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Introduction: There is an ongoing policy debate in the European Union regarding the best method of providing information to consumers on the health risks of alcohol use. One of the proposed channels is via the provision of QR codes. This study tested the usage rate of QR codes placed on point-of-sale signs in a supermarket in Barcelona, Catalonia over a 1-week period., Methods: Nine banners with beverage-specific health warnings in large text were prominently displayed in the alcohol section of a supermarket. Each banner provided a QR code of relatively large image size that linked to a government website providing further information on alcohol-related harms. A comparison was made between the number of visits to the website and the number of customers in the supermarket (number of unique sales receipts) in a single week., Results: Only 6 out of 7079 customers scanned the QR code during the week, corresponding to a usage rate of 0.085%, less than 1 per 1000. The usage rate was 2.6 per 1000 among those who purchased alcohol., Discussion and Conclusions: Despite the availability of prominently displayed QR codes, the overwhelming majority of customers did not make use of the QR codes to obtain further information on alcohol-related harms. This corroborates the results from other studies investigating customers' use of QR codes to obtain additional product information. Based on the current evidence, providing online access to information through QR codes will likely not reach a significant portion of consumers., (© 2023 The Authors. Drug and Alcohol Review published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.)

Aims: The study's aim is to identify and classify the most important alcohol control policies in the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) and Poland between 2000 and 2020., Methods: Policy analysis of Baltic countries and Poland, predicting potential policy impact on alcohol consumption, all-cause mortality and alcohol-attributable hospitalizations was discussed., Results: All Baltic countries implemented stringent availability restrictions on off-premises trading hours and different degrees of taxation increases to reduce the affordability of alcoholic beverages, as well as various degrees of bans on alcohol marketing. In contrast, Poland implemented few excise taxation increases or availability restrictions and, in fact, reduced stipulations on prior marketing bans., Conclusions: This classification of alcohol control policies in the Baltic countries and Poland provides a basis for future modeling of the impact of implementing effective alcohol control policies (Baltic countries), as well as the effects of loosening such policies (Poland)., (© 2022 Society for the Study of Addiction.)

Objectives: As unrecorded alcohol use contributes to a substantial burden of disease, this study characterises this phenomenon in newly independent states (NIS) of the former Soviet Union with regard to the sources of unrecorded alcohol, and the proportion of unrecorded of total alcohol consumption. We also investigate associated sociodemographic characteristics and drinking patterns., Design: Cross-sectional data on overall and unrecorded alcohol use in the past 7 days from WHO STEPwise Approach to NCD Risk Factor Surveillance (STEPS) surveys. Descriptive statistics were calculated at the country level, hierarchical logistic and linear regression models were used to investigate sociodemographic characteristics and drinking patterns associated with using unrecorded alcohol., Setting: Nine NIS (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Republic of Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) in the years 2013-2017., Participants: Nationally representative samples including a total of 36 259 participants., Results: A total of 6251 participants (19.7%; 95% CI 7.9% to 31.5%) reported alcohol consumption in the past 7 days, 2185 of which (35.1%; 95% CI 8.2% to 62.0%) reported unrecorded alcohol consumption with pronounced differences between countries. The population-weighted average proportion of unrecorded consumption in nine NIS was 8.7% (95% CI 5.9% to 12.4%). The most common type of unrecorded alcohol was home-made spirits, followed by home-made beer and wine. Older (45-69 vs 25-44 years) and unemployed (vs employed) participants had higher odds of using unrecorded alcohol. More nuanced sociodemographic differences were observed for specific types of unrecorded alcohol., Conclusions: This contribution is the first to highlight both, prevalence and composition of unrecorded alcohol consumption in nine NIS. The observed proportions and sources of unrecorded alcohol are discussed in light of local challenges in policy implementation, especially in regard to the newly formed Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), as some but not all NIS are in the EAEU., Competing Interests: Competing interests: IR reports grants from WHO is funded by all Governments of Member States. WHO NCD Office is funded by voluntary donation from the Government of the Russian Federation during the conduct of the study. All other authors declare no competing interests., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2021. