title: Health promotion interventions and policies addressing excessive alcohol use: a systematic review of national and global evidence as a guide to health-care reform in China.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Steady increases in alcohol consumption and related problems are likely to accompany China's rapid epidemiological transition and profit-based marketing activities. We reviewed research on health promotion interventions and policies to address excessive drinking and to guide health-care reform.
  
  
  METHODS
  We searched Chinese- and English-language databases and included 21 studies in China published between 1980 and 2013 that covered each policy area from the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Strategy to Reduce the Harmful Use of Alcohol. We evaluated and compared preventive interventions to the global alcohol literature for cross-national applicability.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In contrast with hundreds of studies in the global literature, 11 of 12 studies from mainland China were published in Chinese; six of 10 in English were on taxation from Taiwan or Hong Kong. Most studies demonstrated effectiveness in reducing excessive drinking, and some reported the reduction of health problems. Seven were randomized controlled trials. Studies targeted schools, drink-driving, work-places, the health sector and taxation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  China is the world's largest alcohol market, yet there has been little growth in alcohol policy research related to health promotion interventions over the past decade. Guided by a public health approach, the WHO Global Strategy and health reform experience in Russia, Australia, Mexico and the United States, China could improve its public health response through better coordination and implementation of surveillance and evidence-based research, and through programmatic and legal responses such as public health law research, screening and early intervention within health systems and the implementation of effective alcohol control strategies.
authors.affiliation: Michigan State University, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, East Lansing, MI, USA; San Diego State University, Graduate School of Public Health, Center for Behavioral Epidemiology and Community Health, San Diego, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Qing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Thomas F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Babor
authors.forename: Donald
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zeigler
authors.forename: Ziming
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Xuan
authors.forename: Donald
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Morisky
authors.forename: Melbourne F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Hovell
authors.forename: Toben F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Weixing
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000517:prevention & control*; D019973:Alcohol-Related Disorders / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D018166:Health Care Reform / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006291:Health Policy; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D006801:Humans; D040541:Marketing; D011634:Public Health; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D013660:Taxes; D014944:World Health Organization
keywords: Alcohol policy; China; Global Strategy; health-care reform; intervention and health promotion; public health approach