John Holmes

Associations between financial hardship and alcohol reduction attempts in the context of a cost-of-living crisis and alcohol tax reforms: a population study in Great Britain, 2023–25 Rising living costs and changes to alcohol taxation influence drinking behaviours. This study aimed to examine associations between financial hardship…

The latest paper to be published from our project 'Reforming alcohol taxes in a cost-of-living crisis' was led by @drsarahejackson.bsky.social with @jamiebrown.bsky.social @jholmessheff.bsky.social & @victimofmaths.bsky.social. Find out more about the project here: bit.ly/3OGifN3 #PublicHealth

🆕 Regulation of Alcohol-Free and Low-Alcohol Drinks: Learning From a Comparative Analysis of 8 Countries

Robyn Burton, Kathryn Angus, Amber Morgan, Rebecca Howell, Nathan Critchlow, ... @jholmessheff.bsky.social, ... @miamiller1.bsky.social, ... @niamhfitzgerald.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1111/dar....

New research shows that spending less on tobacco, gambling and sweets is good for the UK economy - Sheffield Addictions Research Group A new study from the Sheffield Addictions Research Group (SARG) has found that public health policies which reduce spending on harmful products can actually provide a significant boost to UK jobs and ...

New SARG research published in @addictionjournal.bsky.social this week led by @damonm1989.bsky.social has found that public health policies which reduce spending on harmful products can actually provide a significant boost to UK jobs and the wider economy. #PublicHealth #HealthEconomics #UKEconomy

In our new FOI study we found that Budweiser directly urged Chancellor Rachel Reeves to intervene and "ensure" that DHSC removed alcohol marketing restrictions from the NHS’s 10 Year Health Plan.

Health policy should be protected from industry influence.

www.ias.org.uk/report/now-y...

Has England’s drinking returned to “normal”? - Institute of Alcohol Studies Nearly five years on from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, England’s drinking patterns are only partly returning to pre-pandemic levels. New research shows that while average consumption is falling...

Has England’s drinking returned to “normal” after COVID?

In our latest blog, Dr Vera Buss explains how alcohol dependence and harm remain elevated - especially among more disadvantaged groups.

www.ias.org.uk/2026/01/20/h...

How should public health respond to rise of alcohol-free and low alcohol drinks? John Holmes and colleagues argue for a precautionary approach that is guided by public health interests and considers both risks and benefits Sales of alcohol-free and low alcohol (nolo) drinks have ...

'How should public health respond to rise of alcohol-free and low alcohol drinks?' | @jholmessheff.bsky.social @bmj.com www.bmj.com/content/392/...

The BMJ paper also includes a list of principles and example policies that could support a public health approach to no/lo drinks

Zero tolerance for 0%? How should clinicians and other practitioners respond to the use of alcohol‐free and low‐alcohol products in higher risk groups Alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks (no/lo drinks) are now widely available and popular with consumers in high-income countries; however, it is unclear whether clinicians and others working to preven...

This follows our recent piece in @addictionjournal.bsky.social exploring the issues related to no/lo drinks and people with AUDs or alcohol-related liver disease onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

How should public health respond to rise of alcohol-free and low alcohol drinks? John Holmes and colleagues argue for a precautionary approach that is guided by public health interests and considers both risks and benefits Sales of alcohol-free and low alcohol (nolo) drinks have ...

Our new paper in the @bmj.com explores how public health should respond to alcohol-free and low alcohol drinks. We argue for a precautionary approach that shapes the emerging policy framework to maximise the public health benefits and minimise the risks of these products
www.bmj.com/content/392/...

Just imagine how much fun you'd be having if it was actually a contest

I am so glad I keep waking up at 5:30am to watch this thrilling funeral procession.

Addiction Journal - Deputy Statistics & Methodology Editor Role with Addiction

Addiction is currently seeking to expand its pool of Statistics & Methodology Editors - please see here for more details, including how to apply www.addictionjournal.org/newsroom/dep...

Has alcohol consumption in England returned to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels? A monthly population study, 2014 to 2024 buff.ly/OQC8Ii3 @melissaoldham.bsky.social @drsarahejackson.bsky.social @lionshahab.bsky.social @victimofmaths.bsky.social @jholmessheff.bsky.social @jamiebrown.bsky.social

The UK government has confirmed that alcohol duty rates will be increased in line with inflation, staying the same in real terms.

We welcome this decision.

Our statement:

From now on, when discussing the budget, please use “is this measure bigger than the cost to the exchequer of gen Z drinking less” as your metric for assessing whether something actually raises or costs a significant sum

Our new paper looks at trends in alcohol consumption after the COVID-19 pandemic and finds mixed results - some indicators are returning to pre-COVID levels (but are not there yet) and the main indicator of alcohol dependence is staying high.

