SOME BENEFITS OF ALCOHOL BANS

FINANCIAL SAVINGS
A Canadian study estimates alcohol intervention programs could save 880 lives and US$1 billion
every year.
MORTALITY

• A 10% decline in vodka sales resulted in a significant decrease in alcohol-related deaths in Russia in one year.
• Exercising, drinking less alcohol, eating fruits and vegetables, and not smoking extends life expectancy by 14 years.
• The World Health Organization finds that alcohol policies including increased taxation, reducing the number of days alcohol is available, limiting the hours alcohol is available, and raising the drinking age are all effective tools for reducing the harm done by alcohol. Specifically:
  • Increasing alcohol taxes 10% in the European Union would save 9,000 lives in a year.
  • Prohibiting European Union alcohol sales 1 day a week could avoid 123,000 years of disability and loss due to early death.

CANCER
A World Cancer Research Fund study finds reducing meat and alcohol consumption decreases cancer risk.

OTHER ILLNESSES

• The brain’s regeneration and performance are increased once alcohol consumption ceases
• Alcoholic hepatitis patients can gain complete recovery if the patient gives up alcohol and has a good diet.
• Bodybuilding.com states that bodybuilders who refrain from alcohol consumption experience benefits in terms of muscle gain, hydration, recovery, metabolism and mental focus.
• California State University (CSU) at Fresno, USA found that banning alcohol sales in public areas of athletic events resulted in a more family-friendly atmosphere.
• Following a community alcohol ban in Barrow, Alaska, USA, prenatal alcohol consumption decreased by over 30 percent.
• The website health.com reports that the benefits of an alcohol-free life include:
  • Better relationships with friends and family
  • Freedom to spend money and time on other things
  • Improved work situation and relations with colleagues relations avec les collègues
  • Better mental health
  • Making friends who are involved in life-affirming activities
• A group of former alcohol drinkers in an online forum shared the following observations on the benefits of an alcohol-free lifestyle:
  • Better health
  • More quality free time
  • More money
  • More fun time with the kids
  • Increased confidence and self respect
  • Greater appreciation of life

SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS

• After several Cambridgeshire, UK towns established alcohol bans in public places, local people noticed their improved atmosphere.
• A New Zealand liquor ban resulted in 98% less liquor offenses as well as a reduction in other crimes.
• When the Blackfeet Native American Reservation banned alcohol sales during the annual North American Indian Days, they found the following improvements four weeks later:
  • Zero traffic accidents involving Blackfeet
  • Zero arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol
  • 64% fewer disturbances reported to police
  • 44% fewer assaults
  • 75% fewer people treated at the hospital
  • 2525% fewer arraignments for disorderly conduct, public intoxication or possession of an open container of alcohol.
• An alcohol ban imposed in USA’s Barton and Carver Parks replaces unruly behavior with calm.
• Greater Shepparton City, Australia prohibits alcohol during the auto show Spring Nats 12 due to create a more peaceful and enjoyable atmosphere.
• Research in New Mexico, USA shows that Sunday bans on alcohol sales resulted in fewer collisions and traffic casualties.
• Alcohol-related crimes drop by 15% following an alcohol ban in Aberystwyth, UK.
• An alcohol ban becomes permanent on the jetty area of Coffs Harbour City, Australia, due to its success in reducing crime.
• An alcohol ban at Kinkaid Lake in the US resulted in zero swimming fatalities, fewer serious boating accidents and reduced crime.

YOUTH

• Officials reported a decrease in vandalism following an alcohol ban on the US University of Oklahoma campus.
• In the US state of Florida, raising the legal drinking age from 18 to 21 significantly reduced auto accident-related fatalities.
• A voluntary ban of alcohol sales to youth under 21 in the UK’s Marske village is made permanent as crime and anti-social behavior is reduced.
• An alcohol ban in US colleges helps overall alcohol abstention and reduces bouts of drunkenness and secondhand effects of drinking.

