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Know Your Units Campaign educates drinkers in Knowsley

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Know Your Units Campaign educates drinkers in Knowsley

Knowsley Council’s campaign to help people understand the amount of alcohol they are consuming has proved to be a huge success.

As part of Alcohol Awareness Week, the council held a roadshow around the borough, visiting Kirkby, Prescot, Stockbridge Village and Huyton plus the Knowsley stage of the Tour of Britain cycle race at Knowsley Safari.

As well as distributing thousands of advice leaflets designed to help people understand the risks of alcohol and how to make sure their intake remained within safe limits, the council also invited members of the public to take part in a quiz designed to gauge their normal alcohol consumption and their risk of alcohol dependency or abuse.

Almost 700 people took part in the quiz. Anyone who was identified as consuming in excess of the safe limits was signposted through to a range of support agencies. As well as the health effects of excessive drinking, people who took part were also advised on the financial impact regular drinking can have.

Many people took extra literature for friends and family to help raise awareness of this important issue, particularly in the run up to the festive period. The roadshow staff reported that many people were surprised by the size of a true measure of alcohol and how easy it is to go beyond safe limits.

Matthew Ashton, Director of Public Health said “The roadshow aimed to raise awareness of how many of units of alcohol are in a variety of drinks, together with what is a safe level. We are really pleased with the number of people we have engaged with and the positive feedback we have received, and have therefore gone some way to achieving this goal.

“We are committed to helping residents improve their health and wellbeing, and this is just one of a number of initiatives we are running to encourage a healthier happier lifestyle.”

For more information on where to access alcohol advice visit www.drinkaware.co.uk

ENDS

For media information contact Alec Doyle on 0151 706 9994 or alec@kenyons.co.uk

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drinking public health Knowsley Council alcohol units Matthew Ashton Drink Aware

Quotes

The roadshow aimed to raise awareness of how many of units of alcohol are in a variety of drinks, together with what is a safe level. We are really pleased with the number of people we have engaged with and the positive feedback we have received, and have therefore gone some way to achieving this goal.
Matthew Ashton, Director of Public Health in Knowsley