GETTING Scotland to wake up about the dangers of alcohol is not an easy task. Shock report after shock report should have supplied a jolt to our senses but still our dysfunctional relationship with the demon drink persists. If anything, alcohol has become more enmeshed in the normality of our culture.
There it stands, visible and tempting during every shopping trip, in glittering supermarket aisles of multi-coloured bottles, all promising good cheer. But alcohol is a stealthy killer. In moderation, it is fine and even an enhancement to occasions. There is not death in every bottle. But there may be death in bottles drunk daily. Cheap vodka comes at a price.
The ultimate price has been paid by far too many people. New figures released by the National Records of Scotland reveal that alcohol-related deaths rose by 10 per cent last year, the highest level since 2010.
It appears significant that those health boards that slashed funding to Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs) are among the worst hit. The cuts followed a 22 per cent reduction in direct Scottish Government funding for ADPs. That should give ministers food for thought.
True, it only tells part of the story. In a number of areas where spending on ADPs was maintained or increased, deaths linked to problem drinking still increased. But that only tells us there is an underlying problem across the board. If problem drinking is on the increase, where is the sense in cutting funding to bodies that are trying to deal with it? All the same, the point is well made by health campaigners that other factors than funding for ADPs are at play here.
Dealing with problem drinkers after they have been identified is one thing; preventing people becoming problem drinkers in the first place is quite another. It is where the key to tackling the problem lies.
Minimum unit pricing of alcohol is widely regarded by health professionals and campaigners as an absolute necessity. Five years after the measure was passed by the Scottish Parliament, the country is still waiting while the industry holds matters up in the courts. It has been a frustrating time for all concerned.
But minimum pricing is not a panacea. Health education has a huge part to play, particularly with a problem that is also a norm. Anyone can become a heavy drinker and becoming so has been made easier by low prices in aisles sitting adjacent to the fish fingers or mineral water.
No one is asking for a skull-and-crossbones at the head of the drinks aisles. But, on labels and posters, the potential harm of overdoing it could be pointed out, perhaps in the way that anti-smoking campaigns highlighted the dangers of that particular habit in no uncertain terms. That strategy proved more effective than moralising or whispering weak messages. “Please smoke responsibly” would not have cut it.
But the number of deaths from drinking must be cut. And to do that Scotland must first wake up.
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