An Alcohol Problem

Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications, Inc.

NINFA R. LEONARDIA Editor-in-Chief & President

CARLA P. GOMEZ Editor CHERYL CRUZ Desk Editor PATRICK PANGILINAN Busines Editor NIDA A. BUENAFE Sports Editor RENE GENOVE Bureau Chief, Dumaguete MAJA P. DELY Advertising Coordinator

CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA Administrative Officer

The World Health Organization Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health 2014 is urging member states to develop policies aimed at reducing the harmful use of alcohol that not only leads to dependence but also increases people’s risk of developing more than 200 diseases.  These include liver cirrhosis, some cancers, tuberculosis and pneumonia. WHO also warned that harmful drinking could lead to violence and injuries and attributes the “harmful use of alcohol” to having killed 3.3 million people globally in 2012.

The report lauded some countries for strengthening measures to protect people from alcohol, including increased taxes on it, limiting its availability by raising the age limit, and regulating the marketing of alcoholic beverages. It also warned that, while more men currently die of alcohol-related causes than women, a steady increase in alcohol use among women has been observed.

Sheknar Saxena, WHO director for mental health and substance abuse, warns that lower income groups are more affected by the social and health consequences of alcohol as they often lack quality health care and are less protected by functional family or community networks.

Recent attempts by the Philippines to curb alcohol use are limited to the passage of the sin tax law that raised taxes on alcoholic drinks and the implementation of the Anti-Drunk and Drugged Driving Act that will take effect next month after the publication of the IRR. There is also supposed to be a law setting the legal age for drinking alcohol at 18, but it is largely ignored by Filipino minors as well as business establishments because of poor enforcement.

No responsible government can underestimate or ignore the social and health costs of unchecked alcohol use. A tighter control on the marketing, sale and consumption of alcoholic drinks can prevent a host of problems such as deadly drunk drivers, binge-drinking minors, broken families, alcohol-related diseases, and neighborhood violence. The Philippines has made some progress where this is involved, but a lot more needs to be done in fighting the effects of the harmful use of alcohol in this country.*