A Unified Response to Alcohol Harm Across Europe
At the 2025 European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) Congress in Amsterdam, health professionals and policy leaders announced a powerful new initiative to prevent and reduce alcohol harm in Europe. According to Medscape, the newly formed European Health Alliance on Alcohol brings together a cross-sectoral coalition of health organisations and experts. Its mission is to reduce alcohol-related illnesses, injuries, and deaths by advocating for evidence-based policy solutions and boosting public awareness.
This effort comes at a critical time. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) European Region, this part of the world has the highest levels of alcohol consumption globally.
Alcohol causes approximately 800,000 deaths every year across Europe (over 80 deaths per hour) and significantly reduces life expectancy, particularly among men.
The European Health Alliance on Alcohol unites European organizations of health professionals to amplify the medical community’s voice in policy-making. The Alliance brings together over 15 leading European health organisations to strengthen the voice of the medical and public health community in alcohol policy making.
Proven Alcohol Policy Solutions to Benefit Real People
As a platform for joint advocacy, the Alliance will seek to empower healthcare professionals on alcohol policy at local, national and European levels. Evidence-based policies to prevent and reduce alcohol harms are well recognized, but poorly implemented. They include alcohol taxation increases, alcohol advertising bans, and measures to reduce alcohol availability.
Countries such as Lithuania have demonstrated the power and effectiveness of evidence-baed alcohol policy: between 2016 and 2019, the introduction of comprehensive alcohol policies substantially reduced population-level alcohol consumption, saving thousands of lives and lowering the incidence of many illnesses.
We know what policies are effective to reduce alcohol harms,” says Gauden Galea, as per WHO Europe press release. Mr Galea is Strategic Adviser to the Regional Director on WHO Europe’s Special Initiative on Noncommunicable Diseases and Innovation.
A recent WHO study demonstrated that the quick-buy policies – including increased alcohol taxation and reduced alcohol marketing – result in benefits in less than 1 year, so they can be implemented effectively within one political term.
The Alliance can amplify these solutions and support their implementation across the Region.”
Gauden Galea, Strategic Adviser to WHO Europe’s Regional Director on WHO Europe’s Special Initiative on NCDs and Innovation
Exposing the Reality Behind Alcohol Use
At a roundtable held during the EASL Congress, health professionals, policymakers, and people with lived experience called for a shift in how alcohol is perceived and addressed.
Hazel Martin, a BBC journalist diagnosed with alcohol-related liver disease (ARLD) at age 31, shared her experience to highlight how widespread cultural norms obscure the real dangers of alcohol.
In addition, Ms Martin pointed out how public health advice such as “know your units” often confuses people rather than helping them understand risk.
I didn’t feel like I was using alcohol differently than the people around me,” said Hazel Martin, according to Medscape.
And yet I received a diagnosis of fibrosis; alcohol-related liver damage. That was a huge shock.
Why are so many people unaware they are at risk? There’s this public health message of ‘Spread your [alcohol consumption] across the week. Know your units.’ But no one really knows what that means.
Binge [alcohol use] is defined as six alcoholic drinks in one session [for a female]. That’s about two large glasses of wine. Yet so few people recognise when they’re doing it.”
Hazel Martin, BBC journalist diagnosed with alcohol-related liver disease
A Role For Every Health Worker
Doctors, nurses and allied healthcare professionals are often the first to see the damage that alcohol causes. The Alliance will champion the role of healthcare professionals in screening for high-risk alcohol use and offering brief interventions, according to WHO Europe’s press release. Talking about alcohol should become a routine part of patient care.
General practitioner Margarida Santos from Portugal emphasised that society often misunderstands who is at risk of harm due to alcohol, as per Medscape. For instance, many people assume alcohol use disorder only affects those with low socioeconomic status or visibly heavy alcohol use patterns. In reality, she said, the harm is often subtle but just as dangerous. Patients frequently describe their alcohol use as “a beer here and there,” without realising they may already exceed high-risk thresholds.
