Can we learn about alcohol pricing from other countries?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21244194

As the debate about minimum pricing of alcohol rages on can we look abroad for an indication of its potential impact?  The experience of Saskatchewan, a Canadian prairie province, suggests that minimum pricing can lower alcohol consumption and in turn reduce the number of alcohol related deaths.  However there still remains an opinion that minimum alcohol pricing will not effectively tackle problem drinking.

What do you think?

Quarter of a million alcohol related deaths in the next 20 years?

Writing in The Lancet leading liver experts say poor alcohol regulation in the UK could lead to quarter of a million deaths in the next two decades. The doctors have suggested that if certain measures are put in place, including imposing a minimum price of 50p per unit of alcohol, the death rate could be reduced by a third.

The debate continues to rage about how much the coalition government is doing to address the huge issue of alcohol related deaths. Sir Richard Thompson, President of the Royal College of Physicians asked “how many more people have to due from alcohol-related conditions....before the government takes the situation as seriously as it took tobacco?”.

The doctors, lead by Professor Sir Ian Gilmore said “Alcohol is not an ordinary commodity like soap powder...It is a drug, it happens to be legal, but it is a drug and there are more the 1.5 million people addicted to alcohol. We think, like other areas of public health, like smoking, like seatbelts, there is a strong case for tougher regulation and the most effective regulation would be around price”.

The current situation in the UK has been compared to 1960s France when liver disease deaths were related to the consumption of cheap alcohol – changes in marketing and price regulation altered this situation. Can the same change happen here? Surely as well as a change in price there has to be a significant shift in the way that addiction is recognised and treated? What are your thoughts?

 

'Newsbeat's Booze Calculator'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/12254668

Click on the link above to find out how your drinking could affect you in terms of health and finances.  The 'Newsbeat's Booze Calculator' converts the alcohol you consumed into calories, money and units and compares it to how many units are recommended per week.

Are you surprised by your results?�

Designated Drinking Areas

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12204010

The above link refers to a news story called 'Should alcoholics be given drinking zones?'. The link describes a trial that may be conducted in Essex that will see the creation of designated drinking areas in which heavy drinkers are allowed to drink without being moved on the police. Public opinion seems to be mixed about the benefits of this trial; with many reporting that this will create a safe environment for street drinkers and many feeling that designating areas will not help the individuals or the over all problem of alcoholism. This drinking zones trial follows the controversy regarding the decision to create wet day centres around the country. The aim of these wet centres is to 'provide support, help and treatment for severely disadvantage and chaotic people, including street drinkers.....and to tackle the anti-social behaviour problem for city centres in a constructive, non-criminalising way”. What do you think, are wet day centres and designated drinking areas helping the individuals or just moving the problem?

 

 

Self-Service tills and opportunity for under age purchasing of alcohol...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-12107971

The above link relates to an article expressing a call to ban self-service tills for buying alcohol. The Scottish National Party's Stewart Maxwell is suggesting to retailers that they act responsibly and voluntarily end the use of self-service tills for the sale of alcohol. It is suggested that having one supervisor overseeing a number of self-service tills makes it difficult to accurately monitor customer's ages, hence allowing under age customers to buy alcohol undetected. Many self service tills require manual authorisation by an assistant when age restricted items are being purchased, do you think this is enough to prevent under age drinkers from purchasing alcohol or should the use of self-service tills be banned for all age restricted items?

 

 

 

MSPs pass Alcohol Bill without minimum drink pricing

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-11719594

The above link refers to the MSPs Alcohol Bill aiming to tackle Scotland's historical alcohol problems.  Key measures including a minimum drink price and raising the purchase age for off licence sales have not been included in the bill.   It aims to end the sale of alcohol at heavily discounted prices, as well as offers such as buy on get one free.   It is hoped that the bill with 'pave the way for the introduction, in future, of a "social responsibility fee" on retailers who sell alcohol.

Do you think that these measures will significantly impact the social and health damage caused by alcohol consumption in Scotland or will they just stratch the surface?

We need to understand the psychology of drinking

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-11138535

Research is demonstrating that problem drinking is more prevelent in some parts of the country compared with others (see above link to BBC news article).   Recent research published by the North West Public Health Observatory has found some stark regional divisions, with two thirds of alcohol related harm occuring in the north. 

