Good practice principles low rik drinking EU RARHA

level of compliance with age limits. Effective use of sanctions for underage customers, outlet owners
and staff, which can include fines, suspension of alcohol license or closure orders is an essential
component[ 18 ].
Reducing alcohol-related harm is a task for the whole society. Besides negative consequences for
alcohol consuming youngsters themselves, harmful consumption also affects their surroundings and
the whole society. Despite alcohol consumption being a long-standing part of most European cultures,
and although the majority consumes alcohol in a moderate way, the negative effects of young people’s
alcohol consumption and of heavy episodic drinking are felt widely, whether through anti-social
behaviour, reduced work efficiency, costs to the health care system and unemployment, absenteeism
and low productivity in the workplace as well as disorder, property damages, violence in public places
and domestic violence. r
Besides measures to reduce the accessibility of alcoholic beverages for young people, such as
those highlighted above, a crucial task for alcohol prevention concerns raising awareness among the
general public and especially among sales and serving personnel about the importance of verifying the
customer’s age. A widely shared view is that for promoting awareness and enforcement, an integrated
alcohol policy with a combination of structural and individual prevention measures is needed rather
than isolated actions. An integrated approach would be particularly important at the local level to
reduce the availability of alcohol for young people, to raise the awareness of the general population and
to support young people to develop healthy handling of and attitude towards alcohol consumption. A
strong focus should be on parent’s key role in reducing alcohol-related harm for their youngsters.
References
1
The ESPAD Group. (2016) ESPAD Report 2015. Results from the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and
Other Drugs. Luxembourg: European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drug Addiction.
2
Mulder J and de Greeff J. (2013) Eyes on Ages. A research on alcohol age limit policies in European Member
States. Legislation, enforcement and research. Utrecht: Dutch Institute for Alcohol Policy (STAP).
3
Currie C et al. (2012) Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) Study. International Report from the
2009/2010 Survey. Copenhagen: WHO Regional Office for Europe.
4
Stolle M et al. (2009) Rauschtrinken im Kindes- und Jugendalter. Epidemiologie, Auswirkungen und Intervention.
Deutsches Ärzteblatt, 106(19), 323-328.
5
Hibell B et al. (2012) The 2011 ESPAD Report. Substance Use Among Students in 36 European Countries.
Stockholm: The Swedish Council for Information on Alcohol and Other Drugs (CAN).
6
Rehm J at al. (2015) Lifetime-risk of alcohol-attributable mortality based on different levels of alcohol
consumption in seven European countries. Implications for low-risk drinking guidelines. Toronto, On, Canada:
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.
7
Fleming R. (2015) Does alcohol damage the adolescent brain? Neuroanatomical and neuropsychological
consequences of adolescent drinking. Neuroscience and Neuroeconomics, 4, 51-60.
8
Crews F et al. (2000) Binge ethanol consumption causes differential brain damage in young adolescent rats
compared with adult rats. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 24(11), 1712–23.
9
Giedd J and Rapoport J. (2010) Structural MRI of pediatric brain development: What we have learned and where
are we going? Neuron002Cyc 67, 728-734.
10
Chief Medical Officer for England (2009). Guidance on the consumption of alcohol by children and young people.
London: Department of Health.
11
Steffens R. and Sarrazin D. (2016). Guidance to reduce alcohol-related harm for young people. Background
paper. Münster: LWL-Coordination Office for Drug-Related Issues.
12
Harris S et al. (2012) Computer-Facilitated Substance Use Screening and Brief Advice for Teens in Primary Care:
An International Trial. PEDIATRICS, 129(6), 1072-1082.
r
Action Plan on Youth Drinking and on Heavy Episodic Drinking (Binge Drinking) (2014-2016).
http://ec.europa.eu/health/alcohol/docs/2014_2016_actionplan_youthdrinking_en.pdf
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Good practice principles for low risk drinking guidelines