Revision of the Australian guidelines to reduce health risks from drinking alcohol.

INTRODUCTION: The Australian guidelines to reduce health risks from drinking alcohol were released in 2020 by the National Health and Medical Research Council. Based on the latest evidence, the guidelines provide advice on how to keep the risk of harm from alcohol low. They refer to an Australian standard drink (10 g ethanol). RECOMMENDATIONS: •Guideline 1: To reduce the risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury, healthy men and women should drink no more than ten standard drinks a week and no more than four standard drinks on any one day. The less you drink, the lower your risk of harm from alcohol. •Guideline 2: To reduce the risk of injury and other harms to health, children and people under 18 years of age should not drink alcohol. •Guideline 3: To prevent harm from alcohol to their unborn child, women who are pregnant or planning a pregnancy should not drink alcohol. For women who are breastfeeding, not drinking alcohol is safest for their baby. CHANGES AS RESULT OF THE GUIDELINE: The recommended limit for healthy adults changed from two standard drinks per day (effectively 14 per week) to ten per week. The new guideline states that the less you drink, the lower your risk of harm from alcohol. The recommended maximum on any one day remains four drinks (clarified from previously "per drinking occasion"). Guidance is clearer for pregnancy and breastfeeding, and for people aged less than 18 years, recommending not drinking.

Methanol Mitigation during Manufacturing of Fruit Spirits with Special Consideration of Novel Coffee Cherry Spirits.

Methanol is a natural ingredient with major occurrence in fruit spirits, such as apple, pear, plum or cherry spirits, but also in spirits made from coffee pulp. The compound is formed during fermentation and the following mash storage by enzymatic hydrolysis of naturally present pectins. Methanol is toxic above certain threshold levels and legal limits have been set in most jurisdictions. Therefore, the methanol content needs to be mitigated and its level must be controlled. This article will review the several factors that influence the methanol content including the pH value of the mash, the addition of various yeast and enzyme preparations, fermentation temperature, mash storage, and most importantly the raw material quality and hygiene. From all these mitigation possibilities, lowering the pH value and the use of cultured yeasts when mashing fruit substances is already common as best practice today. Also a controlled yeast fermentation at acidic pH facilitates not only reduced methanol formation, but ultimately also leads to quality benefits of the distillate. Special care has to be observed in the case of spirits made from coffee by-products which are prone to spoilage with very high methanol contents reported in past studies.

An overview of chemical contaminants and other undesirable chemicals in alcoholic beverages and strategies for analysis.

The presence of chemical contaminant in alcoholic beverages is a widespread and notable problem with potential implications for human health. With the complexity and wide variation in the raw materials, production processes, and contact materials involved, there are a multitude of opportunities for a diverse host of undesirable compounds to make their way into the final product-some of which may currently remain unidentified and undetected. This review provides an overview of the notable contaminants (including pesticides, environmental contaminants, mycotoxins, process-induced contaminants, residues of food contact material [FCM], and illegal additives) that have been detected in alcoholic products thus far based on prior reviews and findings in the literature, and will additionally consider the potential sources for contamination, and finally discuss and identify gaps in current analytical strategies. The findings of this review highlight a need for further investigation into unwanted substances in alcoholic beverages, particularly concerning chemical migrants from FCMs, as well as a need for comprehensive nontargeted analytical techniques capable of determining unanticipated contaminants.

Industry Actor Use of Research Evidence: Critical Analysis of Australian Alcohol Policy Submissions.

