Mehr Spass mit Mass (Moderation Means More Fun)

“Alcohol consumers are becoming younger all the time and are becoming increasingly risky in their drinking behavior. Young Austrians today have their first encounters with alcohol between the ages of 11 and 13. Nearly ten percent of 13 year-olds have consumed alcohol more than 40 times. According to an international comparative study conducted by HBSC for the WHO, 35 percent of 15 year-old female secondary students and 38 percent of their male counterparts in Austria have been drunk at least twice. Only one fifth of young people have never drunk alcohol before. That puts Austria at the top of the rankings in Europe,” notes Dennis Beck, Managing Director of Fonds Gesundes Österreich at the official launch of the nationwide campaign on youth and alcohol under the slogan “Mehr Spass mit Mass!” (Moderation Means More Fun!).

In the months ahead, this information campaign will feature TV spots and ads developed together with young people to heighten young Austrians’ awareness about their behavior surrounding alcohol. “The slogan of the campaign, “Mehr Spass mit Mass!” (Moderation Means More Fun!), makes clear what the thrust of the campaign will be,” Beck says. “It won’t be about spoiling kids’ fun or pointing a judgmental finger at them. The object is to get young people to reflect on their own about how they deal with alcohol and to make it clear to them that life can still be fun even if they take a more moderate approach.”

Unsettling trends in alcohol consumption by adolescents

An important impetus for this new information campaign came from the unsettling trends revealed by all international and Austrian studies on alcohol consumption among young people. These trends include increased experience with alcohol among children and high-risk drinking behaviors like binge drinking, i.e. seemingly senseless drinking to the point of complete inebriation. The number of children and young people admitted to hospitals in Austria with alcohol poisoning has increased by 27 percent since 2002.

“High-risk consumption of alcohol entails physical and social losses. Prevention and health promotion play an essential role here,” noted Federal Minister of Health Maria Rauch-Kallat, President of Fonds Gesundes Österreich at the campaign launch. “This is one of the most important tasks of a responsible public health policy, not only among young people, but in our society at large. Austria has had an inglorious spot in the international rankings for per capita consumption for a century.” 40 percent of the Austrian population consumes more alcohol than is good for their health and 22 percent drink more over the long term than is advisable. 13 percent consume alcohol in a manner only describable as abusive and 5 percent are alcoholic. Less than one fourth of the population abstains altogether from alcohol.

Increase in alcohol abuse especially among girls

Given the alcohol consumption habits of adult role models, it is no wonder that alcohol plays an ever more prominent role in young peoples’ lives. The prevalence of alcohol abuse is rising especially among young females, because young women are gradually assuming the drinking habits of their male peers. According to a WHO study, young people now begin regular alcohol consumption at the age of 14. 14 percent of 13 to 14 year-olds consume alcohol regularly, i.e. at least once a week. Among 15 year-olds, more than a third drink alcohol on a regular basis. Three percent of 16 year-olds have an alcohol problem.

Vorarlberg leads the way

Martin Hefel, head of an addiction prevention center in Austria’s westernmost province of Vorarlberg (Zentrum für  Suchtkrankheiten Stiftung Maria Ebene) has observed a strong need for education on the subject of youth and alcohol: “That is why the Province of Vorarlberg launched a regionally based alcohol prevention project back in 2004 with my organization acting as sponsor,” the expert commented. “We are pleased to see that Fonds Gesundes Österreich was convinced of the approach and success of our initiative and is now presenting parts of our project on an Austria-wide basis in an information campaign.”
The question remains whether these efforts will actually appeal to young people. Maria Horvath, a 16 year-old secondary student from Bregenz in Vorarlberg and instrumental in helping to design the ads, is convinced they will: “It was young people themselves who developed the materials for “Mehr Spass mit Mass!” (Moderation Means More Fun!). For that reason I am sure that the spots and ads will be a real hit with peers and will be effective. This approach is special and is closer to life than if adults were to sit down and try to figure out what kids might like.” Martin Hefel adds: “Our goal has to be that children and young people develop a greater sense of personal responsibility for their own behavior surrounding alcohol. We have to encourage young people to deal responsibly and critically with alcohol as a drug. We have to be sure that young people are well-informed about this issue and that they critically examine their own habits of alcohol consumption.”

Elements of the campaign

The main elements are four TV spots which are based on ideas from young Vorarlbergers and will also be shown in movie theaters. This will allow the campaign to reach the main target group in an optimum way. The humorous approach taken should make these public service ads stick in their minds. By incorporating hot issues like sex or the loss of a driver’s license, these TV spots should capture the full attention of this age group and leave an emotional impression on them.
Besides reports in various media, attention will be drawn to this issue in ads placed in youth-oriented printed and online media, the latter being especially important for this age group.

Various aspects of alcohol will be covered on the website www.gesundesleben.at: Alcohol and driving, alcohol and sex, alcohol and obesity ... In addition, there will be a self-test there and information about what happens to your body when you drink alcohol as well as information about counseling.

Campaign days in all Austrian provinces: The campaign’s goal is to have as broad-based an effect as possible. Parallel to these media activities, special campaign days in all Austrian provinces will focus on covering the issue in greater depth regionally. Each province will put on ten campaign days at various venues or at sports events and open-air concerts. They will be staged by “aks austria – Forum österreichischer Gesundheitsarbeitskreise”, the national work group of major provincial institutions for prevention and health promotion, in collaboration with ARGE Suchtprävention, a collection of all offices and agencies focusing on addiction prevention.
In the list below, you can download the TV spots, the printed ads (in printable quality) and facts and figures on the subject.