Alcohol ads 'raise risk of young people needing rehab clinic treatment'

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by Change | 6 Feb 2009

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Advertising increases the risk of alcohol addiction or abuse among young people, new figures show.

A new review has found advertising for drinks has a greater effect on young people than the general population, increasing their risk of alcohol addiction.

Research published in BMC Public Health examined results from studies on over 13,000 and found marketing strategies are most effective among this demographic.

Collated information by the Alcohol and Education Research Council found exposure to TV adverts promoting drinks had an association with increased levels of consumption.

Lesley Smith and David Foxcroft, authors of the research, found each hour of television, games and music videos consumed increased the risk of starting to drink in the following 18 months by nine per cent.

Ms Smith states: "Our work provides strong empirical evidence to inform the policy debate on the impact of alcohol advertising on young people, and policy groups may wish to revise or strengthen their policy recommendations."

Research recently published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology has shown one-on-one addiction intervention can reduce the amount of alcohol young people consume.

Motivational interviewing with feedback was found to reduce the risk of youths partaking in alcohol abuse, which the authors attributed to correcting misperceived drinking norms.

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