NEW research reveals that people want more information on alcohol warning labels (AWLs) and not less, according to the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) and Queen’s University of Belfast (QUB).
The Limerick university in conjunction with QUB found that 78 per cent of respondents to researchers supported the introduction of Ireland’s proposed alcohol warning labels.
The findings come from an online survey of 476 students and staff at TUS and QUB, led by TUS researchers Dr Frank Houghton and Jennifer Moran Stritch, working on a three-year project alongside Prof Anne Campbell and Dr Gillian Shorter from QUB.
Dr Houghton, the project’s principal investigator, said “the government’s decision to delay the implementation of mandatory alcohol warning labels in Ireland was an act of public health vandalism. This research demonstrates that people want more health-related information on labels, not less.”
The research also noted concerns including exposing children to potentially alarming imagery, desensitisation to warnings, and potential stigmatisation of pregnant women who consume alcohol.
AWLs were due to become mandatory in Ireland this year. However, in a controversial move, the Government has delayed its implementation until 2028 following pressure from the drinks industry, the researchers said.
Ireland’s proposed alcohol warning label featured both a cancer warning and a liver disease warning alongside a drinking while pregnant pictogram.
It also featured calorie information, grams of alcohol information, and a health promotion website address.
This contrasts with Ireland’s tobacco packaging warnings which have 14 different themes, with a rotating set of three images per theme.