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Don Shenker: We need action to shield children from alcohol
LAST month's statistics from the NHS revealed the true extent of children's drinking in England and a worrying pattern which has emerged over recent years.
While the number of children aged between 11 and 15 who drink is
falling, those who do drink are drinking more. In fact, those who drink are now drinking twice as much as they did in 1990, on average 14.6 units a week.
When we bear in mind the recommended daily guidelines of two to three units per day for women and three to four units per day for men (or the old measurements of 14 and 21 units per week respectively), this is a shocking figure.
Too many children are drinking at or above levels considered safe for adults, and the consequence for the under-15s – whose bodies and organs are of course still developing – is the risk of serious health problems.
Last year, well over 1,000 under-15s entered rehabilitation for alcohol problems, and almost 60 of them were under 12. Those figures are likely to be the tip of the iceberg.
It's a problem for us all, but figures show children in Yorkshire and Humber were more likely than those in any other region to have drunk alcohol in the last week. In fact, they were almost twice as likely as youngsters in the South East to have had a recent drink.
Bringing the statistics into sharp focus is the story of Gary Reinbach, 22, from Essex, who died last month as a result of liver failure. His mother said Gary started drinking at the age of 13 without her knowledge and graduated from cider in the park with friends to daily vodka by the age of 16. We've already seen an almost 1,000 per cent increase in deaths from chronic liver disease between 1970 and 2000 for the 25-44 age group and liver specialists often tell me that the age profile of their patients is becoming gradually lower.
While cases like Gary's are thankfully still rare, those in the medical profession fear an epidemic of alcohol-related illness, fuelled by underage and binge drinking. The yearly cost to the NHS of alcohol
misuse has already reached almost 3bn.
Last week, the Commons Public Accounts Committee called for tougher measures to tackle the growing problem. The Commons Health Select Committee is also investigating.
At Alcohol Concern, we recognise there's no silver bullet to tackle the problem of young people's drinking, but we use a sound evidence base to suggest solutions.
The issue of price is a case in point. Alcohol is now 75 per cent more affordable than it was in 1980, and consumption has risen as a result. We've all seen cans of cheap supermarket lager on sale for less than bottled water, or own-brand wine for less than a bunch of grapes. A survey in 2007 found that 12-15 year olds could buy 13 litres of cider with their average weekly pocket money.
The Scottish Executive has proposed to do something about this by introducing a minimum price for alcohol, calculated by unit, as several Canadian provinces have already done. Research shows that this will reduce the consumption levels of underage drinkers.
The way it works is by setting a price floor for alcohol, for example at 50p per unit. This tends not to affect drinks bought in pubs and bars, which are more expensive anyway, but it would stop supermarkets selling two litres of white cider for just over a pound, or a bottle of own-brand wine for 2.50.
Evidence shows that a 50p per unit minimum price would mean a cost of 22p per week more for moderate drinkers, which seems a pretty good deal in terms of cost savings to our health service and police forces.
Minimum pricing is already used in Canada and in England, it is supported by a range of bodies, including health organisations, the Campaign for Real Ale, the Chief Medical Officer, the Association of Chief Police Officers and some drinks producers, including the makers of Carling lager, Molson Coors.
We would also recommend some changes to the way alcohol is advertised. Currently, advertisers have to comply with a set of rules to ensure their adverts don't appeal to children (though some do slip through the net). But adverts for alcohol can be shown at any time during the day, and our research shows a large number of them on television between 3pm and 6pm, when children are likely to be watching.
Alcohol adverts are not supposed to appear in programmes which appeal to children. But you will see alcohol adverts during Home and Away , Coronation Street or The X Factor, even though many under-18s will be watching. We're one of the few European countries that doesn't restrict this and it's time we protected children by ensuring that alcohol adverts can't be shown before 9pm.
Finally, while a package of measures would reduce underage consumption of alcohol, that's not to say parents don't have a job to do in taking responsibility to educate their children about alcohol.
Parents can do a lot to set a good example, for example drinking responsibly themselves and being honest about alcohol's benefits and drawbacks. But it's not always easy. Take Gary's mum, for example, who worked long hours to provide for her family, unaware that her 13-year-old son was drinking.
As a society we have a responsibility to protect our young people from harm – so we need to pull together and make some tough decisions.
Don Shenker is chief executive of Alcohol Concern
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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