Another new @addictionjournal.bsky.social paper out today looking at trends in alcohol consumption in England and trying to answer the important question as to whether this has returned to pre-pandemic levels after rising during the first lockdown.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Zero tolerance for 0%? How should clinicians and other practitioners respond to the use of alcohol‐free and low‐alcohol products in higher risk groups Alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks (no/lo drinks) are now widely available and popular with consumers in high-income countries; however, it is unclear whether clinicians and others working to preven...

Our latest paper on alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks discusses the challenges they present for clinicians and others supporting people with alcohol use disorders or alcohol-related liver disease.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Why are alcohol-free drinks so expensive? Some fake spirits cost over £25 a bottle! In this new series, our money and consumer editor considers the often perplexing reasons items cost what they do. As a new report suggests booze-free booze can cost 25% more than the alcoholic equival...

This is one of the major concerns regarding zero alcohol products: that they only benefit wealthier people because they're more expensive than standard alcohol.

Reducing alcohol deaths among the lowest socioeconomic groups has to be the priority, (🧵)

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

Wastewater-based epidemiology for local tobacco and nicotine use with small-area estimations AbstractBackground. Tobacco and nicotine use is a significant global public health threat, increasing the risk of many cancers and cardiovascular disease.

I'll be presenting a poster at the European Public Health Conference next week in Helsinki bringing together my postdoc work with @lhgp.bsky.social and my PhD/MSc work on environmental contamination in wastewater. academic.oup.com/eurpub/artic...

Research reveals people with a gambling disorder are more likely to die by suicide | King's College London People diagnosed with a gambling disorder are significantly more likely to die by suicide, according to new research by Swansea University in collaboration with King’s College London and Gambling Harm...

Super interesting work using health admin records by @simondymond.bsky.social and colleagues, looking at gambling-related suicide - especially good on use of services and opportunities for interventions

www.kcl.ac.uk/news/researc...

Introducing the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Addictions: Research That Shapes Policy YouTube video by Policy Research Unit (PRU) in Addictions

Our new video introduces the Policy Research Unit in Addictions, showing how our research helps inform policy and tackle the challenges of addiction and addictive products.

Watch it on Youtube and subscribe for more on our latest research youtu.be/Qwp4VrnFfnk

SARG to present latest research on alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks at SSA Annual Conference 2025 - Sheffield Addictions Research Group Researchers from the Sheffield Addictions Research Group (SARG) are set to present their latest findings on alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks at the Society for the Study of Addiction (SSA) Annual C...

SARG researchers @abi-stevely.bsky.social @ppermanhowe.bsky.social and @mervemolla.bsky.social are heading to the @addiction-ssa.org Annual Conference to present some of our latest research into alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks. Find out more on the SARG website 👇 #publichealth #nolo

Addiction Psychologist podcast ft. @jholmessheff.bsky.social on Minimum Unit Pricing creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...

This is a hugely important editorial that sets out how UK Government proposals to reform alcohol licensing will undermine the entire purpose of the licensing system. It will explicitly move the focus from protecting public health and social order to promoting economic goals and business priorities.

Regulatory capture in UK alcohol licensing policy: The 2025 ‘licensing taskforce’ report Click on the article title to read more.

New @addictionjournal.bsky.social editorial on the licensing reforms currently being rushed through by the UK Government.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

The Call for Evidence closes on November 6th www.gov.uk/government/c...

Lecturer in Criminology at University of Sheffield Apply for the Lecturer in Criminology role on jobs.ac.uk, the top job board for academic positions in higher education. View details and apply now.

We need two new full-time lecturers in #criminology here at @sheffielduni.bsky.social. One permanent share.google/RuTNSJWfvkuK... and one 12 month maternity cover share.google/xzf5icskztO9...

I spoke to @samuelacuff.bsky.social and @noahemery.bsky.social on their Addiction Psychologist podcast about the evidence on minimum unit pricing for alcohol. You can listen below: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...

The use of alcohol-free and low alcohol drinks in attempts to restrict alcohol consumption: findings from a cross-sectional survey The sale and consumption of alcohol-free and low alcohol drinks (no/lo drinks) has increased substantially in many high-income countries, including Gr…

The latest paper from our @nihr.bsky.social funded No/Lo Project finds that around a third of people use alcohol-free or low-alcohol drinks in attempts to cut down on drinking alcohol, but no clear evidence that they increase the success of these attempts. #AlcoholResearch #NoLo #AlcoholPolicy

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We're recruiting for a new CEO!

You will be the driving force behind our mission to reduce alcohol harm and improve lives across Scotland and beyond.

Find out more and apply ⬇️

www.alcohol-focus-scotland.org.uk/about-vacanc...