Writing in his Daily Telegraph blog about the death of Whitney Houston, Damian Thompson notes that crack cocaine addiction destroyed her career and it was unlikely that she would have been able to recover from this serious addiction.

Employers are not aware of the dangers of excessive cocaine use by their workers. By denying the growing problem of cocaine abuse at work, the business world will face considerable damage through risky decision-making, gambling and poor performance.  Article translated from Dutch in NRC Het Brein, 12 January 2012

The Office of National Statistics today released their annual report on the state alcohol-related deaths in the UK. They found that figures had increased from the previous year and that these death rates are now highest for people of an older age (55-74) than any other age group. They also found that while the number of alcohol-related deaths among men has risen, the number among women has fallen.

On the 18th December the Sunday Post published an article about how the NHS in Scotland is failing drug addicts by choosing to prescribe Methadone instead of sending them to rehab. Many are on Methadone for years on end. Peter McCann, Castle Craig Chairman, points out the risks of treating patients with Methadone in the long term.