OBJECTIVE: Governments' limited adoption of evidence-based policies to reduce alcohol-related harm has been partly attributed to alcohol industry influence. A better understanding of industry political strategy may help protect public policy against vested interests. We examined how industry actors used scientific evidence in their submissions to government alcohol policy consultations. METHOD: We conducted a content analysis of 214 submissions from industry actors in 21 Australian public consultations between 2013 and 2017. Represented industry actors included alcohol producers and retailers, trade associations, licensees, and associated entities that derive commercial benefit from alcohol (e.g., advertising companies). Adapting an existing framework, we classified industry practices into two categories: (a) misuse of evidence and (b) denial of the effectiveness of evidence-based strategies. RESULTS: Almost all submissions (91%) denied the effectiveness of evidence-based strategies; the most common denial practices were making unsubstantiated claims about adverse effects of policies (76%) and promoting alternatives without evidence (71%). The misuse of scientific evidence was apparent in 66% of submissions. Trade associations, producers, and retailers were most likely to use such practices. CONCLUSIONS: The extent to which the examined industry actors misused scientific evidence in their submissions to a wide range of alcohol policy consultations in Australia suggests the need for governments to consider excluding the industry from consultation on the regulation of alcohol.

Public Health versus Alcohol Industry Compliance Laws: A Case of Industry Capture?

This article confirms that industry compliance and enforcement processes are an essential consideration in the growing pantheon of legal and commercial determinants of public health. While alcohol control laws vary between individual jurisdictions, their development and application are confronted by a common threat of undue industry influence or capture. This necessitates a greater understanding of this phenomenon to better inform a collective and effective international public health response. New South Wales Australia, has developed a layer of alcohol industry compliance laws in the form of disciplinary schemes. This article critically explicates the first of these, the Violent Venues Scheme (VVS), to determine the nature and extent of any capture. This would significantly compromise harm minimisation statutory objects and disrupt the democratic process and the rule of law. In contrast, an influential industry identity, attributed the earlier last drinks laws, VVS and a related scheme as causing the alleged destruction of Sydney's nighttime economy and fun. The research also analyses the indispensible role of a neoliberal paradigm in legitimising exclusive relationships between governments and industry. This is indelibly imprinted on the alcohol regulatory landscape.

Science and Health Policies to Tackle Chronic Diseases in Chile.

Chile has experienced rapid epidemiological transitions characterized by decreasing infant mortality, population aging, and a shift towards obesity with an increase in noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Today, tobacco, alcohol, and ultraprocessed foods are the main risk factors for these diseases. Based on Chile's experience in tobacco control, we discuss paths to make progress in population evidence-based strategies to improve overall community health.

Effects of Restricting High Alcohol Content Beverages on Crime in California.

Background: Policy restrictions on malt liquor sales have been adopted in several cities throughout the United States in an effort to reduce crime around off-premise alcohol outlets. Although California has implemented the most restrictions on malt liquor sales, no studies in the published literature have evaluated the effects of these policies on reducing crime. Objectives: We evaluated the effectiveness of malt liquor restrictions on reducing crime around off-premise alcohol outlets in six California cities. We hypothesized that adoption of malt liquor policies would be significantly associated with decreases in crime within areas surrounding targeted outlets. Methods: We used an interrupted time-series design with control areas to examine the relationship between malt liquor policies and crime reduction. We compared crime rates three years prior and following adoption of malt liquor policies. Results: Malt liquor policies were associated with modest decreases in crime, largely Part II or less serious crimes such as simple assaults. The effectiveness of malt liquor policies varied by city, with reductions in crime greatest in Sacramento where policies were more restrictive than in other cities. Malt liquor policies were also associated with small increases in nuisance crime, especially in San Francisco. Conclusion: Results suggest that malt liquor policies may have modest effects on reducing crime when they include strong restrictions on the sale of malt liquor products. Results may be informative to other cities considering whether to maintain or change their malt liquor policies as well as cities considering placing restrictions on other high content beverages.

Proliferation of 'healthy' alcohol products in Australia: implications for policy.

OBJECTIVES: The Australian alcohol industry has observed that increased health consciousness among consumers is a threat to industry revenue, but also an opportunity for innovation and growth within the sector. METHODS: This paper examines how the alcohol industry has responded to a perceived increase in health consciousness among consumers, considers policy implications and provides recommendations to address supposedly healthier alcohol products. We collected examples of new product developments and monitored alcohol industry publications for information on key trends and comments from alcohol company executives to inform the paper. RESULTS: We found that existing regulations do not appear to be sufficient to adequately restrict health-related claims made by alcohol marketers and producers, as alcohol products continue to be advertised in association with health. Research shows that this can have significant implications for the way consumers view these products. LESSONS LEARNT: Restrictions on health-related claims should form part of broader reforms to alcohol marketing that should include strong, independent, legislated controls.

