The government agency which offers drug and alcohol prevention services, Sedqa, said that any system that encourages people to drink alcohol beyond limits that jeopardise  the safety of consumers and that of third parties is not acceptable. 

“This is valid for the token system, open bar parties, and happy hours,” Sedqa said in comments to The Malta Independent.

Sedqa was contacted by this newsroom after reports that a new practice has made its way into entertainment events – that of ‘forcing’ patrons to buy a minimum of 10 drink tokens. Tokens are non-refundable so patrons who do not use their 10 tokens worth would have paid for drinks they did not consume. This practice pushes many to use all the tokens they would have bought so as not to waste money, which often means consuming more alcohol than they can take.

Sedqa said it had received complaints from parents about the recently-introduced token system as well as the open bar concept, which has been available for years.

But Sedqa has its hands tied on the issue, saying that “as long as a system is considered as a legal practice, our role is limited to raise awareness about the potential dangers it presents”.

It also highlighted the fact that the selling and provision to, and consumption of alcohol by persons under 17 years of, is illegal in Malta, and, therefore persons younger than 17 years should not be permitted to enter entertainment venues where alcohol beverages are being served. This is, often, not the case.

“In the past Sedqa highlighted the danger of any marketing strategy which leads to alcohol abuse and consequently does harm to the persons concerned and to third parties, especially if they are going to drive after the event.

“Let us be clear, research shows and has proven time and again that the excessive consumption of alcohol has negative effects on everyone’s health. Obviously, adults will have to take responsibility for their actions when they know this.

“Thus, we are not saying that it is OK to drink as long as you do not drive. What we are saying is that, as a minimum, in such situations, and out of respect to other people, one should at least not drink and drive.”

Besides increasing more awareness about alcohol abuse and the negative effects of alcohol on a person’s health, Sedqa encouraged more enforcement of the existent legislation and the enactment of new legislation against practices, which encourage any alcohol abuse.

Some bars situated a stone’s throw away from police stations sell alcohol to minors

Although it is illegal for people under 17 years of age to be served alcohol, a European survey showed that 86% of Maltese 16-year-olds had consumed alcohol within the last year (2014).

Underage drinking on the island is a problem that isn’t often spoken about but which can lead to long-term problems, government backbencher Franco Mercieca had said in parliament in February.

“The law only allows people aged 17 and above to consume alcohol, but as a father, I have to say that I am disappointed to see so many underage teenagers drinking alcohol without any restrictions,” Dr Mercieca had said.  This is a problem that isn’t often spoken enough but can lead to long-term problems.

Quoting the European survey, he said: “This is a phenomenal figure, one of the highest in Europe and harms Malta’s image.”

He said that even though selling alcohol to minors is a criminal offence, some bars situated close to police stations actually sell alcohol to minors.

Breathalyser tests

This newsroom requested the communications and media relations unit within the Police Force to provide us with the total number of breathalyser tests performed between January 2014 and August this year. In its replies, the unit said that 109 breathalyser tests were performed in 2014 and 62 up to August 2015.

English language school websites warn foreign students on Malta’s legislation

This newsroom came across a number of English language school websites in Malta that warn students on Malta’s legislation in terms of alcohol, drug use and smoking.

One of the websites states: The legal age for consumption of alcohol is 17 and anybody younger caught consuming alcohol is in breach of the law. Any students who are under-age caught consuming alcohol risk being expelled from the school and repatriated to their home country at the student’s own expense.

Drinking water doesn't prevent a hangover - study

Raiding the fridge or downing glasses of water after a night of heavy drinking won't improve your sore head the next day, Dutch research suggests.

Instead, a study concluded, the only way to prevent a hangover is to drink less alcohol.

More than 800 students were asked how they tried to relieve hangover symptoms, but neither food nor water was found to have any positive effect.

A team of international researchers from the Netherlands and Canada surveyed students' drinking habits to find out whether hangovers could be eased or if some people were immune to them.

Among 826 Dutch students, 54% ate food after drinking alcohol, including fatty food and heavy breakfasts, in the hope of staving off a hangover.

With the same aim, more than two-thirds drank water while drinking alcohol and more than half drank water before going to bed.

Although these groups showed a slight improvement in how they felt compared with those who hadn't drunk water, there was no real difference in the severity of their hangovers.

Previous research suggests that about 25% of drinkers claim never to get hangovers.

So the researchers questioned 789 Canadian students about their drinking in the previous month and the hangovers they experienced, finding that those who didn't get a hangover simply consumed "too little alcohol to develop a hangover in the first place".

Of those students who drank heavily, with an estimated blood alcohol concentration of more than 0.2%, almost no-one was immune to hangovers.

According to lead author Joris Verster, from Utrecht University, the relationship was pretty straightforward.

"The more you drink, the more likely you are to get a hangover.

"Drinking water may help against thirst and a dry mouth, but it will not take away the misery, the headache and the nausea."

'No cure'

Dr Verster said part of the problem was that scientists still do not know what causes a hangover.

"Research has concluded that it's not simply dehydration - we know the immune system is involved, but before we know what causes it, it's very unlikely we'll find an effective cure."

He said the next step was to carry out more controlled trials on hangovers.

Dr Michael Bloomfield, from University College, London, said the economic costs of alcohol abuse ran into hundreds of billions of euros every year.

"It's therefore very important to answer simple questions like, 'How do you avoid a hangover?'

"Whilst further research is needed, this new research tells us that the answer is simple - drink less."

The paper is presented at the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology conference.