Behavioural change to tobacco, alcohol,diet and impact on health
Minister Corcoran Kennedy highlighted importance of price measures in changing behaviour in relation to cigarettes, alcohol and unhealthy diets as she opened a health promotion conference in Liverpool. She highlighted the importance of price measures to encourage behavioural change in relation to tobacco use, alcohol and unhealthy diets and their impact
on health systems.
Price strategies can encourage behavioural change regarding tobacco, alcohol and unhealthy diets
Minister Corcoran Kennedy said:
“When it comes to health promotion and encouraging behavioural change in relation to tobacco, alcohol and unhealthy diets what we need is a a whole of government and a whole of society approach. This is crucial if we are to be successful in stemming the tide of NCDs and their impact on our populations.”
The challenges for the health sector, remains persuading users of the health and economic dividend in pursuing these. The Minister pointed out that tobacco use is one an area where the importance of economic incentives can be clearly seen.
“Tobacco use is a significant cause of ill-health in Ireland. The 2015 Healthy Ireland Survey found that 23% of adults 15 years or older are current smokers. Almost 6000 of our population die annually from tobacco related disease and tobacco use has been estimated to cost Irish society a total of €10.7 billion annually in healthcare, productivity and other costs.
In reference to measures to reduce alcohol consumption.
“Our aim is to reduce alcohol consumption to the OECD average and to reduce binge drinking.
The Government is tackling this with the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill which is the first ever public health legislation on alcohol and among the most far-reaching in Europe. This will, among other measures, bring in minimum unit pricing to tackle cheap alcohol.”