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Introduction: Prevention of cancer has been identified as a major public health priority for Europe, and alcohol is a leading risk factor for various types of cancer. This contribution estimates the number of cancer cases that could have potentially been averted in 2018 in 4 European countries if an increase in alcohol excise taxation had been applied., Methods: Current country and beverage-specific excise taxation of 4 member states of the WHO European Region (Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, and Sweden) was used as a baseline, and the potential impacts of increases of 20, 50, and 100% to current excise duties were modelled. A sensitivity analysis was performed, replacing the current tax rates in the 4 countries by those levied in Finland. The resulting increase in tax was assumed to be fully incorporated into the consumer price, and beverage-specific price elasticities of demand were obtained from meta-analyses, assuming less elasticity for heavy drinkers. Model estimates were applied to cancer incidence rates for the year 2018., Results: In the 4 countries, >35,000 cancer cases in 2018 were caused by alcohol consumption, with the highest rate of alcohol-attributable cancers recorded in Germany and the lowest in Sweden. An increase in excise duties on alcohol would have significantly reduced these numbers, with between 3 and 7% of all alcohol-attributable cancer cases being averted if taxation had been increased by 100%. If the 4 countries were to adopt an excise taxation level equivalent to the one currently imposed in Finland, an even higher proportion of alcohol-attributable cancers could be avoided, with Germany alone experiencing 1,600 fewer cancer cases in 1 year., Discussion/conclusion: Increasing excise duties can markedly reduce cancer incidence in European countries., (© 2020 The Author(s) Published by S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Despite being a psychoactive substance and having a major impact on health, alcohol has to date escaped the required labeling regulations for either psychoactive substances or food. The vast majority of the countries in the WHO European Region have stricter labeling requirements for bottled water and health warning provisions for over-the-counter medications than for alcoholic beverages. However, more progress in implementing health warnings has been made in the eastern part of the WHO European Region, largely because of the recent technical regulation put in place by the newly formed Eurasian Economic Union. The present contribution provides an overview of the existing legislation regarding the placement of alcohol health warnings on advertisements and labels on alcohol containers in the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS; Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan) and discusses their potential gaps and shortfalls. It also reviews the evolution of the Eurasian Economic Union Technical Regulation 047/2018, which is, to date, the only international document to impose binding provisions on alcohol labeling. The technical regulation's developmental process demonstrates how the comprehensive messages and strong requirements for health warnings that were suggested initially were watered down during the consultation process.

Background and aims: Previously identified national drinking patterns in Europe lack comparability and might be no longer be valid due to changes in economic conditions and policy frameworks. We aimed to identify the most recent alcohol drinking patterns in Europe based on comparable alcohol exposure indicators using a data‐driven approach, as well as identifying temporal changes and establishing empirical links between these patterns and indicators of alcohol‐related harm. Design: Data from the World Health Organization's monitoring system on alcohol exposure indicators were used. Repeated cross‐sectional hierarchical cluster analyses were applied. Differences in alcohol‐attributable harm between clusters of countries were analyzed via linear regression. Setting: European Union countries, plus Iceland, Norway and Ukraine, for 2000, 2010, 2015 and 2019. Participants/Cases: Observations consisted of annual country data, at four different time points for alcohol exposure. Harm indicators were only included for 2019. Measurements Alcohol exposure indicators included alcohol per capita consumption (APC), beverage‐specific consumption and prevalence of drinking status indicators (lifetime abstainers, current drinkers, former drinkers and heavy episodic drinking). Alcohol‐attributable harm was measured using age‐standardized alcohol‐attributable Disability‐Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) lost and deaths per 100 000 people. Findings The same six clusters were identified in 2019, 2015 and 2010, mainly characterized by type of alcoholic beverage and prevalence drinking status indicators, with geographical interpretation. Two‐thirds of the countries remained in the same cluster over time, with one additional cluster identified in 2000, characterized by low APC. The most recent drinking patterns were shown to be significantly associated with alcohol‐attributable deaths and DALY rates. Compared with wine‐drinking countries, the mortality rate per 100 000 people was significantly higher in Eastern Europe with high spirits and 'other' beverage consumption [ β^ = 90, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 55–126], and in Eastern Europe with high lifetime abstainers and high spirits consumption (β^ = 42, 95% CI = 4–78). Conclusions: European drinking patterns appear to be clustered by level of beverage‐specific consumption, with heavy episodic drinkers, current drinkers and lifetime abstainers being distinguishing factors between clusters. Despite the overall stability of the clusters over time, some countries shifted between drinking patterns from 2000 to 2019. Overall, patterns of drinking in the European Union seem to be stable and partly determined by geographical proximity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses that the alcohol adversely affects people around the world on a large scale even in nonpandemic times, with several deaths attributed to alcohol use each year. Topics discussed include during the pandemic, several countries have introduced total bans on alcohol sales, mainly aiming to minimize the risks of alcohol-fueled domestic violence under lockdowns, and reduce the burden to the healthcare system from alcohol-related health emergencies.

