www.alkoholpolitik.ch

WHO-Publication Report online
The European Region is the WHO region with the highest alcohol intake in the world. Both per capita consumption and the disease burden from alcohol are twice the world average. Alcohol is the third-largest risk factor for death and disability in the Region and the largest risk factor among young people.

The Straight Dope for Parents is being released today. Visit the website. This book is reader friendly, easily accessible and usable. It is based on nearly two decades of research at The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA*) at Columbia University. It is full of advice, information and ideas about how to prepare your child for the crucial decision-making moments they will face about drugs, alcohol and cigarettes. By Joseph A. Califano, Jr., Founder and Chairman The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.

Alcohol Abuse amongst Young People on the Internet. The latest report by the Federal Commissioner on Drugs in Germany raised widespread concern here. More than 23,000 young people had to be treated for alcohol poisoning in German hospitals last year. (Source: Google Alcohol News, 8/8/09) dw-world.de, 8/8/09

Among the most striking of the many statistical tables in the Law Commission report discussing reform of our liquor laws is one that shows we’re not drinking as much as we used to. (30 years ago) (Source: Harvard World Health News, 8/7/09) New Zealand Herald, 8/2/09 Comment: Some interesting arguments which we cannot see in Europe’s media. In most of the European countries the consumption per head has gone down in the last 30 years, but the harm has gone up.

Mainly European News on alcohol politics. (not yet online) Contact Eurocare

The Seventh Report on the application of the „Television without frontiers directive“ has been adopted on 26 June 2009. This report looks at the application of the Television without Frontiers Directive in the Member States in 2007 and 2008. During this two-year period, the Commission was required to initiate legal action against Spain and Italy in accordance with the Directive for not abiding by EU advertising rules that limit advertising and teleshopping spots to 12 minutes per hour. The 7th application report also adds analysis to the ongoing evolution of the television market.
The next report on Europe’s audiovisual market will be at the end of 2011. It will mark the start of the new Audiovisual Media Services Directive, which replaces the Television without Frontiers Directive and is expected to be fully implemented across the EU by December 2009. (Source: Eurocare Newsletter June-July, 7/28/2009) ec.europa.eu Comment: This directive plays an important role in the debate in the Swiss parliament on the Media-Contract between Switzerland and the EU, if Switzerland wants to accept alcohol advertising from EU-countries TV-programmes.

Mentor’s annual report, including a consolidated financial summary for the year ending 31st December 2008 is available to download here. This year’s Annual Report is an 8-page document including updated directory information for the Mentor Family of National and Regional organisations. It is designed, like previous year’s reports to compliment our information cards. Source: Mentor Foundation, 7/31/09

EUCAM has released its newest trend report called: Corporate Social Responsibility: the New Marketing Tool. From its conclusions: „By including the brand name in social responsible campaigns, brand awareness and brand recognition are raised. Therefore, it is safe to label such campaigns as advertisements. In these campaigns the alcohol producers claim to contribute to the solving of alcohol related problems. Thus far, those claims have not been scrutinized well enough to say that they do, or do not, hold water. What we can say is that comparable CSR campaigns of the tobacco industry have been proven to have no effect or even undesirable effects on behavioral changes (14).“ (Source: EUCAM, 7/18/09) (see also the new campaign by the British Government with the alkohol industry)

Three papers by Diyanath Samarasinghe, professor at the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, published as FORUT booklets explore various aspect of alcohol in a development setting. Professor Samarasinghe addresses the role of unrecorded alcohol, some connections between alcohol and poverty and things we can do to reduce alcohol harm.

Downing between eight and 14 units of alcohol a week boosts the total number of days spent in hospital, finds research published ahead of print in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. Twenty one weekly units is the government’s recommended maximum weekly tally of alcohol for men. (Source: Medical News Today, 7/7/09) Comment: The history of non-drinkers is again not cleared.

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