Alcohol marketing linked to teen drinking

LEBANON, N.H., March 4 (UPI) -- A U.S. study suggests that specialized marketing -- alcohol-branded merchandise such as T-shirts or hats -- is linked to teen alcohol use.

Researchers at Dartmouth University led the study of young U.S. teens that showed between 11 percent to 20 percent own T-shirts or other items featuring an alcohol brand, and those who do own them appear more likely to transition through the stages of drinking from susceptibility -- beginning drinking to binge drinking.

Dr. Auden C. McClure of Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H., and colleagues conducted a telephone survey of a representative sample of 6,522 U.S. adolescents ages 10-14 years in 2003 during which teens reported information about their drinking behaviors and drinking attitudes.

In three follow-up surveys conducted at eight-month intervals, participants answered questions about changes in drinking habits and ownership of alcohol-branded merchandise.

The study, published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, found the most commonly owned products were clothing at 64 percent and head wear at 24 percent. Seventy-five percent of items displayed beer labels, including 45 percent that featured Budweiser. Most were obtained through family and friends but some 24 percent of them were purchased directly by teens.