Ability of Saccharomyces cerevisiae MC87-46 to assimilate isomaltose and its effects on sake taste.

Recently, wild strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae isolated from a variety of natural resources have been used to make bread, beer, wine, and sake. In the current study, we isolated wild S. cerevisiae MC strain from the carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus L) flower and produced sake using its cerulenin-resistant mutant strain MC87-46. Then, we characterized the components, including ethanol, amino acids, organic acids, and sugars, in the fermented sake. Sake brewed with MC87-46 is sweet owing to the high content of isomaltose, which was at a concentration of 44.3 mM. The low sake meter value of -19.6 is most likely due to this high isomaltose concentration. The genomic DNA of MC87-46 encodes for isomaltases IMA1, IMA2, IMA3, IMA4 and IMA5, as well as the isomaltose transporter gene, AGT1. However, these genes were not induced in MC87-46 by isomaltose, and the strain did not possess isomaltase activity. These results show that MC87-46 cannot utilize isomaltose, resulting in its accumulation in the fermented sake. Isomaltose concentrations in sake brewed with MC87-46 were 24.6-fold more than in commercial sake. These findings suggest that MC87-46 may be useful for commercial application in Japanese sake production because of its unique flavour and nutrient profile.

Assessing the impact of corn variety and Texas terroir on flavor and alcohol yield in new-make bourbon whiskey.

The whiskey industry is dominated by whiskey styles with recipes that contain corn as the primary grain. However, little research has been conducted to investigate whiskey specific distinctions arising from different corn varieties and growing environments (i.e. terroir). Further, no studies have investigated the aroma or flavor impacts of different varieties and terroirs. Here, three different commodity yellow dent hybrid corn varieties were grown on different farms in Texas, spanning from the Texas Panhandle to the Mexico-United States border. Using novel small-batch mashing techniques, a newly developed new-make (i.e. unaged whiskey,immediate by-product of distillation) bourbon sensory lexicon, a trained sensory panel, high-performance liquid chromatography, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry/olfactometry (GC-MS/O), we report for the first time a method for evaluating sample effects on alcohol yield and flavor in new-make bourbon whiskey. We discover that variety, terroir and their interactions, previously ignored, can substantially affect valuable sensory aspects of whiskey, suggesting the importance of scientifically evaluating corn genetics and agronomy for developing better whiskey. Excitingly, our data suggest milled corn with higher levels of benzadehyde, readily measured by GC-MS/O, correlates with improved sensory aspects of distillate, which must be expensively evaluated using a trained human sensory panel.

Analysis of Scotch Whisky by 1H NMR and chemometrics yields insight into its complex chemistry.

Scotch Whisky has been analysed as a complex mixture in its raw form using high resolution Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and previously developed water and ethanol suppression techniques. This has allowed for the positive identification of 25 compounds in Scotch Whisky by means of comparison to reference standards, spike-in experiments, and advanced 1D and 2D NMR experiments. Quantification of compounds was hindered by signal overlap, though peak alignment strategies were largely successful. Statistical total correlation spectroscopy (STOCSY) yielded information on signals arising from the same compound or compounds of similar origin. Statistical analysis of the spectra was performed using Independent and Principal Components Analysis (ICA, PCA) as well as Orthogonal Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (OPLS-DA). Several whisky production parameters were successfully modelled, including blend or malt status, use of peated malt, alcohol strength, generic authentication and maturation wood type, whilst age and geographical origin could not be modelled.

An organoleptic survey of meads made with lactic acid-producing yeasts.

