www.alkoholpolitik.ch

… as BBPA reveal Responsibility Deal unit campaign.
A Lords Select Committee report on behaviour change was released today, stating ’nudge‘ approaches alone are not sufficient for achieving population level public health improvements. Launching the report, Committee Chair Baroness Neuberger said a „package of measures“ was needed ranging from nudges to taxes and regulation.
Writing in a BBC report, Neuberger stated:
„There’s no doubt that, when it comes to our health, our environment really matters. But the government must recognise that „nudging“ isn’t the only way to make a difference. Sometimes changing the environment will require something stronger. The move to introduce higher alcohol pricing is a good example of how legislation can be used to change our behaviour by changing our environment. … (Source: Alcohol Policy UK, 07/19/11)

The British Medical Journal (BMJ) has published a free article assessing the nudge approach now popular with US and UK health policy makers. Judging nudging: can nudging improve population health? explores the concept of ’nudge‘ and whether it can make an impact on areas such as alcohol harm and obesity.
It explains nudging as ‚an approach to behaviour change that focuses on altering environmental cues to prompt healthier behaviour‘, rather than relying on the provision of information such as through health campaigns. Citing the popularisation of the term ’nudge‘ in the book (and now blog) of the same title, the article sets out:
Nudge“…nudging could include a wide variety of approaches to altering social or physical environments to make certain behaviours more likely. These might include providing information about what others are doing (“social norm feedback”) … changing the defaults that surround the serving of food and drinks, or altering the layout of buildings to cue physical activity.“ … (Source: The British Medical Journal (BMJ), 02/22/11) Comment: Nudging can only be a very little aspect in alcohol prevention, but still a useful one. As the British Government is not willing to act effectfully, such small items get attention like a straw.