“The more adolescents are exposed to films where characters consume large amounts of alcohol, the more they are likely to start drinking or progress to binge drinking” says the last BMJ Study on the impact of alcohol exposure in movies and in family settings. The results of the study echo previous studies and reinforce the need to increase efforts in alcohol exposure, notably for children and adolescents.
The British Medical Journal published the results of a study conducted with a group of 10-14 years old adolescents, in the US, over a 2 year period. The study aimed at looking at the impact of exposure to alcohol consumption and alcohol brands in movies as well as the importance of the familial environment in alcohol intake.
With an average 80% to 95% of movies portraying either alcohol use, in the majority of the cases in a positive way, or alcohol brand, exposure to alcohol in movies accounted for 28% of the alcohol onset and 20% of the binge drinking transitions.
Concerning the impact of the familial environment, i.e whether alcoholic drinks are available at home, whether parents drink or not, etc, the study concluded that it had an impact on adolescents’ likelihood to start drinking rather than increasing their consumption leading to binge drinking. Whether the onset begins at an early age or later also has an impact on the adolescents take up of the behaviour.
The results of the study echo previous studies and reinforces the need to increase efforts in prevention measures, notably in further restricting exposure to alcohol marketing (using even more sophisticated techniques) and exposure in movies. Family focused interventions would have more impact on alcohol onset.
– [->art3847]