We previously reported the isolation a suite of wild lactic acid-producing yeasts (LAYs) that enable "primary souring" during beer fermentation without the use of lactic acid bacteria. With sour meads gaining popularity in modern mead making, we were interested in exploring the same primary souring approach to traditional semi-sweet meads. In this study, we utilized 13 LAY strains to produce semi-sweet meads using a standardized batch of honey must to ensure consistent starting conditions. Thirteen 11-L batches of mead were prepared, and each was inoculated with one of the LAY strains, along with two control batches inoculated with champagne yeast. The initial pH and specific gravity were measured for each batch before inoculation. Traditional organic staggered nutrient addition was utilized for the first 72 h of fermentation with specific gravities being taken throughout the mead making process. Meads were racked, tasted, stabilized, cold crashed, bottled, and transported to the American Mead Maker's Association 2018 Conference in Broomfield, Colorado. There, organoleptic surveys were conducted on these meads utilizing an array of tasters with varying levels of mead sensory analysis experience. The results of the sensory analysis, focusing on aroma and flavor, are discussed.

Multiplex PCR for rapid identification of major lactic acid bacteria genera in cider and other fermented foods.

Lactobacillus, Pediococcus, Oenococcus and Leuconostoc are the main Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) genera present in cider as they are able to survive this hostile environment. LAB play a significant role in cider quality, for example in the process of malolactic fermentation, even though they can also be involved in spoilage of cider (production of biogenic amines, exopolysaccharides, off-flavours…). In this context a better monitoring of the fermentation process is a matter of interest to guarantee cider quality. In the present study, we designed a genus-specific multiplex PCR for a rapid and simultaneous detection of the four main LAB genera involved in cider production. This multiplex PCR worked equally with purified genomic DNA of bacterial isolates and with colonies directly picked from agar plates. This new PCR method was also successfully extended to wine and dairy isolates, and thus constitutes an effective tool to quickly identify LAB associated with fermented foods. Moreover, many biodiversity studies would also benefit from this fast, cheap and reliable identification method.

Exploring the impact of public health teams on alcohol premises licensing in England and Scotland (ExILEnS): procotol for a mixed methods natural experiment evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Recent regulatory changes in the system by which premises are licensed to sell alcohol, have given health representatives a formal role in the process in England and Scotland. The degree to which local public health teams engage with this process varies by locality in both nations, which have different licensing regimes. This study aims to critically assess the impact on alcohol-related harms - and mechanisms - of public health stakeholders' engagement in alcohol premises licensing from 2012 to 2018, comparing local areas with differing types and intensities of engagement, and examining practice in Scotland and England. METHODS: The study will recruit 20 local authority areas where public health stakeholders have actively engaged with the alcohol premises licensing system (the 'intervention') and match them to a group of 20 lower activity areas using genetic matching. Four work packages are included: (1) Structured interviews and documentary analysis will examine the type and level of intervention activity from 2012 to 2018, creating a novel composite measure of the intensity of such activity and will assess the local licensing system and potential confounding activities over the same period. In-depth interviews with public health, licensing, police and others will explore perceived mechanisms of change, acceptability, and impact. (2) Using longitudinal growth models and time series analyses, the study will evaluate the impact of high and low levels of activity on alcohol-related harms using routine data from baseline 2009 to 2018. (3) Intervention costs, estimated National Health Service cost savings and health gains will be evaluated using the Sheffield Alcohol Policy Model to estimate impact on alcohol consumption and health inequalities. (4) The study will engage public health teams to create a new theory of change for public health involvement in the licensing process using our data. We will share findings with local, national and international stakeholders. DISCUSSION: This interdisciplinary study examines, for the first time, whether and how public health stakeholders' involvement in alcohol licensing impacts on alcohol harms. Using mixed methods and drawing on complex systems thinking, it will make an important contribution to an expanding literature evaluating interventions not suited to traditional epidemiological research.

Informing drinkers: Can current UK alcohol labels be improved?

