Doing Something Good collaborated with Vic Health to facilitate a 1 Day Forum that explored ways to shape a better alcohol culture in Victoria. We bought together researchers, healthcare providers, changemakers, venue owners, youth workers, service design professionals, social entrepreneurs, policy makers, behaviour change specialists, and representatives from organisations working on youth and mental health issues. The Forum gave participants the opportunity to connect, learn, exchange useful information and provide a space for conversations that matter. The format incorporated innovative methodologies including World Café and Open Space with an opening keynote presentation and 10 Lightning Talks throughout the day. Find more on the Discovery & Insights Forum at http://doingsomethinggood.com.au/vichealth-innovation-challenge-alcohol-discovery-insights-forum/ Learn more about the VicHealth Innovation Challenge Alcohol at http://challenge.vichealth.vic.gov.au/challenges/alcohol/

1. Alcohol in Australia:
Key trends and recent developments
Michael Livingston

2. Background – why alcohol?
Contributes to an array of health and social
problems
– Liver disease, heart disease, cancers, etc etc
– Injuries from accidents (e.g. falls, traffic), violence
– Mental health (e.g. Suicide, depression)
But: widely enjoyed, moderate consumption
associated with improved health outcomes and
psychological wellbeing
Societal ambivalence

3. Historical
consump/on
data
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Alcohol
Spirits
Wine
Beer

4. Interna/onal
consump/on
data
20
16
12
8
4
0

5. Interna/onal
consump/on
data
20
16
12
8
4
0

6. Recent trends in consumption
Perception that alcohol is an increasing problem in
Australia society
– “Epidemic of binge drinking” (Rudd)
– “Drink until you drop culture” (Scippione)
– “Binge drinking out of control” (AMA)
Per-capita consumption is at its lowest level since
the mid 1990s
Distinct shifts in drinking behaviour among young
people

7. Consumption
Underage drinking
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
NDSHS (14-17) ASSAD (12-15) ASSAD (16-17)
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

8. Consumption
Age at first drink (of current drinkers aged 18-24)
16.0
15.5
15.0
14.5
14.0
13.5
13.0
12.5
12.0
2001 2004 2007 2010

9. Consumption
Risky drinking by young adults
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
18-24 year olds 25-29 year olds
2001 2004 2007 2010 2013

10. Consumption
But...
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
18-24 year olds 25-29 year olds 40-49 year olds 50-59 year olds 60-69 year olds
2001 2004 2007 2010 2013

11. Consumption trends
Drinking among young people steadily declining
– Particularly those under the age of 18
– Trends appear to be consistent across an array of population
sub-groups (e.g. rich and poor, urban and rural) and not due
to increasing cultural diversity
– Not offset by illicit drug use
Drinking among older cohorts is steady or potentially
increasing
– Some evidence that very heavy or ‘binge’ drinking is
extending into later adulthood
– E.g. 5% of 30-39 year olds drink 20+ drinks at least monthly,
up from ~2% 10 years ago

12. Attitude shifts
Clear evidence that public attitudes towards alcohol
are shifting
– Greater media concern
– More worry about alcohol as a problem
– Increased support for restrictions
– Attitude changes not limited to particular subgroups of the
population

13. Drug of ‘most concern’ for the general
community
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Alcohol
Tobacco
Meth/Amphetamines
Heroin
2001 2004 2007 2010

14. Drug causes the most deaths
50%
45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Alcohol Tobacco
Meth/Amphetamines Heroin
2001 2004 2007 2010

15. Support for restrictive policies
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
Price Outlets Trading hours
1995 1998 2001 2004 2007 2010

16. Media focus of alcohol stories
Azar, White, Bland, Livingston, Room, Chikritzhs, Durkin, Wakefield (submitted) Something’s
brewing: changing trends in alcohol coverage in Australian newspapers 2000-2011

17. Harm trends
Generally increasing harm rates over the past decade
(although road injuries and deaths are steady)
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Hospital admissions Ambulance attendances Treatment episodes
Assault Family incidents Emergency Department
2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13

18. Harm trends
In spite of promising data on consumption, rates of
problems are high and increasing
– Recent research estimates that >5,000 die each year due to
alcohol, and more than 150,000 are hospitalised
– Harms are spread fairly evenly across the age spectrum
– Higher rates of injuries among young people
– Higher rates of chronic disease in older groups
– Men generally experience higher rates of harm

19. Conclusions
Victorian and Australian alcohol trend data
provides a confusing picture
– Reasonable evidence of harm increases
– Generally stable levels of consumption, which obscure:
• Major reductions in teenage drinking
• Declines in risky drinking, particularly among young adults
• Some slight increases in drinking among older people
– Big shifts in attitudes towards alcohol

20. Conclusions
Little evidence to explain these changes
– Increased public health presence in media coverage of
alcohol may be driving or reflecting changes in public
attitudes
– Declines in youth consumption may represent a reaction
against heavier drinking cohorts
• Reasonably good evidence that teenage consumption predicts
future drinking behaviours, so current reductions are promising for
ongoing gains
• Alcopops tax and secondary supply may have contributed, but can’t
explain the degree of change observed
• The success of FebFast and Hello Sunday Morning may be a cause
of or a reflection of changes in attitudes to drinking among young
people