FOR YOUR INFORMATION
We share below a number of recent developments in the social sustainability arena. As always, we rely on FIVS Members to apprise us of noteworthy matters. Please contact the FIVS Secretariat with items that may be of interest.
Drink Drive
- Governments around the world continue to consider more restrictive approaches to drink drive rules, including the following: Argentina (Chubut Province drafts law with a zero blood alcohol content (BAC) limit for drivers); Belgium (Head of federal road police reportedly calls for changing the BAC limit from 0.5 to 0.2 per mille); Germany (A survey shows 75% support for an absolute ban on alcohol for drivers); and Latvia (Stricter drink driving penalties to take effect).
Pregnancy
- Revised pregnancy warning labels for Australia & New Zealand? – On 30 June 2020, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) reportedly agreed to change the wording on alcohol beverage labels from “HEALTH WARNING” to “PREGNANCY WARNING” and extended the transition period for introducing the labels from two years to three years, citing the economic impact of the bushfires and the pandemic on the alcohol beverage industry. FSANZ reportedly rejected arguments from the industry, however, that adding red lettering to the labels would add an unreasonable cost. Public health advocates have called on state, federal, and New Zealand food ministers to approve the mandatory label when they next meet on 17 July 2020.
- Criminal liability in Poland? – The Children’s Ombudsman (Rzecznik Praw Dziecka) in Poland has reportedly called for the introduction of legislation to hold women consuming alcohol during pregnancy criminally liable. Members of the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party have reportedly expressed support for the idea, which also includes other educational and preventive measures.
Studies
- Research News: A new study published in JAMA Network Open that analysed data on nearly 20,000 participants from the University of Michigan’s Health and Retirement Study reportedly found that low to moderate drinking – compared with those who said they never drank – was associated with significantly higher cognition scores as well as with lower rates of decline. Study participants were predominately white and female, had a mean age of 62, and were given cognitive tests starting in 1996 and surveyed every other year for approximately nine years.