• In the US, treatment for drug addiction has been shown to save lives, reduce crime and rebuild families, along with:
  • 69% of those treated being drug-free one year after treatment
  • 64% reduction in arrests one year after treatment
• A vaccine has been developed in the United Kingdom that can help wean cocaine addicts by preventing a “high” from the drug.
• Research confirms that an herbal supplement, N-acetylcysteine (NAC), helps reduce cocaine cravings and may also be effective in treating heroin addiction.
• When used as a supplement to standard drug counseling, a computer program providing outpatient therapy proves helpful for addicts in becoming drug free.
• A California, USA study found that for every US$1 invested in drug treatment, US$7 was saved through reduced crime, health and welfare costs, and increased income stability.
• 60% of cocaine and heroin in the US is consumed by people who get arrested in the same year; thus, treatment that helps them to overcome drug addiction reduces crime and market demand for drugs.
• A doctor in Arizona, USA identified a new outpatient treatment for methamphetamine addicts, showing an over 60% success rate in rehabilitation.
• Since 1991, when substitution treatment became available for all heroin users in Zurich, Switzerland, the number of new addicts dropped greatly.
• Thirty percent of US inmates who were able to receive drug treatment while in prison remained drug free, with reduced likelihood of being arrested again.
• Seventy-six percent of people participating in both drug treatment programs in prison and post-prison treatment in the US remained drug-free, with increased rates of law-abiding citizenry.
• Twenty years of research in the US has demonstrated that drug treatment programs are effective in reducing crime, as well as improving the health and social function of participants.
• The Washington State Institute for Public Policy Research in the US finds that treatment programs for youth drug users are effective and can save the state between US$1,900 to US$31,200 per child.
• Drug-free workplace programs are found to result in:

  Lower absenteeism Fewer accidents Higher productivity Improved morale

  Better employee health Decreased use of and expenses for health benefits Lower corporate insurance premium costs

• The following response was rated as the best answer to a question posed on “Yahoo Ask” regarding the benefits of being drug-free:
  • No fear of police
  • No fear of needle-infected site on the body
  • No fear of 'frying' the brain
  • No fear of 'impaired' driving and thus accidents
  • Delight in being free to observe the world (vision, touch, taste, speech or hearing) without compromised senses.
  • Joy of being fully functional in a crisis or emergency
  • Ability to tell others about the joys of a drug-free life

GOVERNMENT ACTIONS

• Through the use of satellite remote sensors, China has been able to remove virtually all opium plantations and heroin processing locations.
• New Zealand Police Association suggests parental approaches that may help children avoid involvement with drugs, such as:
  • Providing constructive encouragement
  • Talking and listening as a family
  • Instilling values that promote inner self esteem
• For International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Thailand, China, and Cambodia publicly incinerates illegal drugs.
• The United Kingdom government has implemented budget reforms to encourage drug users to attend rehabilitation courses.
• Pakistan and China work together to reduce drug trafficking between their borders.
• The Colombian Navy successfully intercepted 10 tons of cocaine and stopped it from being smuggled into the country by submarine.
• A three-year anti-drug campaign in China raises awareness and increases the number of people who remain drug-free.

1. A study by the PIRE Public Services Research Institute says that California’s current strict anti-smoking laws will have saved more than 50,000 lives by 2010.
2. United Kingdom’s ban on smoking in public places reduces passive smoke effects, which are linked to loss of life for more than 11,000 people every year.
3. Thanks to the country’s smoking ban, Wales expects to avert an estimated 400 premature deaths of non-smokers annually.
4. Even people age 65 and over enjoy health benefits when they quit smoking, with overall mortality risk decreased by almost 20% and from lung cancer by 42%.
5. More than 15,000 Scots quit the nicotine habit during the first year of the country’s smoking ban.
6. 80% of Irish who have quit smoking since the ban say the smoking ban helped them; 88% said the ban helped them remain smoke-free.
7. Less than two months into England’s smoking ban in public places, over half of smokers surveyed said that had cut down on the number of cigarettes smoked.
8. In New Zealand, laws creating smoke free environments are achieving their goals of reducing dangers of second hand smoke and are expected to reduce health costs, work absenteeism, hospitalizations and tobacco-related deaths.
9. In the US, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration said that sales of tobacco to underage youth have reached all time lows in all 50 states.
10. Following the ban on smoking in public places in England, the sales of cigarettes plummeted 11.6% in on month.
11. USA’s New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that teen smoking rates had decreased 50% over the last six years, eventually preventing 8,000 premature deaths.
12. The number of young smokers aged 18 to 29 has fallen by 30% in Victoria, Australia, thanks to smoking bans in pubs and clubs.
13. The USA’s New Jersey Smoke-free Air Act encourages smokers to quit as there is less opportunity and less temptation to smoke.
14. Counseling and self-help programs that last for more than a month can help people with heart disease quit smoking, according to a review of published studies.
15. Smoking rates in Japan have been declining since 1996, reaching an all time low this year.
16. In the US, California’s anti-tobacco program has seen a 33% decline in smoking since the campaign began in 1988.

