Educational Resources on Alcohol

Alcohol

How it looks, tastes and smells

What does it look like?

Alcohol comes in a wide range of drinks with different alcoholic strengths, colours and tastes. Alcohol often has labels with useful information, such as how many units are in the drink. All labels are required by law to display the strength of the drink (alcohol by volume, or ABV).

Is alcohol really a drug?

By Tim Woodley

Causes of alcoholism

Learn more about the causes of alcoholism to begin the rehab process. Understanding the causes of alcoholism can take time but it is important in order to start the healing process.

By Boris MacKey

What is drink spiking? How can you know if it’s happened to you, and how can it be prevented?

An article from The Conversation.

By Nicole Lee, Professor at the National Drug Research Institute (Melbourne), Curtin University & Jarryd Bartle, Sessional Lecturer, RMIT University

Drink driving

The risks, the law, the limits and the penalties.

Alcohol and your mood

Although we don’t always think of it as such, alcohol is a psychoactive substance, meaning it can radically change the way we think and feel. Here, we look at some of the ways that alcohol can change our mood and our behaviour, and how it does that.

Alcohol and the Law – The law and underage drinking

It is important to be aware of guidelines, facts and the law about alcohol in the UK.

Why young people are drinking less – and what older drinkers can learn from them

An article from The Conversation.

By Dominic Conroy, Lecturer in Psychology, University of East London

What to do when you are worried about your parent’s drinking

By Piers Henriques

‘The day I started drinking vodka in the morning, I realised I had a serious problem’

I had always been an enthusiastic drinker, but during lockdown I became progressively more dependent on it, until I reached crisis point.

By Charlotte Southall

Mum of teenager who died after drinking alcohol sends warning

By Georgia Banks

Alcohol adverts ‘commonly appeal’ to underage teenagers, study finds

Researchers say the findings indicate potential ‘weaknesses in the regulatory codes’.

By Erin Santillo & Josie Clarke

Heavier social media use linked to more frequent drinking in young people

Heavier social media use is associated with more frequent alcohol consumption among young people in the UK, according to a new UCL study.

Does alcohol cause cancer?

Yes, alcohol can cause 7 different types of cancer.

It’s alcohol itself that causes damage - what type of alcohol you drink doesn’t matter.

Whatever your drinking habits, cutting down will reduce your risk.

Alcohol-specific deaths in the UK

Main points

In 2019, there were 7,565 deaths registered in the UK that related to alcohol-specific causes, the second highest since the data time series began in 2001.

When do Brits start drinking?

Vast majority of UK adults say they tried booze well before age 18, with most having partaken by the age of 15.

By Connor Ibbetson, Data Journalist

Are you a functioning alcoholic? Know the signs

The stereotypical image of an alcoholic isn’t the case for many.

By Rachel Hosie

Are ‘soap operas’ driving young people to drink?

By Alex Barker

Almost one in four young adults now teetotal, report reveals

Report discovers that one in three young adults have reduced alcohol consumption.

By Sabrina Barr

What makes a person an alcoholic?

Written by: Dr Lars Davidsson

Edited by: Cameron Gibson-Watt