BACKGROUND: Alcohol labeling provides a relatively low-cost, population-level approach to providing information about alcohol's content and harms. METHOD: We conducted an online between-subjects experiment with two tasks to examine the impact of alcohol labels (n = 1884). In one task, participants were randomized to view one of four different unit labels (including labels currently used by the alcohol industry and novel labels which provide more information about how the number of units relates to recommended drinking guidelines). We assessed participants' accuracy of estimating weekly serving limits of alcohol. In a second task, participants were randomized to view one of eight health warnings (which varied according to message content, specificity, and framing). We assessed the motivation to quit after viewing the health warning. RESULTS: Accuracy of estimating weekly serving limits of alcohol was greater for participants who viewed novel unit labels compared to the industry standard labels. Motivation to drink less was higher amongst participants who had viewed both cancer and negatively framed messages, compared to mental health and positively framed messages. CONCLUSION: Existing unit labels used by the alcohol industry can be improved; the inclusion of unit information per serving and how these relate to low-risk drinking guidelines may be important for facilitating consumer understanding. Health warning labels should be included alongside units to provide consumers with information about the harms associated with alcohol and discourage riskier drinking behavior.

Democracy and power in alcohol premises licensing: A qualitative interview study of the Scottish public health objective.

INTRODUCTION AND AIMS: There is international interest in how the availability of alcohol can be controlled to reduce harms. An objective of 'protecting and improving public health' was introduced to alcohol premises licensing in Scotland in 2005, resulting in public health actors engaging with licensing in new ways. We aimed to explore their experiences, including perceptions of the distribution of power, and constraints on their influence and that of the general public within the licensing system. DESIGN AND METHODS: In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 public health actors who had recent and extensive experience of involvement in local licensing in 20 Scottish licensing jurisdictions. Interviews were audio-recorded and analysed using an inductive framework approach. RESULTS: Public health actors reported experiencing the licensing process as inherently unfair, with structures and traditions that were largely unhelpful to their efforts to support the public health objective. These included influence exerted by local officials, the formal and quasi-judicial conduct of licensing meetings, and the disparity in resources available to public health actors versus licence applicants-with many larger applicants engaging specialist lawyers to represent their interests. The influence of public opinion-through, for instance, elected representatives' perceptions of public attitudes, consultation exercises and local 'licensing forums'-was seen as having a limited effect on decision-making. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Changes to Scottish alcohol licensing ostensibly designed to enhance democratic engagement and promote public health, were as yet insufficient to change the system, or empower stakeholders, to fully achieve those goals.

Awareness of the Link between Alcohol Consumption and Cancer across the World: A Review.

Since 1988, the International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified alcohol as a Group 1 carcinogen, the highest level of risk. Growing evidence suggests that alcohol increases the risk of several types of cancer including breast, bowel, prostate, and liver, and accounts for a significant proportion of preventable cancers. Despite ample evidence of this relationship, public awareness is less clear. Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, we reviewed 32 studies examining lay awareness of alcohol as a risk factor for cancer in 16 countries. Our results show that awareness appears to be low and varies internationally; it is relatively higher in the United Kingdom, Morocco, and Australia. Methodologic differences in assessment obfuscate cross-country and cross-sample comparisons. In general, people are more likely to endorse alcohol as a risk factor when presented with a list of possible risk factors than when asked to list risk factors in an open-ended format. Attempts to increase awareness have been limited and constitute a significant public health need. We provide potential strategies to increase awareness, such as alcohol bottle labeling and fostering patient/physician discussions regarding the link. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 27(4); 429-37. ©2018 AACR.

