Authors: Seethalakshmi Ramanathan (State University of New York Upstate Medical University), Natarajan Balasubramanian (Syracuse University) and Rajeev Krishnadas (University of Glasgow).

The current economic crisis has received a lot of attention from policy makers. However, the traditional focus of the attention has been on short-term effects, such as housing and unemployment. The long-term influences of such crises, particularly on infants and young children, have generally not been examined. This study investigates the relationship between exposure to macroeconomic crises during infancy and long-term behavioral problems, including substance use and delinquency.

Authors: Craig S. Ross (Virtual Media Resources), Avalon de Bruijn (Dutch Institute for Alcohol Policy) and David Jernigan (Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health)

Regulators may attempt to reduce youth exposure to alcohol advertising by restricting times during which alcohol ads may be aired on television or radio. The Netherlands introduced such a policy and found that teenage advertising exposure increased following the time restrictions. This study uses simulation analysis and a comprehensive database of television alcohol advertising to demonstrate that time restrictions are likely to reduce advertising exposure to the youngest viewers while increasing exposure for the high-risk teenage population.

Author: EUCAM

Beers with a high alcohol content are prevalent throughout Europe. They are also easily accessible, relatively inexpensive and often packaged in ‘super-sized’ containers (up to bottles of three litres). This research was conducted by EUCAM in 16 European countries.

Author: WHO Regional Office for Europe
The action plan was endorsed by 53 European Member States at the Regional Committee for Europe in September 2011 in Baku, Azerbaijan. It includes a wide range of policies and programmes that are relatively easy and cheap to implement, can reduce the harmful use of alcohol, promote health and well-being, improve productivity, and enhance human, health and social capital across the life course from birth to old age. This action plan proposes a range of options for the 10 action areas of the global strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol that all European Member States can engage in.

Authors: Sunita Bava, Joanna Jacobus, Rachel E. Thayer (San Diego Healthcare System) and Susan F. Tapert (University of Colorado Boulder)

The influence of repeated substance use during adolescent neurodevelopment remains unclear as there have been few prospective investigations. The aims of this study were to identify longitudinal changes in fiber tract integrity associated with alcohol- and marijuana-use severity over the course of 1.5 years.