Beyond one glass for a woman and 1.5 glasses for a man per day, we risk losing up to a year of life. “Analysis of 52 OECD, European Union and Group of 20 (G20) countries shows that life expectancy will be almost a year (9 months) lower over the next 30 years due to illnesses and injuries caused by the harmful consumption of alcohol”, specifies a recent OECD study.
This report aims to encourage prevention campaigns against alcohol consumption, which could make it possible to limit the medical costs generated by the latter. It was born from another observation: the Covid-19 crisis has led people to drink more. “In Germany, the US and the UK, total alcohol sales increased slightly in 2020 (+3-5%) compared to 2019, according to preliminary estimates”, for example.
Depending on the country, the increase in consumption differs, as does the estimate of the decline in life expectancy linked to drinking. Central and Eastern Europe are much more affected.
Changing strategies on the ground
Concretely, according to the OECD, what is currently in place on the ground is not enough. Government action against unreasonable alcohol consumption should be strengthened. It goes through the fact of limit the promotion of alcohol to childrenstrengthen police checks to prevent road accidents caused by alcohol, develop the offer of consultations for patients at risk and set pricing policies to limit the financial accessibility of alcohol (in particular l cheap alcohol).
Source: OECD
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