People think alcohol use disorder is only about someone from a low socioeconomic background who [consume alcohol] daily and visibly gets inebriated. But often it’s more subtle – and just as harmful,” says Ms Santos, according to Medscape. She admits it can be difficult to discuss alcohol consumption with patients.
They may say ‘a glass with meals’ or ‘a beer here and there,’ without recognising it may already cross high-risk thresholds.”
Margarida Santos, General practitioner
Ms Santos also warned that clinicians often speak in clinical terms such as “units” or “liver enzymes,” while people want clear answers: Does alcohol use increase cancer risk? Does it impact fertility? Does it affect work performance? She noted that these are the questions that must guide effective communication.
As a general practitioner, I see the harms that alcohol causes to individuals, families and communities daily,” says Margarida Santos, according to WHO Europe.
As health professionals, we must start a conversation and break down harmful myths about alcohol. But addressing alcohol harms takes more than a medical intervention – it requires effective policy-making and a societal shift.”
Targeting Alcohol Industry Interference and Misinformation
The roundtable also exposed the deep influence of the alcohol industry, reports Medscape. For example, Ms Santos shared that major alcohol companies in Portugal have maintained direct contact with the Ministry of Health. She described this as unacceptable, comparing it to the now-unthinkable scenario of tobacco companies sponsoring public health efforts.
I find this so upsetting because it would be unthinkable for a person or a podcast to be sponsored by a tobacco company.”
Margarida Santos, General practitioner
Alcohol companies frequently sponsor podcasts and social media influencers who are popular among teenagers. Despite this, there is little to no action against such partnerships. WHO expert Carina Ferreira-Borges highlighted that people’s choices are shaped by environments saturated with alcohol marketing, according to Medscape.
It’s absurd that profit-driven industries go to schools to teach children how to [consume alcohol], and there is an acceptance that this is okay. How do all of these systems encourage harm while claiming to promote so-called choice?”
Carina Ferreira-Borges, Regional Advisor Alcohol, illicit drugs, prison health, WHO Regional Office for Europe
Debunking the Red Wine Myth
According to Medscape, EASL Secretary General Aleksander Krag directly challenged the long-standing myth that red wine offers health benefits. Mr Krag made clear that this narrative has been largely propagated by the alcohol industry.
In fact, the more alcohol a person consumes, the higher their risk of death and disease. He urged caution around misleading claims and called for evidence-based communication that reflects the true risks of alcohol.
A Clear Path Forward for Health Promotion Through Alcohol Policy
The formation of the Alliance sends a clear message that the responsibility for alcohol harm cannot rest on individuals – it must be dealt with using effective, evidence-based policies.
Frank Murray, Public Health and Advocacy Committee Member at EASL, said, according to WHO Europe’s press release:
Alcohol-related harm is not inevitable, and it’s not a personal failing – it’s the result of a widespread failure of countries to implement proven, evidence-based policies to reduce alcohol harms, and the harmful and unacceptable impact of strong alcohol industry interference in public health policy.
The alcohol industry should stay in their lane and have no role in the formation of public health policies.”
Frank Murray, Public Health and Advocacy Committee Member, EASL
Mr Murray explained that the European Health Alliance on Alcohol aims to amplify the role of healthcare professionals in shaping local, national, and European alcohol policy. Its goals include raising awareness of alcohol’s links to heart disease, suicide, sleep problems, and mental health conditions – areas often overlooked in public discourse. By investing in health communication strategies that match the reach and creativity of alcohol industry campaigns, the Alliance seeks to change cultural norms and promote public health.
Acting together, the Alliance will inform and empower policy-makers to implement evidence-based policies to prevent and reduce alcohol harms. This represents a new opportunity to make clinical voices heard in a coordinated manner.
In building this movement, the Alliance provides a platform for decisive, coordinated action to prevent alcohol harm and challenge the normalisation of alcohol use in European societies.
Event Gallery
via EASL and WHO Europe
Sources
World Health Organisation (WHO) Europe: “European Health Alliance on Alcohol launched to reduce the unsustainable toll of alcohol harms in Europe“
Medscape: “Breaking the Silence: Europe Unites Against Alcohol Harm“