Health minister Lord Howe said the government was already taking action to stop the sale of alcohol below cost and to review alcohol taxation and price.  However he acknowledged that increasing the cost of alcohol alone will not tackle the huge amount of alcohol related health problems and crime our nation is experiencing:

"Supply and price are not the only factors fuelling misuse though, attitudes are crucial. We need to understand better the psychology behind why different groups of people drink too much. Legislation or initiatives will not work unless we have a better understanding of what drives people's decisions."

What are your thoughts?

'24-hour drinking culture failed'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-10784060

'24-hour drinking culture failed'.

Home Secretary Theresa May said: “The benefits promised by the 24-hour drinking 'cafe culture' have failed to materialise and in its place we have seen an increase in the number of alcohol related incidents and drink fuelled crime and disorder.”

This comes before an expected plan to overhaul licensing laws to tackle alcohol related violent crime, which has increased since the implementation of 24-hour drinking.

The new laws are intending to support local communities and to punish those venues that are deemed to facilitate violent crimes.

Does it come as a surprise to you that the 24-hour drinking laws in the UK have not produced any benefits, but rather caused more problems? Do you think the concerns about trying to encourage a cafe culture should have been considered more carefully before the laws were passed or is it only with hindsight we can see what a failure this concept has been?

 

Know your units...

Do you know how many units your usual pint contains or how many are in a high ABV% glass of wine?  How often do you drink more the recommended daily units?  Do you think you could accurately estimate how many units you drink in a week or would you be surprised by the real figure?...

Whilst different drinks vary in size and strength, below is a rough guide to how may units of alcohol are in what you are drinking:

Beer, Lager and Cider:

4% - 330ml Bottle = 1.3 units,  440ml Can = 1.8 units, 568ml Pint = 2.3 units

5% - 330ml Bottle = 1.7 units,  440ml Can = 2.2 units, 568ml Pint = 2.8 units

6% - 330ml Bottle - 2.0 uniits, 440ml Can = 2.6 units, 568ml Pint = 3.4 units

9% - 330ml Bottle - 3.0 units,  440ml Can = 4.0 units, 568ml Pint = 5.1 units

Spirits (40%):

25ml Small Measure - 1.0 units, 35ml Large Measure - 1.4 units (multiply by two for double measures)

Wine (red, wine, rose or sparkling):

10% - 125ml Small Glass = 1.25 units, 175ml Standard Glass = 1.75 units, 250ml Large Glass = 2.5 units

           Bottle = 7.5 units

11% - 125ml Small Glass = 1.4 units,   175ml Standard Glass = 1.9 units,   250ml Large Glass = 2.8 units

           Bottle = 8.3 units

12% - 125ml Small Glass = 1.5 units,   175ml Standard Glass = 2.1 units,   250ml Large Glass = 3.0 units

           Bottle = 9 units

13% - 125ml Small Glass = 1.6 units,   175ml Standard Glass = 2.3 units,   250ml Large Glass = 3.3 units

           Bottle = 9.8 units

14% - 125ml Small Glass = 1.75 units, 175ml Standard Glass = 2.5 units,   250ml Large Glass = 3.5 units

           Bottle = 10.5 units

(http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/documents/digitalasset/dh_084637.pdf)

"Watchdog backs a minimum price for alcohol"...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/10207827.stm

The link above refers to a story published this morning on the BBC website. The story advises that a health watchdog has now backed the call for a minimum price per unit of alcohol in the UK.

Do you agree with opinion such as that of Dr Robin Purshouse of Sheffield University that raising the  cvminimum price per unit of alcohol will result in fewer alcohol related deaths and hospital admissions and alcohol related crime OR do you agree with opinions such as that of Simon Litherland of Diageo GB: "Minimum pricing, self evidently, is not going to address alcohol misuse by heavy drinkers because people logic alone tells you that people who have a problem are going to go to any end to actually obtain alcohol."

 

'Sensible drinking' advice for the injured...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8599878.stm

The above link is to a BBC news story written in regard to hospital staff providing sensible drinking advice to patients coming back for follow up appointments after treatment for an alcohol related injury.  The Royal College of Surgeons of England suggest that outpatient clinic visits offer an opportunity for nurses to motivate people to drink sensibly and to offer advice about alcohol services should their patients require additional support.