SMOKING BANS mean decreases in Acute Coronary Syndrome

1. A study reported by the American Heart Association showed that heart attack rates in Pueblo, Colorado, USA declined 27% after a smoking ban in public places was enacted, while the neighboring county with no ban experienced no change in heart attack rates.
2. Rome, Italy experienced an 11.2% decrease in acute coronary events in the first year after a smoking ban in public places went into effect.
3. Just one year after the ban on public smoking went into effect in Ireland, the incidence of acute coronary syndrome went down 11%.
4. The number of non-smokers to experience heart attacks reduced by more than two thirds after a smoking ban went into effect in Monroe County, Indiana, USA.
5. Scientists at the University of Glasgow reported that heart attacks have dropped by 17% in Scotland since smoking was banned in public last year.
6. Israeli researchers report that for people who are able to stop smoking, the increased risk of sudden cardiac death seems to disappear immediately.
7. The Medical Research Council in Norfolk, UK shows that exercising, drinking less alcohol, eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, and not smoking can extend life expectancy by 14 years.
8. The National Sanitary Institute in France announced a significant decrease in heart attack rates following the country’s smoking ban, with benefits also noted for decrease in second-hand smoke inhalation effects.
9. New York, USA experienced an 8% decline in hospital admissions for acute myocardial infarction after a comprehensive smoking ban, which translates into healthcare savings of US$56 million in one year.
10. Hospital admissions for acute heart attack in people under 60 fell by 11% in the Piedmont region of Italy after the introduction of a ban on smoking in indoor public places.

SMOKING BANS mean Better Health

1. Data from the National Population Health Survey shows those who smoke have higher rates of chronic conditions such as bronchitis, asthma and high blood pressure.
2. In a study by the European Institute of Oncology in Milan, Italy, smokers were twice as likely to develop polyps in the colon, especially those that are more likely to progress to cancer.
3. Smokers and those exposed to second hand smoke develop colon cancer about 7 years earlier than nonsmokers.
4. Women who smoke and have a specific genetic makeup are at significant risk for the development of breast cancer according to a study published by the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention
5. Non-smokers have a higher chance of keeping their teeth into old age than those who smoke.
6. To protect the health and safety of travelers, Bulgaria bans smoking on all trains.
7. According to a recent US study, those who stop smoking experience increased deep sleep cycles, thus improving their sleep quality.

SMOKING BANS mean Healthier Children

1. 700 million children - almost half the world's children - breathe air polluted by tobacco smoke.
2. An authoritative study, published by Bristol University's Institute of Child Life and Health, says that the babies of women who smoke during pregnancy are 4 times as likely to suffer Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
3. A McMaster University Study correlates smoking during pregnancy and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
4. Research from Michigan State University in the USA and The David Hide Asthma and Allergy Research Centre in the UK show that the smoking habits of mothers during pregnancy increase asthma risks in some children.
5. A Yale University study shows that teenagers who smoke, or whose mothers smoked in pregnancy, have a higher risk of hearing problems and more trouble understanding what is being said.
6. A California, USA study found that smoke toxins in cars can reach levels twice those previously believed and 60 times greater than those found in smoke-free homes. California has banned smoking in cars with children as passengers.
7. Smoking and alcohol can damage sperm, passing on altered genes to babies.
8. Dr. Shakira Franco Suglia of the Harvard School of Public Health reported that children living in neighborhoods with high levels of air pollution, or who were affected by parental smoking, scored lower on memory and intelligence tests than children living in places with clean air.
9. Children regularly exposed to secondhand smoke have more than triple the risk of lung cancer as well as higher risks of other respiratory problems later in life.

SMOKING BANS means better Working Environments

1. Within only two months of the smoking ban in Scotland, bar workers reported almost 33% less respiratory and other illnesses.
2. Non-smoking barmen in Ireland reported statistically significant improvements in measured pulmonary function tests and significant reductions in self-reported symptoms.
3. Restaurant workers exposed to tobacco smoke on the job were more likely to have a detectable level of the potent carcinogenic NNK than those who were not.
4. Nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke have a 20% higher risk of lung cancer.
5. The number of staff exposed to harmful levels of second hand smoke fell by 95% after the smoking ban in Scotland.
6. A ban on smoking in public places in Ireland saw an 83% reduction in air pollution in pubs.

SMOKING BANS are Good for Business

1. Since the public smoking ban in Great Britain, 70% of the businesses reported a neutral or positive effect.
2. 59% of the South African restaurants surveyed reported no change in revenue as a result of the smoking ban, while 22% of restaurants reported an increase.
3. In the five years since it has gone non-smoking, Aeroflot airline’s passenger flow increased by 15%, and in flights to the US, the increase was 25%.
4. In his annual report, UK Chief Medical Officer Liam Donaldson said a public smoking ban would save an estimated £2.7 billion: £680 million saved by having a healthier and more efficient workforce; £140 million saved through fewer sick days; £430 million saved from productivity loss from smoking on the job; £100 million saved from clean up costs related to cigarette smoking.