Aims: To study the impact of alcohol control policy measures (i.e. increases in taxation, restrictions on availability, including minimum purchasing age regulations, legislation on drink driving and advertisement bans) on alcohol‐related traffic harm in Lithuania between January 2004 and February 2019. Design Analyses of trend data on the proportion of alcohol‐related collisions and crashes, injury and mortality, adjusting for secular trends, seasonality, periods of alcohol control measure implementation and economic development. Generalized additive mixed models were used. Multiple sensitivity analyses were conducted. Setting: Lithuania. Cases Monthly number of alcohol‐related cases of traffic collisions and crashes, injuries and deaths. Interventions and comparators: Periods of time during which new alcohol control measures were implemented and/or augmented compared to periods when they were not. Measurements Monthly data for 2004 to 2019 from routine statistics of the Lithuanian Road Police Service. Findings All indicators decreased consistently and significantly after the implementation of alcohol control measures, including increased taxation, reduction of availability and a ban on advertisement, starting in 2014. On average, each implemented policy measure permanently reduced the proportion of alcohol‐attributable crashes by 0.55% [95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.21–0.90%; P = 0.002], the proportion of alcohol‐attributable injuries by 0.60% (95% CI = 0.24–0.97%; P = 0.001) and the proportion of alcohol‐attributable deaths by 0.13% (95% CI = 0.10–0.15%; P < 0.001). Conclusions: Alcohol control policy measures, including measures to reduce overall level of alcohol consumption, were associated with a marked decrease in alcohol‐related traffic harm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: There is little information on the extent to which African countries are addressing alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm, which suggests that evaluations of national alcohol policies are needed in this region. The aim of this article is to examine the strength of a mix of national alcohol control policies in African countries, as well as the relationship between alcohol policy restrictiveness scores and adult alcohol per capita consumption (APC) among drinkers at the national level. Methods: We examined national alcohol policies of 46 African countries, as of 2012, in four regulatory categories (price, availability, marketing and drink-driving), and analyzed the restrictiveness of national alcohol policies using an adapted Alcohol Policy Index (API). To assess the validity of the policy restrictiveness scores, we conducted correlational analyses between policy restrictiveness scores and APC among drinkers in 40 countries. Results: Countries attained a mean score of 44.1 of 100 points possible, ranging from 9.1 (Sao Tomé and Principe) to 75.0 (Algeria), with low scores indicating low policy restrictiveness. Policy restrictiveness scores were negatively correlated with and APC among drinkers (rs = −0.353, P = 0.005). Conclusions: There is great variation in the strength of alcohol control policies in countries throughout the African region. Tools for comparing the restrictiveness of alcohol policies across countries are available and are an important instrument to monitor alcohol policy developments. The negative correlation between policy restrictiveness and alcohol consumption among drinkers suggests the need for stronger alcohol policies as well as increased training and capacity building at the country level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Over the last decade Russia has introduced various policy measures to reduce alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm at the population level. Several of these policies, such as higher pricing and taxation or restrictions of availability, may not work in the case of unrecorded alcohol consumption; they may encourage consumers to switch to unrecorded alcohol and even increase consumption. In the present qualitative interview study we explore the perception of the recently implemented alcohol policies by patients diagnosed with alcohol dependence in two Russian cities in the years 2013-2014 and shed light on possible entry-points to prevention.Methods: Semi-structured in-depth expert interviews were conducted with 25 patients of state-run drug and alcohol treatment centers in two Russian cities in 2013 and 2014. The interviews were analyzed using thematic content analysis.Results: All of the interviewed participants have consumed unrecorded at some point with the majority being regular consumers, mostly switching between recorded and unrecorded alcohol depending on the situation, as predominantly defined by available money and available sources of alcohol. Low price and high availability were reported as the main reasons for unrecorded consumption. Participants voiced a general mistrust of the recently implemented alcohol regulations and viewed them largely as ineffective. They expressed particular concerns over price increases and restriction of night sales of alcoholic beverages. Substantial shifts within the unrecorded alcohol market were reported, with a decreasing availability of home-made beverages in favor of alcohol surrogates in the form of non-beverage alcohol, medicinal and cosmetic compounds. At the same time consumption of home-made alcoholic beverages was seen as a strategy to avoid counterfeit alcohol, which was frequently reported for retail sale.Conclusions: Despite the alcohol policy changes in the last years in Russia, consumption of unrecorded alcohol remained common for people with alcohol dependence. Reduction of availability of unrecorded alcohol, first and foremost in the form of cheap surrogates, is urgently needed to reduce alcohol-related harm. Implementation of screening and brief interventions for excessive alcohol consumption in various contexts such as primary healthcare settings, trauma treatment services or the workplace could be another important measure targeting consumers of unrecorded alcohol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]