Does
alcohol labeling
encourage sensible drinking?
Newswise — Clear labeling on
shop-bought alcohol, showing the alcohol units contained
and health advice, may not be effective in promoting
sensible drinking, says a letter in this week's BMJ.
In a snapshot survey
of 263 supermarket shoppers in Edinburgh, two university
lecturers investigated whether information labels on
alcoholic drinks influenced drinking awareness.
Although most of those
surveyed could define what constitutes a unit of
alcohol, less than a fifth of men and just a quarter of
women used the information to monitor how much they
drank.
Very few - just 8% of
women and 5% of men - were aware of the current
guidelines which outline sensible daily drinking levels
(brought in to help people avoid drunkenness). Many
instead estimated the maximum number of units per day
from older guidelines defining weekly levels, while a
third offered no suggestion at all.
Nearly half of the
shoppers surveyed preferred wine, but a fifth of those
gave no estimate on how many units are in a bottle.
Another third thought the alcohol content to be less
than it is - guessing seven units or fewer, when the
right answer is closer to nine.
Most participants said
they were in favor of alcohol labeling. However, the
survey found price offers influenced buying more than
label information.
Despite the enthusiasm
for labeling amongst the participants, evidence from
other countries on its effectiveness is not supportive,
say the authors. This survey shows there may be
"considerable confusion about sensible drinking messages
in the UK," they conclude.
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