According to a recent study women who drink alcohol during the first 6 weeks of pregnancy may be exposing their babies to permanent damage.
Most women don’t even know they’re pregnant in the first couple of weeks, so many of them are still drinking at this time, unknowingly exposing their unborn children to a slew of health and mental problems.
Find out more here.
According to a US Nurse’s Health Study women who drink excessively have a higher risk of developing psoriatic arthritis.
On the other hand moderate drinking has many positive effects on the health of women according to experts. Lowering the risk of heart attacks, heart disease and strokes are some of the benefits of moderate drinking for both males and females.
Read more about the benefits here.
As an alcohol server, it is important to know which sectors of our customers are most risk of binge drinking, so we can be prepared.
According to a new OECD report wealthy, middle-aged women are most at risk of drinking too much. This is interesting because these women don’t necessarily fit the profile of what we would imagine as “a drunk”.
Young people are also drinking at exceedingly higher levels.
Read more about the findings here.
Soon drivers in The ACT won’t be allowed to drink while driving, bringing laws in The Territory in line with other jurisdictions in Australia.
It sounds strange but currently Canberra drivers can consume alcohol when they are behind the wheel, providing they stay under the legal blood alcohol limit – but this is set to change.
Read more here.
According to a report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) drinking in developed nations has declined by 2.5 per cent over the past 2 decades.
Despite the decline, risky drinking is on the rise which is why the report advises people to avoid excessive alcohol consumption. It also notes that drinking among the youth has also increased.
Find out more here.
Under the NSW government proposed new one-punch laws, people with a blood alcohol level of 0.15 will be found “intoxicated” – this is the equivalent of people charged with high-range drink driving offences.
Under Premier Barry O’Farrell’s Crimes and Other Legislation Amendment (Assault and Intoxication) Bill 2014, intoxication will be defined as a blood alcohol concentration of .15. The amendment was tabled last week Thursday and is three times the level used to measure low-range drink driving offences (.05). The bill is expected to be passed by the Parliament soon with the support of the Labour opposition.
According to O’Farrell the bill is intended to bring about safety on the state’s streets with its new measures which are aimed at combating drug and alcohol fuelled violence.
O’Farrell was quoted as saying about the amendment:
“The NSW government has heard the community’s call for action. We are committed to continuing to address the drug and alcohol-fuelled attacks on our street and the increase in violence that is used in those attacks.”
The bill says that there will be a “conclusive presumption of intoxication if the accused has more than .15 concentration of alcohol following a breath or blood sample analysis”.
The measures do not set any limits for drugs which means that any level of drugs found in a person’s system may indicate intoxication.
Perhaps one of the more controversial of the government’s alcohol violence measures is the introduction of a minimum mandatory sentence of eight years and a maximum penalty of 25 years in jail for an assault causing death if the assault is committed by an “intoxicated” perpetrator, under the influence of either drugs or alcohol. For those perpetrators who aren’t intoxicated a 20 year maximum penalty will apply for assaulting a person resulting in their death. Also whether the victims die from the injuries received during the assault or hitting the ground etc, the same will apply.
Alex Wodak, the emeritus consultant for the Alcohol and Drug Service at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney said the 0.15 blood alcohol level was the same level at which drivers are charged with high range drunk driving. The following excerpt is taken from Smh.com.au and quotes Wodak about the new measures:
“That comes from a huge body of research into blood alcohol and risk of a car crash. But this figure has been plucked out of the air,” Dr Wodak said.
“There is no research on the link between blood-alcohol concentration and violence.
“Some will be unconscious at this blood level and most will be very drunk.
“But some drinking, say, three bottles of wine per day might be little affected by it.”
According to Dr Wodak, the risk of these new laws is that some people have higher alcohol tolerance levels than others and these people may be found guilty when they are innocent. Dr Wodak said that high blood alcohol concentration levels aren’t always linked to violent crimes.
According to the proposed law a breath test must be taken within 2 hours of the alleged offence and blood and urine samples can only be required within 4 hours after the alleged offence.
An article on Abc.net.au recently discussed the benefits of drinking alcohol in moderation, something that we have always advocated. While it’s true that excessive alcohol consumption can be extremely detrimental to your health both in the short and long term, moderate and responsible consumption can be good for your health and wellbeing.
With a lot of people vilifying alcohol in the media these days because of a few who cannot control their drinking and go out and cause a menace, it is important that we know what the limits are and adhere to them, not only for our wellbeing but also for the safety of others.
So what level of regular drinking is agreed to be harmful to our health?
According to Australian guidelines, adults shouldn’t drink more than 2 standard drinks a day because this poses an “unacceptable” risk of lifetime harm. According to an alcohol researcher, Professor Chikritzhs from the University of WA, these are some of the effects those who abuse alcohol have to look forward to,
“For example, alcoholic liver cirrhosis, alcohol dependence and a range of cancers, including breast cancer, are all longer-term consequences of regular ongoing exposure to alcohol,” says Chikritzhs.
