Fancy a quick two-thirds? It may lack the appeal of the more familiar after work social, but abandoning the British pint for a smaller measure could boost the nation’s health, researchers say.
Scientists reached the conclusion after a trial in a dozen pubs, bars and restaurants in England during which pints were scrapped and two-thirds of a pint became the largest draught beer available.
The experiment, which met a measure of resistance, resulted in the amount of beer sold falling nearly 10%. Though modest, the drop could lessen the impact of alcohol-related harm, which claims thousands of lives in Britain each year, the team believes.
“This is the first real-world study to look at this,” said Prof Dame Theresa Marteau, study leader and director of the behaviour and health research unit at the University of Cambridge. “Does this have the potential to contribute to population health? I’d say definitely, yes.”
Alcohol raises the risk of more than 60 health conditions from liver cirrhosis to cancer, and with related accidents, causes millions of deaths worldwide. More than a fifth of adults in England drink more than 14 units a week, putting them at higher risk of harm.
The Cambridge trial tested the idea that people often think more in portions than portion sizes, going for one beer, one cup of tea, one piece of cake, rather than specific numbers of millilitres or grams. In a similar trial in January, wine sales fell when the largest glass size, typically 250ml, was scrapped.
To see if the trick worked for beer, the researchers invited more than 1,700 pubs, bars and restaurants to join the trial. The response was overwhelmingly unenthusiastic: despite compensation for lost takings, only 13 agreed.
The trial unfolded over three months last year. In the first and last month, pints were served as normal. In the middle month, pints were scrapped, with customers told that the largest beer on tap was two-thirds of a pint.
After crunching the figures from 12 establishments – one was excluded – the smaller servings were found to reduce the volume of beer sold by 9.7%. Although wine sales crept up, the amount of alcohol consumed overall was still down. Earnings dropped 5%, the authors report in Plos Medicine.
None of the establishments permanently scrapped the pint. Beyond the loss in takings, there is an inertia to overcome. The British pint, introduced in 1698, is a cultural foundation. But at 568ml, it is among the largest common beer serving in the world. Germans favour 500ml, a US pint is 473ml, the Australian schooner, 425ml.
Matt Beety, owner of the Bear on Abbeydale Road in Sheffield, which took part in the trial, said the rise of craft beer bars was already shifting mentality away from the pint. A few punters asked why they were not allowed pints, he said, but most went along with it. Drinkers who habitually came for a couple when Sheffield United were playing generally stuck to two rather than return to the bar for a third, he added.
Drinkers in south London were more intrigued than convinced. At the Fox on the Hill, a Wetherspoon’s in Denmark Hill, Patrick, 35, and Ryan, 29, were enjoying a pint in the sun.
“I’ve just been in Turkey on an all-inclusive and the drinks at the hotel were that big,” said Ryan, with a gesture that indicated very small. “You just end up ordering more.”
“It depends where you’re going with it,” said Patrick. “If you’re having a quick drink it probably doesn’t matter. You might end up nursing it more. But if you want to get drunk? Well, it might take six instead of four.”
Rosalie and Ella, both 21, were unanimous at the Crown and Greyhound in Dulwich. “Realistically, we’d still drink the same amount,” said Rosalie. “I was in Australia drinking schooners and it definitely didn’t slow me down,” added Ella. “I’d treat two-thirds as halves. I’d definitely round down.”
Marteau said there was no magic bullet for reducing alcohol-related disease. “When we think about tackling alcohol, we often think about affordability and advertising. We’re highlighting an additional intervention that can be considered for alcohol control policies,” she said.