Alcohol backing raises risk of athletes drinking more

http://monash.edu/news/releases/show/alcohol-backing-raises-risk-of-athletes-drinking-more

Alcohol sponsorship and hazardous drinking in UK (United Kingdom, aka Great Britain, aka England) athletes are linked, a new study has found.

The research, led by Monash University and the University of Manchester, is the first to examine alcohol sponsorship of athletes in the UK, and comes at a time when there are calls in Australia, New Zealand, UK, Ireland, and South Africa for greater restriction or bans on alcohol sponsorship and advertising in sport. The research was published today in the scientific journal Addiction.

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Those sportspeople receiving alcohol sponsorship consumed more and had higher odds of hazardous drinking after accounting for factors such as type of sport played, age, gender, disposable income, and region.

Alcohol consumption was found to be high in athletes overall. However, 50 per cent of those sponsored by an alcohol-related industry had scores on the World Health Organisation’s Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test that indicated the need for brief counselling and further monitoring of drinking, compared with 39 per cent of non-sponsored athletes.

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The study, funded by Alcohol Research UK, mirrors findings from countries such as Australia and New Zealand that have similar alcohol and sport sponsorship and advertising arrangements. However, the study went further by testing the alcohol industry’s argument that the effect of sponsorship on alcohol consumption may be unique to New Zealand or due to heavy drinkers seeking out alcohol sponsorship. The study results show that the effect of sponsorship on drinking remains after accounting for sponsorship seeking and other factors.

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