FOR YOUR INFORMATION
As the World Health Organisation (WHO) Executive Board considers the Global Action Plan to effectively implement the Global strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol during its 150th session from 24 – 29 January 2022, we want to highlight a number of recently published articles in the social sustainability arena.
Global: World Heart Federation says no level of alcohol consumption is safe – On 20 January 2022, The World Health Federation, a Geneva-based global health advocacy organisation that represents hundreds of heart associations, released a new policy brief, The Impact of Alcohol Consumption on Cardiovascular Health: Myths and Measures, asserting that alcohol consumption increases the risk of coronary disease, heart failure, high blood pressure, stroke, and aortic aneurysm. The chair of the committee responsible for producing the brief also reportedly said that evidence increasingly shows that no level of alcohol consumption is safe for health. Another committee member reportedly claimed that assertions that red wine can offer protection against heart disease “are at best misinformed and at worst an attempt by the alcohol industry to mislead the public about the danger of their product.” There have been articles highlighting the inaccuracies of this brief.
Australia: Report charges alcohol sector trying to water down WHO Global Alcohol Action Plan – A report from the Centre for Alcohol Policy Research at La Trobe University reportedly charges the alcohol sector with “deliberately work[ing] to water down” the WHO’s draft Global alcohol action plan. According to the report, alcohol industry submissions to WHO consultations “made misleading claims and misrepresented evidence” to cast doubt on WHO SAFER initiatives, “public health measures that are proven to prevent and reduce the harms from alcohol.” The article made note of advocates who urged the WHO “to protect its processes from alcohol industry interference” and not allow the sector to “disguise the fact that their products cause cancer, are toxic, addictive, and teratogenic.”
China: Study indicates degree of risk of oesophageal cancer from alcohol consumption may depend on genetics – A study entitled Alcohol metabolism genes and risks of site-specific cancers in Chinese adults in the International Journal of Cancer found that two gene variants (alleles) common in East Asia interfere with the production of enzymes that detoxify alcohol, causing acetaldehyde to build up in the blood after drinking. The study found that for those lacking the alcohol-destroying enzymes, acetaldehyde increases their risk of cancer relative to other drinkers. The study concluded that alcohol directly causes several types of cancer and that these risks may be increased further in people with inherited low alcohol tolerability who cannot properly metabolise alcohol.
China: COVID-19 risk varies across different alcohol beverages – A study of 473,957 individuals (of whom 16,559 tested positive for COVID-19) published in Frontiers in Nutrition indicated an increased risk of COVID-19 for those with higher levels of alcohol consumption. Consumption of red wine, white wine, and champagne may play protective effects against COVID-19. However, consumption of beer and cider increased the risk regardless of the frequency and amount of alcohol intake, and high frequency of consumption of spirits (≥5 glasses/week) reportedly increased the risk.
United Kingdom: Researchers say teaching materials funded by alcohol sector down play harms and shift responsibility to young people – The authors of Distilling the curriculum: An analysis of alcohol industry-funded school-based youth education programmes analysed teaching materials on alcohol consumption and health harms used in thousands of schools throughout the United Kingdom that were assembled by Drinkaware for Education, The Smashed Project, and Talk About Alcohol. The study concludes that the materials focus on peer pressure and poor choices as the causes of underage drinking, “with little or no mention of alcohol industry marketing and other practices.” The authors also charge that the materials include misinformation about cancer and ambiguous terms such as “responsible drinking.” They conclude that alcohol education materials should be developed independent from industry, including funding.
United States: Survey reportedly shows support for warning labels on increased cancer risk from alcohol consumption – A study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine concluded that increasing public awareness of a link between alcohol consumption and the risk of cancer could increase support for alcohol control policies. Analysing data from the 2020 Health Information National Trends Survey 5 Cycle 4, 65.1% of the American surveyed supported adding warning labels and 63.90% supported drinking guidelines, while only 34.4% supported banning outdoor alcohol advertising. Those Americans who believed that alcohol has little or no effect on the risk of cancer were less supportive of advertising bans, warning labels, or guidelines than were nondrinkers. The study, which indicates that alcohol has been found to increase the risk of seven different cancers, including breast, colon, and mouth cancer, suggests that the next step will involve determining “which types of messages are best able to convey information about alcohol’s harms as they relate to cancer.”
United States: Linking congestive heart failure with alcohol – Congestive heart failure, a condition in which the heart does not pump blood around the body as efficiently as it should, causing blood to become backed up or congested within the heart – known as heart failure – is reportedly the most common cause of hospitalisation in Americans over the age of 65. This article suggests that heavy consumption of alcohol can damage the structure and function of the heart before symptoms of heart failure occur. Although the article indicates that antioxidant polyphenols in red wine may benefit heart function and reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, it notes that the American Heart Association has concluded that individuals should drink alcohol in moderation, if at all, and they should not start drinking for unproven health benefits. The article also advises people with heart failure not to drink at all.
NOTE: We make no warranty of any kind regarding the accuracy or completeness of the information in these FIVS Alerts; nor do we necessarily support or agree with views expressed or contained therein.