Sticking to fewer than two standard drinks a day means your risk of such nasties over your lifetime is below one in 100.
“One in 100 was selected because that’s the kind of benchmark by which we test water quality and other kinds of things. People often see that as an acceptable level of risk.”
It’s drinking levels below two standard drinks a day where any protective effect against heart disease, diabetes and strokes come in (for those who believe it exists).
Source: http://www.abc.net.au/health/features/stories/2014/02/20/3948645.htm
Some of the ways that alcohol is thought to impact the body in this positive way includes boosting levels of “good” fats in the blood, increasing the body’s sensitivity to insulin and decreasing inflammation.
Although Chikritzhs says that if your do not drink, you do not need to start drinking just so that you will live longer. For example if you suffer from heart disease and you’re a non-drinker, starting to drink alcohol won’t help you cure your heart problems. Read more from Professor Chikritzhs http://www.abc.net.au/health/features/stories/2014/02/20/3948645.htm
Some of the Benefits
Research also shows that moderate consumption of alcohol can reduce the chance of having a stroke. For women who drank moderately research shows they are at a lower risk of developing high blood pressure.
Experts have long advocated the consumption of beer and wine in moderation to enhance the flow of blood through the arteries and blood vessels and help reduce chances of a heart attack. An alcohol drinker will therefore be able to handle physical activities without the risk of sudden death even if there are blockages in certain parts of the cardiovascular system. Amazingly alcohol also discourages the development of gallstones. This is because the presence of alcohol in a person’s body reduces the tendency of cholesterol to accumulate in the bile.
But just as beneficial as drinking in moderation can be, drinking in excess and binge drinking can have the adverse effect and be extremely dangerous to your health as well as place you in immediate danger. Stick to the rule of no more than 2 drinks a day and avoid drinking on a daily basis to protect your health and stay safe.
New South Wales like many other states is suffering from the effects of excessive drinking on the youth and according to the opposition if the state government does not act soon many more young lives may be ruined by the scourge of excessive alcohol.
The opposition has called upon the NSW government to “stand up” to the liquor lobby to reduce the amount of drunken violence plaguing the state particularly involving the state’s young people. They have called upon the government to limit the availability of alcohol.
The following excerpt from an article on Bordermail.com.au explains:
MORE young lives will be ruined by alcohol-fuelled violence unless the NSW government stands up to the liquor lobby, the opposition has said.
Labor’s health spokesman Andrew McDonald yesterday said the worst-ever drunken violence in the state could be reduced by restricting alcohol availability.
“I have spent 40 years working in the health system and I know no one has ever seen such dreadful violence,” Dr McDonald said.
He laid the blame for the 540 people arrested at the weekend in NSW during Operation Unite, a police crackdown on alcohol-fuelled violence, at the state government’s door.
“This government does not have the guts to stand up to the liquor lobby,” Dr McDonald said.
“Until this problem is sorted, these assaults will continue and we will see innocent lives ruined.”
Read more at: http://www.bordermail.com.au/story/1974692/alcohol-ruining-our-young/
A particular area of concern in Sydney is the city centre and the Kings Cross district where Labor is calling for 1am lockouts.
The violence is not however confined to NSW, Queensland has apparently also been the source of high levels of violence fuelled by alcohol as discovered during Operation Unite.
In the state of Queensland, 430 people were arrested and a police officer was stabbed in the neck at a bar during the operation.
Victoria showed the greatest improvements in terms of reduction in violence during the Operation with only 76 people being arrested.
In Sydney an incident on Bondi Beach left one 23 year old man critical in hospital, as the article on Bordermail.com.au points out:
In Sydney, a 23-year-old man remains in a critical condition in St Vincent’s Hospital after he was punched and stomped on in front of dozens of revellers at Bondi Beach early on Saturday.
He was one of several young men who were king hit over the weekend, with assaults at Darling Harbour, Kings Cross, Rozelle and the city centre.
Read more at: http://www.bordermail.com.au/story/1974692/alcohol-ruining-our-young/
Although police were pleased that the number of people arrested compared to last year was lower, they were dissatisfied with the level of violence which they believed had escalated this year due to the effects of alcohol. One police official, Detective Superintendent Gavin Dengate said,
“People think they’re seven-foot-tall and bullet-proof, that they can do what they want and get away with it.”
Medical staff described St Vincent’s Hospital emergency department as a “zoo” on Friday night.
“You would be mocking the anguish of our nurses or doctors if you talked about reductions in alcohol-related assaults,” hospital spokesman
Read more at: http://www.bordermail.com.au/story/1974692/alcohol-ruining-our-young/
The legalisation of marijuana is a hot topic in many parts of the world and especially in the US, after the US president made a statement that alcohol is more dangerous than marijuana. Colorado and Washington have legalised the sale of marijuana for recreational use and some having been calling for a similar amendment to Australian laws so that marijuana rather than alcohol becomes the drug of choice in popular night spots. People claim that while alcohol abuse makes drinkers violent marijuana doesn’t which may help combat alcohol violence in city hotspots.
