The FINANCIAL — Europe is the heaviest drinking region in the world – Europeans drink more than twice as any other region, according to EUbusiness Ltd.
Alcohol contributes towards 4% of the world's disability adjusted life years, or years lost due to alcohol-related injury or death. This is approximately the same proportion as tobacco. Alcohol is a risk factor in some 60 diseases such as cancer, liver cirrhosis cardiovascular disease among many others and is often found to be a risk factor in co-morbidities. Furthermore the social cost of alcohol in the EU is calculated to be around 155.8 billion EUR on a yearly basis, according to EUbusiness Ltd.
In order to effectively target alcohol related harm, the EU should build on the knowledge of the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Best Buys- a recognised set of well established, effective and cost effective public health interventions for alcohol policy. WHO recommends actions in areas of price, marketing and availability, regrettably the current text of the resolution does not include actions in these areas, according to EUbusiness Ltd.
What is even more disappointing is that the EP ENVI committee has failed to acknowledge the right of consumers to know what is in their drinks. All the amendments regarding alcoholic beverages labelling have been rejected: this will continue a paradoxical situation in the EU, where consumers can tell what is in their bottle of milk but not in alcoholic cocktail, wine or beer.
"We are pleased that the European Parliament acknowledges the need to tackle alcohol related harm, however we would like to encourage it to recommend cost- effective measures to address alcohol. It is also incredibly puzzling why the Committee that is supposedly protecting public health keeps on rejecting proposals that would allow consumers to make informed choices about their drinks. One has to wonder whether they are protecting consumers or the industry?" said Mariann Skar- Eurocare Secretary General.
"It is regrettable that that the ENVI Committee did not address advertising and labelling, for which there are legislative tools at the European level to achieve better results. The alcohol industry increasingly targets their promotional activities to extend their market. Labelling is intended to provide the consumer with information—such as ingredients and nutritional values, but also warn about the product's health risks. There are examples of leadership from Member States: for example, since October 2006 the French Code of Public Health requires a warning label on alcohol packaging relating to drinking in pregnancy. Claims that the EU would be encroaching on national competences in these instances are simply inaccurate and misleading," said Peggy Maguire, President of EPHA and Director General of the European Institute of Women's Health.
"The Science Group of the European Alcohol and Health Forum studied the impact of marketing on young people and concluded that marketing has the effect of both encouraging earlier uptake of drinking and increasing consumption. It is therefore disappointing that the ENVI committee did not support effective actions to limit young people's actual exposure to marketing through the internet including social media or to assist member states to enforce national marketing regulations," said Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, past President of the Royal College of Physicians and Chair of the European Alcohol and Health Forum Science Committee.
In addition, the European Parliament resolution appears to be detached from developments at Member State level. For instance, Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) on alcohol was approved by the Scottish Parliament and is under consideration in Ireland, Estonia with other countries expected to follow suit. Unfortunately, the Members of European Parliament (MEPs) chose not to address the issue of pricing and fiscal measures, which are regarded as the most effective to tackle alcohol related harm, according to EUbusiness Ltd.
The public health community, encompassing health advocacy groups, patients and health professionals would like to call on MEPs to consider the inclusion of the above highlighted points in the plenary vote in April. Due to the size of the problem and the universal impact of alcohol on human health a set of concrete and decisive actions are needed. Addressing the issue of alcohol related harm through effective policies as recommended by WHO and encourages by the EU public health community will offer measurable health system savings and will have the long-term effect on enhancing growth and productivity in Europe by preserving EU citizens' wellbeing.
The Commission is then expected to publish an action plan on alcohol related harm in September, followed by the development of the new EU Alcohol Strategy once the next Commissioner for Health is in office, according to EUbusiness Ltd.
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