alcohol misuse

Paper discussing issues perceived as social problems in contemporary society and arguing that these should be put more in perspective when compared with the social ills of past eras such as the Victorian.

There a clear need to change attitudes, knowledge and behaviour relating to alcohol in the UK. This report presents seven case studies, each telling the story of an initiative designed to bring about attitudinal, behavioural or policy change, for example sustainable transport use or youth smoking prevention. This novel approach provides a unique insight into how the application of new thinking may help to reduce harmful drinking patterns. This report examines how initiatives successfully used in other fields can help inform new strategies for tackling alcohol related harm.

The government’s updated alcohol strategy, Safe, Sensible, Social aims to reduce the number of under-18s who drink and the amount they drink. But Alcohol Concern found that many children are being openly influenced by alcohol advertising during their favourite programmes, as explained by Don Shenker in this article.

There is increasing evidence that substance misuse among British adolescents is escalating (Miller & Plant, 1996; Sutherland & Willner, 1998). Swadi (1992) found that, among adolescents aged 12–17 years referred to mental health services, the prevalence of drug use was 13.1% (16.3% among boys and 9.3% among girls).

This is a web portal for substance misuse specialists and those in the wider health, social care and criminal justice fields who deal with drug and alcohol issues in the course of their work. It is also the website for the fortnightly magazine Drink and Drugs News.

This episode of Radio 4's Woman's Hour series looks at female binge-drinking. Hospital consultants in the North of England have noticed increasing numbers of young women are seeking treatment after being injured in drunken brawls. They claim fighting between women is resulting in horrific injuries such as broken cheek bones, fractured hands, or facial wounds inflicted by being hit with glasses or bottles. Is this another consequence of binge-drinking or are women becoming more violent?

Alcoholism is one of the most common psychiatric disorders with a prevalence of 8 to 14 percent. This heritable disease is frequently accompanied by other substance abuse disorders (particularly nicotine), anxiety and mood disorders, and antisocial personality disorder.

Although associated with considerable morbidity and mortality, alcoholism often goes unrecognized in a clinical or primary health care setting. Several brief screening instruments are available to quickly identify problem drinking, often a pre-alcoholism condition.

This resource describes some of the effects of drinking alcohol. It looks at alcohol's journey through the body and its effect on the liver. It also discusses some possible beneficial effects. This is an important health issue and should be of wide interest.

A presentation on how to build an international network for education and training in harm reduction strategies and approaches; plans for preparing an evidence-based curriculum.

A key part of the Government’s alcohol harm reduction strategy is to monitor changes in drinking habits over time and to identify what factors are potentially contributing to the rising levels of consumption. Reviews research and highlights trends in alcohol consumption over the last 20 to 30 years. A key part of the Government’s alcohol harm reduction strategy is to monitor changes in drinking habits over time and to identify what factors are potentially contributing to the rising levels of consumption.