Serving size information should be required on all alcohol beverage containers
       As discussed in the last few sections, students and alcohol researchers have different concepts about what constitutes a single drink.  This is far from a trivial problem, given the reliance of alcohol researchers on self-reported survey data from college students.  This problem is also trickier to solve that it might seem.  The last few sections have focused on differences in how college students and alcohol researchers define single drinks in terms of volume.  In reality, in order to accurately measure the amount of alcohol a person consumes, the concentration of the alcohol must also be taken into consideration.  For instance, a 1.25 oz shot of 50 proof (25%) liquor contains only half as much alcohol as a 1.25 oz shot of 100 proof (59%) liquor. One 12 oz bottle of Molson Light (roughly 2.5% alcohol) contains only 1/2 the amount of alcohol as a 12 oz bottle of Budweiser (roughly 5.0% alcohol).

       The fact that both volumes and
concentrations of drinks can vary widely
makes it difficult to provide students,
or the general public, with operational
definitions of drinks that make sense in
the real world. In an effort to reduce
confusion regarding definitions
of drinks, the Australian government
undertook a campaign to educate
the public about the actual serving
sizes of different alcoholic beverages
(Hawks, 1999). Beginning in 1995,
the government also required all
alcoholic beverages made in Australia
or imported into the country to contain
information about serving sizes
(Hawks, 1999). Researchers in Australia
have observed that including such
information reduces the discrepancy
between drink volumes poured by the
public and the operational definitions
used by researchers (Stockwell et al.,
1991). The fact that a similar approach
has not yet been tried in the U.S. has
left some Australian researchers puzzled
(Hawks, 1999).
       The image below represents the type
of chart that the Autstralian goverment
routinely exposes the public to in an effort
to increase awareness of standard drink
volumes.  This particular chart is from an
Australian government brochure about
drinking safely.

       Recently, a small movement has begun in the US to try to convince the alcohol beverage industry to place labels on their beverages (click here to view a statement from the Center for Science in the Public Interest).  The proposed labels, shown below, would contain serving size information, calorie content, etc.  A news clip discussing the call for labels in also shown below.   I am cautiously optimistic that this might actually occur one day, but it would require an outcry from the public.  Companies do not change their practices unless it is in their best financial interest.  To me, such labels make perfect sense.  In the US, we seem to be obsessed with serving size information, fat and calorie content, etc.  it is very surprising to me that no one has yet made a big deal out of the fact that these labels are absent on alcoholic beverages.  If you buy a bottle of grape juice from the grocery store, it contains a label with more information that you could possibly want.  Why, then, shouldn't a bottle of wine contain the same type of information?

       Initiatives like the one undertaken in Australia have the added advantage of providing a common definition to use when discussing the health effects of drinking with the public. For instance, in the U.S., the media have made the public aware of research suggesting that a drink or two per day can promote cardiac health (Mukamal and Rimm, 2001). However, without a nationally recognized standard for a single drink, such information could promote consumption that is actually greater than the desired level (Dufour, 1999). The same risk for promoting greater than desired consumption exists in social norming campaigns aimed at college students (Perkins, 2002). The assumption of such programs is that college students overestimate how much alcohol other students drink, and that providing them with more accurate information might lead them to fall in line with the norm and reduce their alcohol consumption. Overall, these approaches appear to be successful at reducing consumption (Perkins, 2002). However, without providing students with a clear definition of a single drink, the possibility exists that some students might actually increase their actual levels of consumption, or that the drinking habits of a student that normally consumes larger than average drinks might be reinforced.