aware of the impact single-use vapes were having on our environment back in 2022 when members of the public and our volunteers were noticing them more often and asked what could be done. "I'm proud of the effort we have made, alongside our partners, to see this product banned in Scotland – it shows what true collaboration can achieve. "Our surveys and supporters have made it clear that this product was becoming more and more common, spoiling our environment and causing danger to wildlife. "We are dealing with a litter emergency and the last thing we need is single-use products coming to market that can end up discarded harming our environment. "This ban will help remove the fastest growing litter item from our streets, parks and beaches and is a welcome step in the right direction, but everyone must dispose of their waste in the correct way." ASH Scotland, which campaigns against the harms caused by tobacco products, said there had been an "alarming" upsurge in vaping among children. Sheila Duffy, the charity's chief executive, said: "We celebrate the ban of cheap recreational disposable e-cigarettes, which are the starter vaping product for most youngsters who vape, as a vital first step towards halting the alarming upsurge of children vaping in Scotland during the last few years. "Although we warmly welcome these regulations coming into effect, government must take further, stronger actions to restrict the advertising and promotion of all e-cigarettes as well as banning vape flavours, colours, descriptors and branding on device designs and packaging to reduce the attractiveness of the products to children. "The tobacco and nicotine industries must be halted in their attempts to attract children to use their addictive and health harming products, generating huge profits at a considerable cost to the health of our young people now and future generations."
