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EdA Health Committee report has given a mixed, if not critical, verdict on the Government’s Alcohol Strategy published earlier this year.

Download the 3rd report into the Government’s alcohol strategy (pdf), chapter index here and the Commons press release.

Although supportive of some aspects of the strategy, including the headline announcement of minimum pricing, the report is critical of an excessive focus on binge drinking over health issues and the lack of a delivery framework in the strategy. It also speaks out on alcohol industry denial over alcohol advertising effects on consumption. Although not against the principle of the controversial responsibility deal, it warns it should not be a substitute for government policy and should be regarded as standard corporate responsibility, rather than something to be praised for.

Launching the Committee’s report, the Chair, Rt Hon Stephen Dorrell MP, said:

„The main focus of the strategy is binge drinking and its consequences for anti-social behaviour and public disorder. Those are important issues, but the health impact of chronic alcohol misuse is in our view also significant and greater emphasis needs to be placed on addressing that impact.“ ….
(Source: Alcohol Policy UK, 07/19/12)

The findings, presented at an international conference, challenge the notion that some alcohol could be good for ageing brains.

People who stick to recommended alcohol limits are still at risk, as well as bingers and heavy drinkers, according to the work.

The study tracked the health over 20 years of 1,300 women in their mid-60s.

The risk, ranging from mild cognitive impairment to full blown dementia, was higher among those who reported drinking more alcohol.

Women who switched from abstinence to drinking over the course of the study also increased their risk.

Those who drank alcohol „in moderation“, meaning seven to 14 alcoholic drinks a week, were also more likely to develop problems with memory and brain functioning that can be a warning sign of future dementia. …
(Source: Google alcohol news, 07/18/12) (news-ad-hoc.de, 18.7.12) bbc.co.uk, 07/18/12

InBev – the world’s largest beer producer – recently finalized a deal to take over Mexico’s Grupo Modelo corporation for a staggering $20.1 billion. The move gives A-B InBev dominance in Mexico’s economy and adds Corona (America’s best-selling imported beer label) to the A-B InBev major brand portfolio of Budweiser, Beck’s, and Stella Artois. The deal marks just one more step by the Belgian brewer to increase its massive market share and solidify its mega-conglomerate status. Throughout the last decade, the beer industry has been engulfed in a consolidation craze, resulting in the A-B InBev/SABMiller duopoly controlling more than 80% of the U.S. beer market.

See the Alcohol Justice report, Big Beer Duopoly, for more about the merger that created A-B InBev.
(Source: Alcohol Justice, 07/18/12)

The study found increased cigarette prices due to taxes did not decrease smoking rates in people under 30, The Atlantic reports.

The researchers based their findings on data from the 2001-2006 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System surveys, which included 1.3 million people. They found increases in state cigarette prices were associated with increases in current drinking among people ages 65 and older, and binge and heavy drinking among those ages 21 to 29. They found reductions in smoking among adults ages 30 to 64, drinking among those ages 18 to 20, and binge drinking among those 65 and older.

“Researchers, practitioners, advocates, and policymakers should work together to understand and prepare for these unintended consequences of tobacco taxation policy,” the researchers wrote in the journal Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy.
(Source: Join Together, 07/17/12)

For generations we have been told that marijuana is the gateway drug to harder drugs, but a new study from the University of Florida contradicts that claim. Researchers believe that the true “gateway drug” is alcohol.

Marijuana has shouldered the blame for leading adolescents down the path to bigger and more addictive drugs, when in fact most teenagers begin drinking alcohol before they ever experiment with marijuana. …
View slideshow: Study: Alcohol is more of a „gateway“ drug than marijuana
(Source: Alcohol Reports, 07/17/12) examiner.com, 07/12/12

Eurocare welcomes the requirement for allergen labelling in wine for milk, egg and sulphites

Regulation 579/2012[i] has finally put an end to derogations that the wine sector has been successfully obtaining over the last years. The producers are required to state the presence in the final product of: (i) eggs and egg based products, (ii) sulphites/ sulphites, (iii) milk and milk based products. This listing might be accompanied by pictograms which could improve the readability of the information provided to consumers.

However, there is no specification on the size of the pictograms. ’We expect the wine industry to step up and show their commitment to inform and protect consumers, by making the information clearly visible and readable on the label’ said Mariann Skar, Eurocare Secretary General.
(Source: Eurocare, PRESS RELEASE, Brussels, Belgium July 11, 2012)

Around seven percent of adults suffer from an intolerance to wine. This is the result of a survey presented by Peter Wigand and co-authors in the current edition of Deutsches Arzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2012; 109 (25): 437-44).

The authors evaluated 948 questionnaires that were returned from the 4000 sent out to randomly selected people between the ages of 20 and 69 years. They found that women (8.9%) were more often affected by an intolerance to wine than men (5.2%). The most commonly reported reactions included flushed and itchy skin and a runny nose. The symptoms were particularly common after drinking red wine. Additionally, people with a wine intolerance were more likely to report other food intolerances. …
(Source: Medical News Today, 7/7/12)

The Portman Group, the alcohol industry’s social responsibility body, has said alcohol producers are on track to deliver their pledge to provide health information on 80% of alcohol labels by the end of December 2013.

As part of the Government’s responsibility deal, alcohol producers have committed that three core labelling elements – clear unit content, NHS guidelines and a warning about drinking when pregnant – will appear on 80% of drinks. A Drinkaware link and responsibility statement are optional.

The Portman Group, who were given responsibility for monitoring the pledge, say current compliance is over 60%, with 18 months still remaining. More companies are expected to confirm their pledges in the coming months. …
(Source: Alcohol Policy UK, 07/05/12)

The new EUCAM Newsletter with Fact Sheets on sport sponsoring by alcohol producers in Europe, kids being overexposed to irresponsible alcohol marketing and more…
Newsletter

A report exploring the potential role of promoting lower strength drinks to address alcohol harms has been produced by the Liverpool John Moores University (JMU) Centre for Public Health.

The rapid literature review identified both opportunities and threats to improved health through the increased availability of lower strength alcohol. The report suggests that if lower strength drinks result in ’substitution‘ for higher strength drinks there can be potential public health benefits. However it also identifies ‚addition‘ as a likely affect, whereby lower strength drinks result in an increased number of situations where alcohol is consumed. The report concludes that encouraging production and consumption of lower alcohol products in a single product category is unlikely to maximise effects on population level harms. …
(Source: Alcohol Policy UK, 07/3/12)