NZ Drug Foundation Staff
About a drug: Methamphetamine
Amphetamine, meth’s parent drug, was first synthesised in Berlin in 1887 by Romanian chemist Lazâr Edeleanu, but its potency as a central nervous system stimulant wasn’t really discovered until 1927.
Q&A: I’m Lotta. I’m an alcoholic.
Lotta Dann, the journalist wife of TVNZ political editor Corin Dann and a mother of three, has outed herself as a recovering alcoholic and released a book, Mrs D is Going Without, which has quickly become a bestseller.
Mythbusters: Substance and substantiation
Tobacco plain packaging laws are an experiment that hasn’t worked. Tobacco companies claim the new law has led to a booming black market for cheap cigarettes instead of stamping out smoking.
Viewpoints: So should naloxone become more accessible in New Zealand?
In the US, opiates cause thousands of overdose deaths each year. Making naloxone more readily available here would widen the safety net for overdose victims.
About a drug: NBOMe
While LSD is often painted as the psychedelic equivalent of a tie-die t-shirt, the new, nefarious n-bomb is portrayed as a potent potion of peril.
Q&A: Darien Fenton
Outgoing Labour MP Darien Fenton recently opened up publicly about her addiction to heroin in the 70s and subsequent recovery thanks to the methadone programme.
Mythbusters: The current drug control system works to reduce availability, increase prices and mitigate risks from drugs.
A paper by United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime makes a bold claim about the current drug control system.
Viewpoints: Should New Zealand allow medicinal cannabis?
Medical cannabis is a sticky issue. There is evidence that cannabis and products derived from cannabis can treat some illnesses and alleviate symptoms of others. On the other side, there are concerns about the efficacy of using a raw produc
About a drug: Khat
Khat is a scraggly plant that grows in the dry hillsides and sandy rocky soils of Africa. Its small green leaves and average height don’t leave a lasting impression on one’s mind, but chewing said leaves might.
Q&A: Kofi Annan
United Nations Secretary-General and a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, Kofi Annan took time to answer questions from Matters of Substance about his role on the board of the Global Commission on Drug Policy.
Viewpoints: Should New Zealand have supervised injection sites?
Supervised injection sites are legally sanctioned, medically supervised facilities designed to reduce harm from injecting drug use. Overwhelmingly, the evidence shows they have reduced harm from intravenous drug use in these places, so is i
About a drug: Heroin
The most infamous member of the opiod family.