News Release: RAND STUDY FINDS ALCOHOL ADVERTISING AND MARKETING ARE ASSOCIATED WITH ADOLESCENT DRINKING

FOR RELEASE
Thursday
May 3, 2007

Children's exposure to alcohol advertising during early adolescence appears to influence both beer drinking and their intentions to drink a year later, according to a RAND Corporation study issued today.

The study of children in the sixth and seventh grades found that those exposed to alcohol advertising at high levels – from television, magazines, in-store displays and promotional items like T-shirts and posters – were 50 percent more likely to drink and 36 percent more likely to intend to drink than children whose exposure to alcohol advertising was very low.

Previous studies have found that adolescents on average see at least 245 television ads for alcoholic beverages every year, and that these ads may promote drinking. But the RAND study is unique because it also asked adolescents about advertising in magazines, radio and elsewhere, along with whether they owned any promotional items from alcoholic beverage companies.

. . . . . Read Full News Release

Read the Abstract at jahonline.org

________________________________________________________________