In a recent magazine interview, President Barack Obama stated the following:
“As has been well documented, I smoked pot as a kid, and I view it as a bad habit and a vice, not very different from the cigarettes that I smoked as a young person up through a big chunk of my adult life.”
“I don’t think it is more dangerous than alcohol,” he said.
When asked whether it was less dangerous, Mr Obama said that it was less dangerous in terms of its impact on the individual consumer. “It’s not something I encourage, and I’ve told my daughters I think it’s a bad idea, a waste of time, not very healthy,” he said.
Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-02-10/barack-obama-marijuana-alcohol-claim-unsubstantiated/5243462
According to the experts Obama’s claims that marijuana is less dangerous than alcohol is unfounded. There simply isn’t any evidence to support the claim.
The article on Abc.net.au looked into and examined these claims and whether there was any fact behind them. They found that these claims were unsubstantiated.
The article’s writers recognised that health risks were associated with both substances increase with quantity and frequency of use and in the case of marijuana use, the age of first use also affects people’s health.
The short term health effects of too much alcohol include headaches, lack of coordination, shakiness, nausea, vomiting and passing out. In the long term alcohol abuse can lead to brain damage, heart and liver disease, pancreatitis, mouth, neck and throat cancers and a compromised immune system. Long term alcohol use can lead to dependence, with severe withdrawal symptoms.
Whereas with alcohol one can control the amount they consume and therefore the severity of its effect on their health, marijuana use, even mild use has been linked to an increased heart rate, low blood pressure and anxiety. Like alcohol, marijuana is not a harmless drug as people mistakenly think.
In the long run the use of marijuana can affect the user’s brain and lung function, hormone levels, immune system and mental health. The article on Abc.net.au explains:
“Cannabis use is associated with psychotic symptoms, schizophrenia, anxiety and depression,” according to a discussion paper released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. The paper also notes that “long-term heavy cannabis users… show impairments in memory and attention that endure beyond the period of intoxication and worsen with increasing years of regular cannabis use.”
Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-02-10/barack-obama-marijuana-alcohol-claim-unsubstantiated/5243462
Doctors say that in people who are predisposed to certain types of mental illness, marijuana use may actually worsen the conditions, especially conditions like schizophrenia.So contrary to the claims made by the US president, marijuana is not less harmful than alcohol.
According to Australian specialists young women between the ages of 20 and 29 are increasingly being treated for advanced liver disease as a result of steady and dangerous drinking since their teenage years.
Doctors have warned that even professional women are becoming the victims of liver disease and having to be hospitalised for alcoholic cirrhosis.
According to figures obtained from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, the number of hospital admissions from alcoholic liver disease almost doubled in the 15 years to 2009. The number increased from 2976 to almost 6000 during this time period.
The following excerpt from an article which appeared on Smh.com.au explains further:
”We are used to alcoholic liver disease in middle-aged men but scarily we are seeing a significant number of women in their 20s and 30s in this situation,” Simone Strasser, a liver specialist and spokeswoman for the Gastroenterological Society of Australia, said.
”These are young professional women aged 25 to 35 who are functioning in other areas of their lives but are drinking at consistently risky levels,” Associate Professor Strasser said. ”They have busy lifestyles and think it’s not doing them any harm.”
The post went on to quote an addiction medicine professor, Paul Haber from the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital who said that the increase in alcoholic liver disease, both early and late stage was evidence that young people, particularly women are extending their “adolescent lifestyles” into their twenties. He went on to state:
”It’s an urban disease and a disease of affluence,” said Professor Haber, who is leading a clinical trial of the muscle-relaxing drug baclofen to treat alcoholic liver disease. ”Young people have more money and are less encumbered than they were 30 years ago.”
Women seem to be especially susceptible to the toxic effects of alcohol because of their weight which is generally lower than their male counterparts and also because they have fewer enzymes to break down alcohol when compared to men.
One of the trial’s co-researchers Kirsten Morley also said that women in their thirties were becoming susceptible to the disease particularly those who work in high volume, fast paced, traditionally “male” environments where in the past drinking on a daily basis is the norm. Morley went on to explain:
”Women often get caught up in what is socially acceptable. They might be drinking to help anxiety or as a social lubricant.
”Because people have the perception this is something that happens to old men, there is a stigma attached, which has prevented patients from seeking treatment.”
According to Morley most people she saw during the trial consumed at least 6 standard drinks a day, with 4 or more being classified as “heavy” drinking. These people had generally engaged in this drinking behaviour for more than 10 years, making them susceptible to the disease.
This is yet another reason why Responsible Service of Alcohol is an important requirement for anyone who works in the hospitality industry serving alcohol at a licenced venue. When serving alcohol, RSA staff such as waitrons, bartenders etc. should keep in mind the consequences associated with excessive consumption and consider the role they play in ensuring people do not abuse alcohol.