Dr Tony Farrell: Documentary on booze confronting but necessary

OPINION

Paddy Gower's TV3 documentary June 14 on booze was confronting and necessary.

Through drunkenness, bingeing and counselling sessions, Gower bravely disclosed his story of a loss of control with alcohol and ambivalence towards changing his behaviour.

Internalising comments of his friend, Corin Dann, and with help from his counsellor his ambivalence was converted to action. Paddy then chose abstinence.

I wish Gower well with his health and his sobriety, as in New Zealand alcohol dependence is fraught with many challenges in an alcohol-soaked environment. Generally speaking, relapse is likely and very common for this condition, which becomes progressively more severe without successful treatment.

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This was a positive outcome of the programme, but there were aspects that disturbed me and compel my comment on our culture around booze in this country. The documentary featured Crate Day - the "cultural" event of an annual deliberate overdose of alcohol.

Assuming 4 per cent alcohol by volume, many young men consume 30 standard drinks over the course of the day.

A potentially lethal dose of alcohol for most people is between 20 and 30 standard drinks.

The documentary resulted in a TikTok video with more than 1 million likes, and in my opinion, essentially contributed to the promotion of alcohol and its overuse.

I am hoping this was unintended as, in my view, it was a very effective contribution to social media and TV marketing of alcohol and Crate Day.

Exposure to alcohol marketing has been shown to be a cause of young people starting to drink earlier and drinking larger quantities.

Half of the alcohol abuse and dependence cases in Aotearoa New Zealand are developed by the age of 20 and 70 per cent by the age of 25.

Heavy drinking episodes make up 40 per cent of total alcohol sold in New Zealand, so on one hand the documentary raised awareness about our booze culture, but on the other hand, in my opinion, it glamourised and encouraged excessive drinking.

To make matters worse, a champion binge drinker, Kyree, who reportedly was able to chug down the equivalent of three times the potential deadly dose in a long sitting, was interviewed on the programme.

Also on display was Kyree's arsenal of beer bongs and rapid-pressure overdose devices for the open throat of young impressionable drinkers. The response to this included proposing another TikTok video, indicating how normalised acceptance of alcohol excess has become.

I believe this, unfortunately, diminished the shocking impact of Kyree's disclosure.

Young people who can tolerate large doses of alcohol often receive social acclaim from their peers, a significant reinforcer of binge drinking. Unfortunately having this "gift" is a predictor of alcoholism.

Kyree's "prowess" was covered on nationwide TV, most likely fostering more peer encouragement for him.

Journalist Paddy Gower has a new investigation documentary on booze. Photo / NZME

Gower got his important intervention but, in my opinion, the documentary did not appear to show sufficient care for Kyree.

A person dies from an overdose of alcohol every fortnight in this country. I believe this coverage was somewhat disrespectful as it appeared to me this young man was left at high risk to himself and those around him.

The subsequent panel discussion on Newshub, on June 15, had merits. A cross-section of New Zealanders from different walks of life discussed potential solutions to our nation's obvious drinking problem.

Dave Letele was a strong voice for reducing accessibility to alcohol and pointed out how inequitably the harm from alcohol falls on poor and marginalised communities.

Police Assistant Commissioner Chris de Wattignar echoed that alcohol is too easy to get with his concerns about online access.

Media entrepreneur Brodie Kane stated that the ease of accessibility was "actually ridiculous" and alcohol is now too cheap. Matt McGaughlin from the hospitality sector agreed.

I disagree with 42 Below founder Geoff Ross, who said alcohol doesn't really benefit from advertising and we could do without it and that the influence to drink alcohol comes from people's peers, not necessarily marketing.

Hapai Te Hauora CEO Selah Hart stated concerns about children being exposed to alcohol culture, and normalising a risky substance.

There were also calls for raising the purchase age to 20, as well as revisiting the recommendations of the Law Commission's 2010 document, "Alcohol in our lives". Essentially this group had discussed the 5+ Solution, the evidence-based action plan that Alcohol Action NZ has been calling on successive Governments to institute for 12 years.

It is as if we know what to do but have not got around to doing it.

There is public support for the solution, but it has not translated into political action.

It was wonderful to hear the confidence and optimism of Alcohol Healthwatch's Dr Nicki Jackson, who gave an overview of the panel discussion afterwards on the late-night Newshub slot.

We have so much to gain as a nation, and it is hard to see the downside of a public-health approach.

While the documentary and panel discussion did not get everything right, they were needed. Now what is required is a legislative change to stop the continuing harm.

Tony Farrell has been a general practitioner for 30 years. He is a Mount Medical Centre director and a Fellow ofthe Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners. Tony has a special interest in mental health and addiction and is a trustee of Hanmer Clinic and chair ofAlcohol Action NZ.