www.alkoholpolitik.ch

Ministers from all three governing parties said there are many issues needing more urgent attention than regulating alcohol without clear research showing its consumption is a serious national problem.
Some members of Zimbabwe’s Cabinet are distancing themselves from reports that the government is drafting a tough national alcohol policy that will regulate the sale of beer and other intoxicating beverages with sales forbidden after noon on Sundays. (Source: Alcohol Reports, 08/15/11) voanews, 08/8/11 Comment: Now we can see that many politicians in Western World are on the same level as in Zimbabwe.

Commentary on Laslett et al. (2011).
In their paper, Laslett et al. [1] have done a service not just to the research community, but to the millions of people who are affected by alcohol production, distribution and consumption every day in every corner of the world. In brief, the authors have provided a national-level assessment of how the drinking of individuals can affect the social fabric of a society. The impact is widespread and significant in terms of psychological, physical, social and economic costs. Negative effects from others’ drinking were reported by over 70% of Australians in the past year, with 51% experiencing serious adverse effects. Although Australia may not be representative of countries with lower levels of per capita income and alcohol consumption, the article raises some fascinating questions about the ways in which alcohol-related problems are defined, conceptualized, measured, and controlled. For example, what other legally available consumer product (tobacco, automobiles, gambling, etc.) has a comparable negative impact on the majority of the population of an advanced industrialized country? … (Source: Alcohol Reports, 08/8/11)Addiction, 106, 1612–1613 onlinelibrary.wiley.com, 2011

MORE than 4,000 Irish people could be suffering from an „invisible“ serious brain injury caused by alcohol abuse, according to research.
It suggests one quarter will die from the little-known condition and another 1,000 will need long-term nursing care, at a cost of tens of millions of euro a year.
The research said there were no national policies in relation to alcohol-related brain injury and no public awareness of it. … (Source: Alcohol Reports, 08/1/11)

Setting minimum prices for alcohol could help cut the near 700 million pounds wasted each year tackling its misuse, the health minister has said.
Edwin Poots said the Stormont Executive is still considering its options on the abuse of alcohol.
But his latest comments came after visiting his counterpart in Scotland where minimum pricing is also under debate. … (Source: Alcohol Reports, 08/1/11) belfasttelegraph.co.uk, 07/25/11

This paper describes, for the first time, trends in alcohol-related deaths and deaths among people who were alcohol dependent in Ireland, as recorded by the National Drug-Related Deaths Index (NDRDI) for the years 2004−2008. The main findings of the analysis are:
The NDRDI recorded 672 poisoning deaths in which alcohol was implicated in the five-year period. This total comprised almost equal numbers of alcohol-only poisonings and alcohol polysubstance (alcohol plus other substance/s) poisonings. The annual number fluctuated over the period, being highest in 2007 (170 deaths) and lowest in 2006 (111 deaths). Alcohol was the substance most frequently
implicated in all fatal poisonings in Ireland in the five-year period. … (Source: Alcohol Reports, 07/15/11) HRB Trends Series 10

„Once viewed as afflictions limited to the developed world, non-communicable diseases are rising quickly in low- and middle-income countries.
„If we are effectively to reverse the increased global rates of NCDs, we will need to use all the tools at our disposal, including multi-lateral diplomacy.“ — Deputy Assistant Secretary Nerissa Cook
„Once viewed as afflictions limited to the developed world, non-communicable diseases, or NCDs, – including cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, diabetes, and cancers – are rising quickly in low- and middle-income countries. This growing prevalence of NCDs has significant health, economic and social implications on the individual, national, and global levels,“ said Deputy Assistant Secretary Nerissa Cook at a recent Global Health Council meeting at the United Nations.
Nearly two-thirds of deaths in the world are now caused by non-communicable diseases. In the United States, NCDs account for 70 percent of deaths, limit the activities of tens of millions more Americans, and cost the economy billions each year. … (Source: (Harvard World Health News, 07/14/11) voanews.com, 07/11/11

Over the years, use of alcohol, excessive and prolonged, has been associated with various health hazards.
With increasing clinical experience and research in the area, the association has become stronger and progressively more alarming. The evidence from different treatment settings viz. the outpatient department, inpatient setup, emergency department, and the consultation liaison services has linked the use of alcohol with a wide array of hazards to the physical and the psychological health of the users. The impact on psychological health extends beyond the users of alcohol to involve caregivers and other family members of users.
Alcohol consumption is the leading risk factor for disease burden in low-mortality developing countries and the third largest risk factor in developed countries. … (Source: Alcohol Reports, 06/30/11)

More international informations. (Source: Alcohol Reports, 06/13/11)

Our “Alcohol’s harm to others” conference took place on 3 June in Edinburgh. Around 100 delegates attended to hear from expert speakers and workshop leaders on the impact of excessive drinking on people other than the drinker, with a particular focus on children and young people.
Presentations can be downloaded below and the conference report will be available soon. (Source: Alcohol Reports, 06/10/11)

Since the term was coined about 40 years ago, fetal alcohol syndrome has slowly become recognized as a public health issue. Alicestine October reports from South Africa’s Western Cape province, which has the highest reported rate in the world.
“When I was pregnant with my son I drank a lot – mostly on weekends,” says Marion Williams, a 45-year-old mother who lost two of her five children in childbirth.
Williams lives in one of South Africa’s famous wine-growing areas in the Western Cape. She started drinking as a teenager and was taken out of school, she suspects, to work to buy wine for her parents. … (Source: Bulletin of the World Health Organization 2011;89:398–399. doi:10.2471/BLT.11.020611)