"Janet Davies, from the Royal College of Nursing, said that it had recently accredited a training course to help nurses intervene at the right moment.   She said: "The time nurses spend with patients during follow-up appointments provides a valuable window of opportunity to encourage people to think about whether they might be drinking too much and to signpost them to further information and advice."

Do you think that this step will help reduce the number of alcohol related A&E hospital admissions?

1 in 2 weekend ambulance calls out related to alcohol...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/scotland/6262963/Two-thirds-of-Scottish-ambulance-weekend-call-outs-linked-to-alcohol.html

The above link refers to an article published in the Telegraph regarding the number of Scottish ambulance weekend calls out that are related to alcohol. The article discusses the statistics that suggest that two thirds of weekend ambulance call outs are directly related to alcohol.

The Scottish Ambulance Service complained that these cases were delaying medics' response times to real emergencies and gave it's backing to 'any initiative' that would see the numbers drop.

“SNP ministers hailed the figures as support for their controversial plan to introduce a minimum price for alcohol, mooted at 40p per unit”.

“This would increase the price of cheap lager and cider brought in shops and supermarkets, but most beverages purchased in pubs and clubs already cost more than this threshold”.

“Cathy Jamieson, the Scottish party’s health spokesman, said: “This situation cannot be allowed to continue because if ambulance crews are attending to drunks they may not be available for a genuine emergency.”

Robert Brown, Scottish Liberal Democrat justice spokesman, said: “Alcohol-related call outs are largely preventable if, as a nation, we can adopt a more responsible approach to alcohol consumption.”

 

 

Freshers week drinking - problem or right of passage?

Over the last few weeks numerous reports regarding 'freshers week' drinking have been aired on the television, heard on the radio and read about on the internet. Some stories have focused on the fact that first year university students can go out on a pub crawl expecting to buy a pint for a £1 and a shot for as little as 20p. Other broadcasts have looked at the 'chaperone' service that pub crawl leaders (older students) are offering, I.e. having fun and drinking responsibility, and whether it is actually possible with low drink prices and inexperienced teenagers. Whilst others argue that going to 10 pubs at a pound a pint is not drinking responsibly. Some news reports have touched on the facts that some of the older student population drink as irresponsibly as those in their first few weeks despite having more experience of drinking and university life.

The problem with generalising about freshers week is that whilst there appears to be a general trend in 18 year old students getting heavily intoxicated, this is not limited to freshers week and nor does it extend to all new students. The mentally of 18 years old moving into halls having never been away from home before and never experienced drinking alcohol before can perhaps mean that they are not equipped to cope with the inevitable (?) binge drinking that is likely to ensue, but surely that applies to everyone, regardless of whether they go to uni or not? Do you think that first week university binge drinking is a major problem, or like some of the students (new and old) that have been answering blogs all over the UK – is it just a right of passage? And if so, are you agreeing that the beneficial consequences (sociality, experience....) outweigh the negative consequences (alcohol poisoning, hospital admissions, accidents...)

 

Know your limits?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8225029.stm

“English holidaymakers are turning to drink on their breaks with the average adult consuming eight alcoholic drinks a day, a survey suggests. That equates to 80 drinks over the course of an average holiday, to well over 200 units of alcohol. More than a quarter said they ended up drinking three times more than normal. But 70% of the 3,500 adults questioned by the Department of Health said they plan to make September the 'new January' by cutting back.”

Above is a section of an article published on the BBC website. The article mainly discusses how the English population over indulge when they go on their summer holidays and plan to cut back in September (the 'new January').

The advice is:

“Cutting back on alcohol for September is a great place to start; if you find yourself drinking all or most days of the week, start by taking at least two days off each week.”

The basic notion of the article is to find a healthy balance – which in my mind, with all the recent reports about the dangers of binge drinking, does not equate to binging for the whole of your summer holiday and then take a few days off in September. This is a cynical and one dimensional interpretation of a generally good piece of advice, however I am wondering how this sort of information is interpreted by those who do drink 200 units (or more) during their summer break? The article advises that a quarter of the 3,500 involved in the survey stated that they consume three times as much alcohol when on holiday compared to when at home. Although statistics can be misleading, taking the figures from this article, that is suggesting that even when at home some people are drinking 67 (200/3) units per week, which is still way over what the NHS advise is good for us:

 

Men should not regularly drink more than three to four units of alcohol per day.


