Japan: alcohol today
- 4 August 2007
- Vol. 102 (12), 1849-1862
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2007.01902.x
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to outline alcohol availability, alcohol consumption and related harm, alcohol control policy and prevention programmes in Japan, few of which have been discussed in either the Japanese or English literature. Data were collected primarily from the following two sources: statistics and survey results issued by the national government, including surveys funded by the government; and papers published since 2000, identified by searching the MEDLINE and Igaku-Chuo-Zasshi databases. These data were assessed regarding their quality and summarized. Some data presented here were produced specifically for this review. Although per capita alcohol consumption has tended to decline for more than 10 years, it has remained at a high level. Diversification of the drinking population has progressed rapidly, specifically in women, among whom alcohol consumption has increased sharply. Cross-sectional data suggest that alcohol consumption is associated with serious health and social consequences. Existing longitudinal data suggest that alcohol-related problems, especially health problems, have increased steadily over the past several decades, with few exceptions, including alcohol-related fatal road traffic accidents. Alcohol policy and prevention programmes have not developed to a level that can control these problems adequately. Specifically, the high availability of alcoholic beverages, including the lack of restrictions on sales and advertising and decreasing prices, are noted. This review provides basic information regarding alcohol availability and alcohol consumption and related harm that may facilitate the improvement of existing alcohol control measures in Japan and encourage the development of new alcohol control measures. This research revealed the scarcity of longitudinal data regarding alcohol consumption and its consequences, and the lack of several important variables, such as disability adjusted life years, for improving our understanding of the comprehensive status of alcohol in Japan.Keywords
This publication has 40 references indexed in Scilit:
- Alcohol Consumption and Mortality among Middle-aged and Elderly Japanese Men and WomenAnnals of Epidemiology, 2005
- Alcohol consumption and other risk factors for self‐reported diabetes among middle‐aged Japanese: a population‐based prospective study in the JPHC study cohort IDiabetic Medicine, 2005
- Impact of alcohol consumption upon medical care utilization and costs in men: 4‐year observation of National Health Insurance beneficiaries in JapanAddiction, 2004
- Association of aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 polymorphism with alcoholic polyneuropathy in humansNeuroscience Letters, 2004
- Alcohol Intake and Future Incidence of Hypertension in a General Japanese Population: The Hisayama StudyAlcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research, 2002
- Nationwide epidemiological survey of chronic pancreatitis in JapanThe Esophagus, 2000
- Alcohol and Substance Use among Japanese High School StudentsAlcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research, 1996
- Alcohol Intake and the Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in Middle-Aged Japanese MenStroke, 1995
- Relationship Between Age and Drinking Patterns and Drinking Problems Among Japanese, Japanese‐Americans, and CaucasiansAlcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research, 1994
- Effect of reduced alcohol consumption on blood pressure in untreated hypertensive men.Hypertension, 1993