Many Aussies with alcohol problems kick the habit without specialist help

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2021-03-02 05:00

Australia; NSW

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Almost half the people who resolve their alcohol problems do so without specialist alcohol-related treatment, although many more do seek help for mental health issues, according to Aussie research. The team surveyed 719 people who had resolved their alcohol problems, and found that 49.8 per cent had done so without specialist alcohol treatment, mutual-aid services, or digital support services. However, when the researchers factored in mental health treatment as a treatment for alcohol problems, the number who had resolved their problems without treatment dropped to 12.8 per cent. The researchers suggest expanding the scope of ‘treatment’ to include mental health services and focus on the development of cost-effective and less intrusive standalone activities, which can support alcohol problem resolution for those who choose not to access specialist treatment.

Media release

From:

Journal/
conference: Drug and Alcohol Review

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: The University of New South Wales

Funder: AR is a recipient of a National Health and Medical Research Council Fellowship (APP1136944). KL is a recipient of a UNSW Scientia Fellowship. RM is a recipient of a National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre PhD Scholarship. These funding sources had no impact on the study design, analysis, write-up or decision to submit manuscript.

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