Women should not regularly drink more than two to three units of alcohol per day.

So, should we be more concerned about people who overindulged on holiday where booze is likely to be cheap and free flowing or the 10 million people who regularly exceed (and often quadruple) the recommended daily amount of alcohol from the comfort of their own homes?

 

18.2% abv beer - helping or hindering the war on binge drinking?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/north_east/8170813.stm

The above links refers to 'Tokyo': a 18.2% abv, £9.99 bottle of beer recently launched by the Scottish brewery, BrewDog. BrewDog says launching such drinks will help to reduce binge drinking:

 

BrewDog founder James Watt said: "Mass-market, industrially-brewed lagers are so bland and tasteless that you are seduced into drinking a lot of them. "We've been challenging people to drink less alcohol, and educating the palates of drinkers with progressive craft-brewed beers which have an amazing depth of flavour, body and character. "The beers we make at BrewDog, including Tokyo*, are providing a cure to binge beer-drinking."

Whilst Alcohol Focus Scotland chief Executive Jack Law has warned that high alcohol percentage beer could cause as much damage as drinking more lower percentage beers:

 

"This company is completely deluded if they think that an 18.2% abv, (alcohol by volume), beer will help solve Scotland's alcohol problems," he said. "It is utterly irresponsible to bring out a beer which is so strong at a time when Scotland is facing unprecedented levels of alcohol-related health and social harm. "Just one bottle of this beer contains six units of alcohol - twice the recommended daily limit."

What do you think? Are drinks like 'Tokyo' adding to or solving a massive problem?

It is vitally important to take into consideration that whilst there are a number of people who can drink sensibly, there are also a large number of people in the UK who have alcohol addictions – an alcohol addiction is not defined by how much you drink or what you drink, but rather how your drinking impacts you life. Thus, one person could drink 3 cans of low percentage lager per night and experience problems attending work, maintaining relationships and develop health problems. Someone who drinks 3 large glasses of whiskey a night is no more of an alcoholic than the person who drinks lager because the abv % is higher in whisky – it all depends on how the alcohol affects your life. Which is why some people drink regularly and can stop and why others can't stop, but drink in physically and psychologically damaging binge cycles.

Liver failure at 22 years old - the tragic story and the wider implications

http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2009/jul/25/gary-reinbach-alcoholic-madeline-hanshaw

Above is a link to an article published in The Guardian over the weekend that writes about Gary Reinbach, a 22 year old who died from liver failure last week. The article discusses his mothers experience of her son's drinking and ultimately his death as well as more general issues, such as should an alcoholic be given a liver transplant if there is a chance they may start to drink again? Surely there is always a chance that an addict will return to drinking or using, but they deserve the opportunity to get into recovery and that requires specialist help.

“Gary Reinbach was denied a transplant because, under guidelines drawn up by the Liver Advisory Group, patients who are likely to return to a damaging pattern of alcohol consumption aren't deemed suitable candidates.”

As Gary's mother discusses and reject, the population have attributed a far proportion of blame to her for Gary's death, but it is also clear that if Gary was eligible for a transplant he may well still be alive, so who should decide if someone should or should not be given a second chance? A key point is that if more alcoholics were treated in suitable rehab clinics then there would not be so much demand for livers or indeed so many alcohol related deaths.

What is most shocking about this tragic story is that a man aged 22 years old could die from a condition that is widely associated with older people who have 40 years old alcohol abuse under their belts. Indeed, even Dr Nick Sheron, a liver specialist has been shocked by the number of liver failure cases he has seen in young people.

“What Luke and his mates have discovered the hard way is what liver specialists like Dr Nick Sheron, of Southampton General hospital, have been saying for some time: that young people who abuse alcohol heavily will suffer the same consequences that older people who've been abusing it for many years do; in other words, their livers will fail.

"I became a liver specialist 15 years ago, and I remember how shocked I was when I first saw a man of 23 with liver failure. But this year already I've seen five people with it in their early 20s. Gary isn't going to be the last death. We're going to see a lot more young people in this state over the next few years.

