BMJ  2008;336:573 (15 March), doi:10.1136/bmj.39513.714664.80

Letters

Tackling alcohol misuse

Typical British malaise

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

It is depressing that even when the BMJ recruits an opinion on the UK’s alcohol problems from outside the UK,¹ the barren response is the same as for so many of our pressing national issues—ban it, exclude it, repair it, or tax it to the level of inaccessibility. Why are we ever more incapable of looking at the roots of a problem—whether it is social violence, failing education, Clostridium difficile infections on wards, paedophilia, or other ills—and trying to remedy them. Weren’t we always taught at medical school that prevention is better than cure?

We are supposed to be part of a European community, within which alcohol taxes are generally low because most citizens have a responsible approach to alcohol. A few Nordic countries, Britain, and Ireland are exceptions. Our culture of "let’s go out and get pissed"—widely admired here, even if secretly—is alien to people in mainland Europe.

What . . . [Full text of this article]

¹ Bedford Hospital, Bedford MK42 9DJ

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