y Anjali Sharma
UNITED NATIONS – World Health Agency on Monday urged Nordic countries to keep a lid on alcohol sales, or risk reversing the positive impact of strict regulations put in place years ago.
The governments in Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and the Faroe Islands have restricted supermarkets and private retailers from selling stronger alcoholic beverages, WHO stated.
WHO said that this policy has resulted in some of the lowest alcohol consumption levels in the European Union which by contrast is the booziest region globally, with drinking habits “largely unchanged” for over 10 years.
WHO Dr. Carina Ferreira-Borges said that the Nordic model is at risk however, from legislative initiatives in the region that signal a potential shift toward privatization of alcohol sales.
In Sweden, a court is hearing a challenge to the Government’s exclusive rights to online sales of alcohol, while proposed laws would permit sales of alcoholic beverages in farm shops.
Dr Ferreira-Borges explained that Nordic countries’ alcohol controls that involve increasing taxes and raising prices, limiting availability and restricting advertising have reduced alcohol-related harms.
She insisted that these span from “liver disease, cancers and cardiovascular conditions, to injuries and drownings”.
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