The lost of this young man's life not only highlights the severity of alcohol abuse, but also emphasises the need for people who are experiencing problems with alcohol to seek help no matter how old they are.

Binge drinking UK Versus Wine cultured continent?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8157725.stm

The article above refers to the recent changes in alcohol consumption laws in Milan. Milan has always embraced wine as part of the local culture – children and young adults included. The easy going attitude of Italians to their younger population drinking is about to change, but these new laws have not been welcomed by all – especially not the bar tenders who feel they have effectively been asked to police Milan's young people.

“In a country where for centuries wine has been part of local culture – and prohibition would be unthinkable – the ban has come as a shock.”

But how will this change in policy impact on the children who it is designed to help? Children as young as 11 years old are experiencing alcohol related problems in Milan. The idea is that if alcohol is not so freely available that younger people will not develop so many problems, but what about the children who are already experiencing problems?

In a country like the UK, where alcohol has never been part of the growing up experience, at least not in local cultures across the board, we often discuss if relaxing the drinking laws so alcohol is not such a mystery until late teenage years would halt the binge drinking we see devastating teenage lives – do you think this would be the case or has culture just changed too much in recent years for relaxed drinking laws to work in any European country?

 

 

Plight of the Pensioners...

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/features/Plight-of-the-pensioners-who.5458745.jp

The above link refers to an article published in the Yorkshire Post: 'Plight of the Pensioners who are Driven to Drink in Retirement.' This article highlights two things: firstly, that our misconception that only young people abuse alcohol could not be further from the truth and secondly that there is no more readily available NHS help for older alcohol abusers than there is for young alcohol abusers.

When did we first decide to ignore the older generation of substance abusers and just concentrate on streets full of binge drinking teenagers? I'm not saying that young people dying before they are 25 due to drink related illnesses is not a huge problem, but what about those who are shut indoors, ordering alcohol with their weekly shopping, who are not exposed by the media, but need help nonetheless?

The implication is that it is not only drunk 20 year olds who are getting behind the wheel causing accidents or teenagers jamming up A&E departments, the figures in this article suggest that the older generations are contributing to these problems just as much as the younger generation. If you know someone who needs help don't hesitate to get in touch and find out what help is available – whilst government funded services may be scarce there is immediate help available, treatment might not be inexpensive, but it is life saving, no matter how old you are.

Addiction knows no boundaries, it does not discriminate, it is not dictated by age or race or class or sex – it ruins hundreds of thousands of lives – people from all different walks of life.

 

Peer Pressure - teenage to professional...

'Peer pressure' is a term we are all familiar with – especially when it comes to teenage drinking, but does this pressure subside as we grow older? Or do your fellow teenagers urging you to 'down it!' just grow older with you and change their phrasing to 'just one more round eh?'. Social and professional situations can place an enormous amount of pressure on people to consume alcohol. Work functions, staff parties, weddings, birthdays and any social occasion usually involves alcohol, and whether you want to just have a soft drink or miss out on a round, it is not always easy to deal with the pressure to drink.

So, what is the answer? Some people say 'just say no, you're an adult, be responsible'. Others say their jobs would be in jeopardy if they didn't have a drink with the boss. What's your opinion?

Booze and bicycles - better than drink driving?

What do you think about drinking and getting on your bicycle? Is it any safer than drinking and getting in your car or do you consider the risks so different that there is no comparison? Get in the car after 4 pints and the best case scenario is that you lose your licence, worse case you take a life and potentially lose yours. But is riding a bicycle when you have been drinking really that different from drink driving? Ok, so the fact is that a bicycle is unlikely to run a car off the road (unless it swerves to miss a wobbling bicycle?), but that doesn't mean that people won't get hurt. In the US it is illegal to ride a bicycle under the influence in practically every state, in the UK it is an offence to ride a bike on a road or a public place whilst unfit through using drink and drugs, but the police have no powers to breathalyse you or take a sample for testing, thus proving that someone is unfit to ride a bicycle is not easy. If you are deemed to be unfit to ride you face a £1000 fine, whilst this is a deterrent it would appear that most people feel that riding a bicycle home from the pub is responsible in comparison to getting behind the wheel of a car...what do you think?