Watching ads that promote alcohol has been linked to increased craving for alcohol and increased alcohol consumption for certain people. A study in Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research found that people who gravitated, either consciously or subconsciously, toward ads for alcohol instead of ads for other products experienced heightened craving for alcohol, and subsequently drank more than those who did not have a bias toward alcohol ads. These findings highlight opportunities to reduce susceptibility to the harmful effects of alcohol advertising, both through tailored therapeutic interventions and through regulation targeting involuntary exposure to alcohol ads, particularly in the digital landscape.

For the study, researchers showed video ads for beer and soft drinks to college students. In one test, the students were asked which ads they preferred to watch. In another test, they were shown the ads simultaneously while researchers measured which ads captured their attention. After watching the ads, students rated their level of craving for beer and then sampled soda and beer in a taste test where they were asked to guess the brands and told they could drink as much as they wanted, while researchers measured how much they drank without the students’ awareness. The students in both tests who chose to watch alcohol ads, voluntarily or involuntarily, reported higher craving for alcohol. Those who reported higher craving also drank more of the beer samples.

These findings, which confirm and build on prior research, can help clinicians identify individuals vulnerable to developing alcohol-related problems and offer therapeutic approaches to target the cognitive processes involved in the conscious and unconscious preferences for viewing ads. Specifically, cognitive behavioral therapy can help reduce voluntary viewing of alcohol ads, while cognitive bias modification can help reduce involuntary attention to such ads.

However, the authors note that additional structural safeguards may be warranted, as these individual therapeutic interventions cannot address the effects of ads beyond the individual’s control. Social and other digital media often include embedded advertising, which can capture individuals’ involuntary attention, suggesting a need for regulatory or other measures to limit embedded alcohol content, autoplayed ads, and other non-user-initiated viewing to reduce involuntary exposure to alcohol ads.

(Newswise/HG)