Research briefs on substance use prevention and mental health promotion

In conjunction with the Prevention Research Sub-Committee and the Washington Healthy Youth (WHY) Coalition Hemp-Derived Cannabinoids workgroup, DBHR’s Prevention Section created the following research briefs on emerging substance use and mental health promotion topics. The briefs highlight the benefits and uses of prevention science and can be shared with statewide partners.

• Access, availability, and density of substance retailers explains why location matters when it comes to substance retailers and identifies community strategies to address issues of access, availability, and density. 
• Balancing commerce and public health in disadvantaged communities discusses substance marketing and retail location disparities and outlines economic opportunity key considerations for policymakers.
• Cannabis market regulation and public health and safety identifies elements and describes regulation practices that support public health and safety.
• Costs and benefits of substance use prevention and behavioral health promotion explains why evidence-based prevention programs are good economic investments.  
• NEW Early prevention works to stop fentanyl and other opioid use describes how prevention efforts and the science of Risk and Protective Factors are an essential piece of reducing opioid overdose and deaths. 
• Hemp-derived synthetic cannabinoids explains what these products are, how they are regulated, and the risk they pose to public health and safety. 
• Investing in behavioral health promotion programs protects youth explains the importance of behavioral health promotion programming for youth and describes and provides examples of evidence-based programs.
• Pricing of legal cannabis and taxation explains how taxes can be used as an effective prevention tool and offers alternative options to the current cannabis tax system.
• Protecting youth from the harmful effects of alcohol, cannabis, and commercial tobacco (nicotine) marketing and promotion provides information about substance marketing and promotion and ways to limit its impact on youth who are frequently exposed to alcohol, cannabis, and tobacco promotion marketing through outdoor advertisements, social media, and television.
• Strategies for addressing disparities in local communities discusses substance marketing disparities, explains how these disparities impact Washington youth, and outlines local strategies to address and reduce these disparities and their negative effects on youth.