In this newsletter: MUP in Wales, new data from NHS Digital, Sober Spring and more!


** Welcome to the Alcohol Change UK February newsletter!
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This month we have been preparing for the introduction of minimum unit pricing (MUP) in Wales, getting ready for Sober Spring and wrapping up Dry January. Read on to find out more about MUP, the latest NHS digital statistics about alcohol-related hospital admissions, the latest news and more.

In this newsletter:
* Sober Spring is coming (#SobSpring)
* New statistics on hospital admissions from NHS Digital (#NHS)
* Invitation to tender: low and no-alcohol drinks (#ITT)
* Fully-funded PhD Studentship opportunity (#PHD)
* Minimum unit pricing in Wales (#MUP)
* Alcohol news (#Newsroundup)
+ Study shows that drinking during pregnancy can harm the unborn child
+ Alcohol off-sales fall in first year of minimum pricing in Scotland
+ Dry January boosts low- and no-alcohol drinks sales
+ Higher alcohol taxes "could benefit disadvantaged groups"
* Latest blogs (#Latestblogs)


** Sober Spring is coming
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This year we are again partnering with author Catherine Gray to bring you Sober Spring: a three-month break from alcohol, running from 21 March until 21 June. It’s the perfect follow-up challenge to Dry January, and a great route to change your relationship with alcohol in the long-term.

Sign up ([link removed]) to receive weekly emails and get lots more tools to help you have a fantastic Sober Spring.
Find out more about Sober Spring ([link removed])


** New statistics on hospital admissions from NHS Digital
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New data ([link removed]) shows that alcohol-related hospital admissions in England have increased from 2017/18 to 2018/19. These figures show a continuing trend. There were 1.26 million alcohol-related hospital admissions (broad measure) in 2018/19, up a huge 8% in one year, and now at the highest levels since records began. It’s not just that hospital admissions are increasing across the board: alcohol is the cause of an increasing proportion of admissions, with 7.4% of admissions now related to alcohol. To put this in perspective, alcohol is now a factor in one in every 13 hospital admissions.

Admissions are not evenly spread among the population either. The increase in admissions is more pronounced among men than women (steeper curve). While alcohol-specific admissions for under-18s continue to fall (now 32 per 100,000 down from 72 per 100,000 ten years previously), alcohol-related admissions are rising rapidly in older age groups. For the broad measure, 47% of total patients are aged 55-74 and the 65+ age group is experiencing the highest rate of admissions (1,049 per 100,000).
Read the analysis from Alcohol Policy UK ([link removed])


** Invitation to tender: low and no alcohol drinks
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Earlier this month we released an invitation to tender. We're commissioning a literature review about low-alcohol and alcohol-free drinks. For more details click here ([link removed]) .


** PhD Studentship opportunity: investigating Dry January
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We are pleased to offer, in partnership with the University of Sheffield, a fully-funded PhD Studentship as part of the ESRC White Rose Doctoral Training Partnership. The project focuses on investigating Dry January and temporary alcohol abstinence, addressing a current evidence gap in the area of psychological and social mechanisms through which people change their drinking behaviour. Applications should be sent in by 13 March 2020.

Interested? Find out more and apply here ([link removed]) .


** Minimum unit pricing in Wales
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One in twenty deaths in Wales every year is related to alcohol consumption. Alcohol misuse places a heavy burden on emergency services and local councils. As a result, the Welsh Government is introducing minimum unit pricing for alcohol on 2 March. This means that the lowest price at which one unit of alcohol can be sold is 50p.

Our Q and A addresses how the change will affect individuals and why we support the measure.
Read more about MUP in Wales ([link removed])


** Alcohol news
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** Study shows that drinking during pregnancy can harm the unborn child
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The research, published on the International Journal of Epidemiology, was a systematic review of 23 previously published studies on the effects that consuming alcohol during pregnancy can have on a child. It found that prenatal exposure to alcohol was a likely cause of poorer cognitive function, and to a lesser extent of lower birth weight.
Read the study here ([link removed] )


** Alcohol off-sales fall in first year of minimum pricing in Scotland
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The first analysis of off-trade alcohol sales a year on from the introduction of minimum unit pricing (MUP) in Scotland has been released, confirming a fall in sales there compared to a rise in England and Wales. MUP will be implemented in Wales next month – you can read more about this above and here ([link removed]) .
Read more ([link removed])


** Dry January boosts low- and no-alcohol drinks sales
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Supermarket sales of no- and low-alcohol beer jumped 37% last month, with more than four million people across the UK having a Dry January. The rise in sales is part of a wider growth in popularity of no- and low-alcohol drinks in recent times, with sales of no- and low-alcohol beer doubling in the last four years.
Find out more ([link removed])


** Higher alcohol taxes "could benefit disadvantaged groups"
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New research from the Institute of Alcohol Studies suggests that alcohol taxes account for a similar share of the incomes and budgets of rich and poor households alike, and at worst are only mildly regressive. The study suggests, higher alcohol taxes could actually benefit disadvantaged groups, who would likely see greater health benefits from lower drinking and receive a greater share of any increase in public spending.
Read the report ([link removed])


** Latest blogs
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** Dave's story: "I feel very lucky"
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Dave’s friend challenged him to go three months without alcohol, just to see if he could. He hasn’t looked back since!
Read the blog ([link removed])


** A bartender's tips for going dry
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Just because you’re not drinking doesn’t mean you should avoid all pubs and bars. In fact, it’s the perfect time to explore them!

Read the blog ([link removed])

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