Alcohol and Global Health

In 2019, alcohol use was the leading risk factor for attributable burden of disease among people ages 25 to 49, the second-leading risk factor among ages 10 to 24, and the ninth-leading risk factor among all ages. This series examines the underappreciated and growing impact of alcohol on global health.

Food
A Shift in U.S. Drinking Culture: A greater share of Americans now believe alcohol is harmful to health rather than beneficial

Alcohol Industry Panics as Healthier Habits Cut Sales

by Ted Alcorn

Industry reps cite a "war on alcohol," but consumer attitudes suggest a cultural shift toward less drinking

Food
A worker arranges crates of beer before loading them onto a truck inside a San Miguel beer warehouse in Manila, November 14, 2012.

The Philippines’ Blind Spot for Alcohol

by Gianna Gayle Amul

Why the alcohol problem in the Philippines is complicated

Man selling alcohol from a window.
Food

Sri Lanka’s Alcohol Tax Reform Spurs Economic and Health Recovery

Amidst economic turmoil, the opportunity emerges for transformative fiscal policies to tackle public health challenges

A man picks a green bottle at an assembly line inside the Taiwan Beer factory in Jhunan, Miaoli County, Taiwan, February 13, 2008.
Food

A Successful Battle Against the Bottle

How the government, health-care professionals, and the community improved alcohol policies in Taiwan

Bar Manager Nicolas de Soto mixes a Calvados-based cocktail at ECC in Chinatown, London December 3, 2010.
Governance

Alcohol: A Public Health Blind Spot

Richard Yoast on alcohol consumption and how philanthropies could help curb excess drinking   

https://www.thinkglobalhealth.org/sites/default/files/styles/max_1300x1300_3_2/public/2020-02/EG.KK-RussianOH-2.24.20-1950s-THREE-TWO.jpg?itok=rTnWdOaQ
Food

A Russian Prescription to Reduce Alcohol Use

Sustained changes to alcohol policy in Russia have contributed to big gains in life expectancy

A group of young men cluster around a large outdoor table cheering, smiling, and drinking large glasses of beer as COVID-19 restrictions ease in Galway, Ireland, on June 7, 2021.
Governance

On St. Patrick's Day, Ireland's Alternative to Drowning the Shamrock

Giving a green light to measures that reduce alcohol use would cut Ireland's high rate of alcohol-related injury, death

Two men are photographed from the waist up drinking beers out of the bottles at a a casual bar in the Manila metro area, in the Philippines
Gender

For Young Men, Alcohol Does Not Have to Be a Death Sentence

For males ages 15 to 49, drinking alcohol causes nearly 10 percent of all years lost to death and disability

A life-size cutot of Professor Aurejus Veryga is used to block the path to buying alcohol in a supermarket during hours when alcohol sales are prohibited, in Lithuania, on January 7, 2019..​
Food

Reducing Alcohol-Related Deaths in Lithuania

How the country is cutting down on deaths related to excess drinking

Two men are photographed from the waist up drinking beers out of the bottles at a a casual bar in the Manila metro area, in the Philippines
Gender

For Young Men, Alcohol Does Not Have to Be a Death Sentence

For males ages 15 to 49, drinking alcohol causes nearly 10 percent of all years lost to death and disability

Kimono-clad women wearing protective face masks walk in front of white Japanese Sake barrels stacked in a grid decorated with colorful designs for the year-end and New-Year at Meiji Shrine
Aging

The Curious Case of Japan's Alcohol Contest

Japan's young people are turning away from alcohol, but its tax agency wants to reverse the trend

A woman pours alcohol from the bottle into her mouth at the Far Hills Race Day at Moorland Farms in Far Hills, New Jersey, on October 17, 2015.
Food

Alcohol in Excess

How the World Health Organization plans to curb excess drinking across countries