Abstract
According to the World Health Organization in 2003-2005 Europe was the region with the highest alcohol consumption in the world, the Czech Republic was on the second position (with 16.5 liters per person per year). Alcohol with its negative impact on the individual and the society belongs to the most risk psychoactive substances.
Due to combination of a high potential harm degree and a high degree of widespread use, the application of pragmatic harm reduction and risk reduction (programs and interventions to minimize risk and damage) approach is appropriate for alcohol. Minimizing risks and harm associated with alcohol use is also a WHO and the European Union´s priority in recent years.
The article presents an overview of these interventions, which systematizes according to level of functioning. At the structural level interventions are discussed in terms of licensing, production and distribution of alcohol, regulation of prices in the form of special tax, control access to restricted sales (age, place and time), regulation of marketing and promotion, and situational constraints consumption.
On the community level are indicated intervention or restrictions on the sale of alcohol, local monitoring compliance with laws and regulations, support and ensure a safer environment for alcohol and to promote the safe return home. On an individual level, harm reduction focuses on the safe use of unproblematic drinkers as well on the control drinking of risky alcohol users.
In terms of cost efficiency experts recommend particular control of production and taxation of alcohol, age and local restrictions on availability, restrictions on consumption situation and assessing compliance, and finally the support of a brief intervention.