Browsing by Author "Parry, Charles David Heber"

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    Characteristics and predictors of Heavy Episodic Drinking (HED) among young people aged 16–25 : the International Alcohol Control Study (IAC), Tshwane, South Africa
    (MDPI, 2020-05) Harker, Nadine; Londani, Mukhethwa; Morojele, Neo; Williams, Petal Petersen; Parry, Charles David Heber
    In South Africa, little is known about alcohol consumption patterns, such as drinks consumed, container size, salience of alcohol price, affordability and availability, and perceptions of alcohol policies as potential predictors of heavy episodic alcohol (HED) use among young people. This paper examines predictors of HED among young people with specific consideration given to these alcohol consumption patterns. This study conducted in the Tshwane Metropole in 2014 employed multi-stage stratified cluster random sampling. Participants were between the ages 16–25 years. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Of the 287 (n = 678) participants who had used alcohol in the past six months and for whom we had complete consumption data, almost half were identified as heavy episodic drinkers (HEDs) and were significantly more likely to consume alcohol on a daily basis (p = 0.001). Having nightclub as the primary drinking location (p = 0.023) and drinking from a container size bigger than one standard drink (p = 0.014) were significant predictors for HED. HEDs were also more likely to have a perception that most people consume alcohol (p = 0.047). The results point to HED of alcohol among young people who drink in South Africa, highlighting the need for multicomponent interventions.
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    Electronic cigarettes : the solution or yet another phase of the tobacco epidemic?
    (SAGE Publications, 2019) Egbe, Catherine O.; Parry, Charles David Heber; Myers, Bronwyn
    Tobacco use is the single largest preventable cause of death globally. For years, the tobacco industry sought to create a tobacco product that is less controversial than conventional cigarettes. Electronic cigarettes were created out of the supposed need to supply consumers of tobacco products with a less harmful tobacco product. The question remains, is it really less harmful for consumers of traditional cigarettes and other tobacco products to switch to electronic cigarettes? This article takes a closer look at the overall harm in relation to benefits of using electronic cigarettes for the individual and public health and the unintended negative consequences the introduction of electronic cigarette has had on overall public health. Given the evidence that the use of electronic cigarettes is a gateway to the use of other tobacco products especially among adolescents, we view electronic cigarettes as having the potential to cause a rebound of the tobacco use glut which the global public health community has been succeeding in reversing. We therefore support the World Health Organization’s suggestion that electronic cigarettes should be regulated as other tobacco products since there is, as yet, no harmless tobacco product. In the same vein, we view the new Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill seeking to regulate electronic cigarettes in South Africa as other tobacco products as a step in the right direction.
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    Looking back, moving forward : 50 years of South African Medical Research Council alcohol-related publications
    (Health & Medical Publishing Group, 2019-12-05) Parry, Charles David Heber; Myers, B.; Matzopoulos, R.; Morojele, N.; Siegfried, N.
    Background. Alcohol is one of the highest risk factors for death and disability in South Africa (SA). Objective. To explore the trajectory of empirical research on alcohol in SA between 1969 and 2019, with an emphasis on South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) authored publications. Methods. We reviewed published research (Pubmed and Africa-Wide Information) using systematic methods, clear inclusion and exclusion criteria, and defined search terms. The search was not limited by language. Data synthesis was carried out by the first and last authors. Results. A total of 867 journal articles met the inclusion criteria, with 243 (28.0%) authored or co-authored by SAMRC researchers. For the latter group, three-quarters had an SAMRC researcher as first or last author. Over three-quarters (78.6%) of the SAMRC author positions (‘first’, ‘last’ or ‘other, counting researchers from a unit only once, but counting authors across different units on a single publication) were from intramural units. Over half the articles authored by SAMRC researchers focused on non-communicable diseases (55.9%), 23.8% focused on communicable diseases, and 10% on crime, violence or injury. Few articles focused on alcohol and tuberculosis (TB), alcohol and cancer, or alcohol policy. Over three-quarters (76.9%) were epidemiological in nature, and 65.3% were cross-sectional studies. There were 17 reviews (7 systematic) and 11 randomised controlled trials (RCTs). There was an increase in the annual number of publications over the 50-year period for both SAMRC and non-SAMRC researchers. Over time, there has been a trend towards publishing on alcohol research in journals published outside SA, but the SAMJ still remains a popular journal choice. Conclusion. The SAMRC has contributed substantially to the growing field of alcohol research in SA, but gaps in areas such as alcohol policy evaluation, alcohol and its association with TB and cancer, and interventional research, are evident.