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Leave alcohol ‘benefits’ out of health policy – expert
[ UniNews Vol. 15, No. 9 29 May - 12 June 2006 ]
By Matthew Johnston
The supposed health benefits of alcohol are under fire and should not be factored into public health policy, according to the University of Melbourne’s inaugural Professor of Social Alcohol Research.
Professor Robin Room says it is often wrongly assumed that the benefits to the heart of a few glasses of wine balance the harms.
“Recent studies have questioned some of these benefits, and from population studies it is clear that any benefit for some hearts, from a rise in consumption, is matched by adverse effects for other hearts.
“Public policy about alcohol therefore needs to focus on reducing the social and health harms from alcohol.”
Professor Room, of the University’s School of Population Health and Director of the AER Centre for Alcohol Policy Research at Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre, issued the warning at the University recently in a public lecture on measuring the costs of alcohol.
Professor Room was previously Director of the Centre for Social Research on Alcohol and Drugs at Stockholm University. He is a member of the World Health Organisation’s Expert Advisory Panel on drugs and alcohol and is advising the WHO as it prepares a new program to tackle alcohol problems on a global basis.
Professor Room believes that when measuring effects of drinking, any benefits derived from alcohol – which are often difficult to gauge – should be looked at separately from the social, health and financial costs.
He also noted that although many people don’t like to think of alcohol as a drug, it causes more harm than all illicit drugs combined.
Professor Room wants more studies to esti-mate the costs and burden of alcohol and to address the issue of ‘second-hand drinking’ in a similar way to passive smoking.
“The social harm from alcohol is not well measured. For example we don’t have good data on how much alcohol affects productivity, from for instance, hangovers at work.
“Many of the family costs are often hidden. You might be able to estimate the welfare costs but what about the social repercussions from living with an alcohol dependent person, or the problems children may face later in life?”
Source
[ UniNews Vol. 15, No. 9 29 May - 12 June 2006 ]
By Matthew Johnston
The supposed health benefits of alcohol are under fire and should not be factored into public health policy, according to the University of Melbourne’s inaugural Professor of Social Alcohol Research.
Professor Robin Room says it is often wrongly assumed that the benefits to the heart of a few glasses of wine balance the harms.
“Recent studies have questioned some of these benefits, and from population studies it is clear that any benefit for some hearts, from a rise in consumption, is matched by adverse effects for other hearts.
“Public policy about alcohol therefore needs to focus on reducing the social and health harms from alcohol.”
Professor Room, of the University’s School of Population Health and Director of the AER Centre for Alcohol Policy Research at Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre, issued the warning at the University recently in a public lecture on measuring the costs of alcohol.
Professor Room was previously Director of the Centre for Social Research on Alcohol and Drugs at Stockholm University. He is a member of the World Health Organisation’s Expert Advisory Panel on drugs and alcohol and is advising the WHO as it prepares a new program to tackle alcohol problems on a global basis.
Professor Room believes that when measuring effects of drinking, any benefits derived from alcohol – which are often difficult to gauge – should be looked at separately from the social, health and financial costs.
He also noted that although many people don’t like to think of alcohol as a drug, it causes more harm than all illicit drugs combined.
Professor Room wants more studies to esti-mate the costs and burden of alcohol and to address the issue of ‘second-hand drinking’ in a similar way to passive smoking.
“The social harm from alcohol is not well measured. For example we don’t have good data on how much alcohol affects productivity, from for instance, hangovers at work.
“Many of the family costs are often hidden. You might be able to estimate the welfare costs but what about the social repercussions from living with an alcohol dependent person, or the problems children may face later in life?”
Source