Regulatory Policies for Alcohol, other Psychoactive Substances and Addictive Behaviours: The Role of Level of Use and Potency. A Systematic Review

Jürgen Rehm, Jean-François Crépault, Omer S.M. Hasan, Dirk W. Lachenmeier, Robin Room and Bundit Sornpaisarn
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Jürgen Rehm: Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 33 Russell Street, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada
Jean-François Crépault: Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 33 Russell Street, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada
Omer S.M. Hasan: Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 33 Russell Street, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada
Dirk W. Lachenmeier: Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe, Weissenburger Strasse 3, 76187 Karlsruhe, Germany
Robin Room: Centre for Alcohol Policy Research, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia
Bundit Sornpaisarn: Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 33 Russell Street, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 19, 1-17

Abstract: The object of this contribution based on a systematic review of the literature is to examine to what degree the level of use and potency play a role in regulatory policies for alcohol, other psychoactive substances and gambling, and whether there is an evidence base for this role. Level of use is usually defined around a behavioural pattern of the user (for example, cigarettes smoked per day, or average ethanol use in grams per day), while potency is defined as a property or characteristic of the substance. For all substances examined (alcohol, tobacco, opioids, cannabis) and gambling, both dimensions were taken into consideration in the formulation of most regulatory policies. However, the associations between both dimensions and regulatory policies were not systematic, and not always based on evidence. Future improvements are suggested.

Keywords: alcohol; policy; regulation; tobacco; opioids; cannabis; gambling; potency; use disorders (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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