Alcohol consumption in Europe - What is needed for effective harm reduction?

Thursday, 5 December 2024 | 17:00 - 18:15 CET

Alcohol consumption is a major contributor to many NCDs, and Europe stands as the world’s highest alcohol-consuming region. According to the World Health Organization, liver disease, largely driven by alcohol consumption, is now the second leading cause of years of working life lost in Europe. Moreover, around 300,000 people in Europe die prematurely each year due to liver problems. There is a direct correlation between overall alcohol consumption and liver mortality in 21 of 28 European Union (EU) Member States. Maintaining liver health is also essential for preventing raised cholesterol.

Ongoing initiatives at the EU level, such as the EU’s Beating Cancer Plan and actions by the European Commission, including labelling ingredients and nutritional information and health warning labels on alcoholic beverages, are seen as opportunities to address the overall burden of alcohol-related diseases.

Join this Euractiv Stakeholder Workshop to discuss policy measures related to reducing and preventing alcohol-related harms. Some questions to be addressed include:

- What does a focus on health promotion and disease prevention concerning alcohol entail? What are the policy gaps in this area?
- What alcohol policy proposals could be effective and integrated into current health policy?
- How can EU policies better address alcohol-related liver disease to reduce premature deaths?
- Do current policies prioritise commercial interests over population health? How could this be addressed?
- Can we better address deprived populations who suffer most from alcoholrelated harms?

Panellists:

Marta Temido MEP, ENVI & SANT Committees, European Parliament
Tomislav Sokol MEP, ENVI and SANT Committees, European Parliament
Catherine Paradis, Technical Officer, Alcohol, Illicit Drugs and Prison Health Unit, WHO Regional Office for Europe
Dr Samuele Tonello, Senior Research Coordinator, EuroHealthNet
Florence Berteletti, Secretary General, Eurocare
Prof. Frank Murray, Policy, Public Health and Advocacy Committee Member, EASL

Please note that this event is in-person only and will not be live-streamed.

Find out more.