Selling wine in larger-sized wine glasses may encourage people to drink more, even when the amount of wine served remains the same. In this set of bar studies, we found that increasing the size of wine glasses led to an…
Does alcohol marketing lead to increased drinking?
In a systematic review, published 9th June, 2016 in BMC Public Health, we combined data from randomized, experimental studies that investigated the immediate effects of viewing alcohol marketing on alcohol consumption and alcohol-related cognitions.
Combining results from 7 studies with 758 participants, we found that individuals who viewed alcohol advertising consumed more alcohol than those who viewed non-alcohol advertising. We conclude that these findings lend qualified support to the public health case for restrictions, bans, or other policies that would reduce exposure to alcohol advertising on visual broadcast media to reduce alcohol consumption at the population level.
Immediate effects of alcohol marketing communications and media portrayals on consumption and cognition: a systematic review and meta-analysis of experimental studies. Stautz K*, Brown KG*, King SE, Shemilt I, Marteau TM. (* = joint first authors)
Larger wine glasses can increase sales by almost 10%
Selling wine in larger-sized wine glasses may encourage people to drink more, even when the amount of wine served remains the same. In our study published 7th June, 2016 in the journal BMC Public Health, we report that increasing the size of wine glasses led to an almost 10% increase in wine sales.
Does wine glass size influence sales for on-site consumption? A multiple treatment reversal design. Pechey R, Couturier DL, Hollands GJ, Mantzari E, Munafò MR & Marteau TM.
Will the UK’s new alcohol guidelines change hearts, minds—and livers?
Professor Theresa Marteau explores this question in the BMJ arguing that limited evidence suggests the guidelines will have little impact on how much we drink as a nation.
However, she surmises that the effect might be seen indirectly by shifting the public discourse around alcohol consumption to include the increased risks of cancer, thereby increasing public acceptability of policies that are effective at reducing alcohol consumption. This kind of approach might work “…to reduce the blight without losing the delight that alcohol brings”.
Will the UK’s new alcohol guidelines change hearts, minds—and livers? Marteau TM. Access Full Text
Does wine glass size and shape influence how much wine people think there is?
Our new study, published 23rd December 2015, in PLOS ONE, examines whether certain sizes and shapes of wine glasses may lead people to think there is more or less wine in these glasses compared to other glasses, when there’s actually the same amount.
Does Glass Size and Shape Influence Judgements of the Volume of Wine? Pechey, Attwood, Couturier, Munafò, Scott-Samuel, Woods & Marteau