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Beer Seen as More Dangerous than Liquor, Wine
August 11, 2000

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News Feature

When it comes to violence, all alcohol is not created equal: Beer is four times more likely to be consumed in a potentially hazardous way than liquor and wine combined, according to researcher Anita de Lucio-Brock of the Alcohol Related Injuries and Violence (ARIV) project.

In a presentation prepared for the recent Global Alcohol Policy Advocacy Conference, de Lucio-Brock said that 81 percent of beer consumed is done so in a hazardous way, compared to 16 percent of liquor and 4 percent of wine. That's just one factor that advocates must consider when tackling the interrelated problems of alcohol abuse and violence: research has shown that up to 66 percent of all homicides and sexual assaults are related to alcohol, according to de Lucio-Brock, and two-thirds of all incidents of partner abuse involve alcohol.

Drinking also plays a role in gun violence: research has shown that 35 to 63 percent of all firearms victims had alcohol in their blood, as did 18-65 percent of all suicide victims. "Alcohol may be a factor in spontaneous or impulsive suicides," wrote de Lucio-Brock.

De Lucio-Brock urged both anti-violence activists and alcohol-control advocates to come together around an environmental model of prevention and address the problem of alcohol-related violence in its political, social and economic context. She noted, for example, that studies in California have shown a relationship between the density of alcohol outlets and violent crime.

ARIV is a project of the Trauma Foundation and is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. SHARE   

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