Acerca de la imposición sobre bebidas alcohólicas en España / On alcoholic beverage taxation in Spain

Objetivo: Revisión sistemática de las elasticidades-precio de las bebidas alcohólicas para identificar qué tipo de variables deben tenerse en cuenta antes de proponer cualquier medida de tipo fiscal. Método: Revisión sistemática en EBSCOhost de artículos que incluyen un su resumen las palabras «alcohol» y «elasticidad», así como «alcohol» y «tax», en el título y los resúmenes durante los últimos 20 años en revistas académicas en lengua inglesa. Resultados: Se han encontrado 11 referencias bibliográficas. Si bien las elasticidades s-precio son similares en la mayor parte de los países, existe heterogeneidad según diversas características, como sexo, edad, nivel de consumo y tipo de bebida. Políticas ad-hoc han resultado inefectivas a causa del efecto sustitución y han resultado regresivas al impactar en colectivos con niveles de consumo y renta bajos. Conclusión: Las políticas fiscales deberían aplicarse a todas las bebidas alcohólicas en función del volumen de alcohol, y cualquier medida como un precio mínimo por unidad debe acompañarse de políticas complementarias (AU)

Objective: Review the price elasticity of alcoholic beverages to identify the characteristics we should take into account to make a tax policy proposal. Method: Systematic review of articles in EBSCOhost that include in their abstract and title the words alcohol and elasticity and alcohol and tax, over the last 20 years in academic journals in English. Results: We found 11 references. Although price elasticity is quite similar across countries, it is heterogeneous with regard to gender, age, consumption level and type of beverage. Ad-hoc policies proved ineffective due to the substitution effect, and regressive in their impact on populations with lower levels of income and consumption. Conclusion: Tax policies should be applied to all alcoholic beverages based on their volume of alcohol and all measures, such as the minimum price per unit, should be complemented with other policies (AU)

Improving flavor metabolism of Saccharomyces cerevisiae by mixed culture with Wickerhamomyces anomalus for Chinese Baijiu making.

Yeasts are the most important microorganisms in the fermentation of Chinese Baijiu and the interaction of these yeasts could impact the quality of Baijiu. In this study, we initially characterized the Baijiu yeasts and evaluated their fermentation potential. Wickerhamomyces anomalus GZ3 and Saccharomyces cerevisiae G20 were found to generate high yields of ethyl acetate (2.76 g/L) and 2-phenylethanol, respectively. Results also indicated that the use of W. anomalus along with S. cerevisiae increased volatile compounds production, the maximum ethyl acetate production was observed in S. cerevisiae and W. anomalus at 106:106 ratio and have increased by 33 % compared with single culture of W. anomalus. Besides, there was a significant increase of 2-phenylethanol (3.29 g/L) production in single culture of S. cerevisiae with the addition of l-phenylalanine. However, the conversion of l-phenylalanine in mixed culture had significant impact on the yeasts interaction and end flavor of Baijiu. Thus, the present study provided new insights into yeasts interactions in Baijiu fermentation and the effect of some primary metabolites on the end flavor and Baijiu quality.

Can a Label Help me Drink in Moderation? A Review of the Evidence on Standard Drink Labelling.

INTRODUCTION: Understanding the concept of a standard drink (SD) is foundational knowledge to many public health policies aimed at reducing alcohol-related harms. These policies include adhering to low-risk drinking guidelines, screening brief intervention and referral activities, and counter alcohol-impaired driving initiatives. A lack of awareness of SDs might preclude the effectiveness of these interventions. A systematic review was conducted to review the evidence about how effective alcohol labels are in communicating SD information to the consumer. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted to identify peer-reviewed articles and grey literature from relevant indexes from January 1990 to January 2016. Additionally, policy makers and researchers in countries where standard drink labels (SDLs) have been implemented were consulted to help identify relevant literature. The search strategy was focused on the impact of SDLs relative to a range of outcomes, including awareness of SDs, pouring behaviors, and consumption patterns. RESULTS: Eleven records were eligible for inclusion. The evidence suggests that knowledge of the definition of an SD is low. However, SDLs can help individuals more accurately identify and pour an SD. SDLs need to be supported by educational initiatives to help the consumer understand the SD information provided on the beverage container. To date, there has been no comprehensive evaluation of the impact of SDLs. CONCLUSIONS: SDLs have the potential to increase awareness of SDs and facilitate the monitoring of personal alcohol consumption in the context of a comprehensive alcohol strategy. However, their impact on drinking behaviors requires further exploration, especially among high-risk populations.