More women in Japan turn to recovery groups to battle alcoholism

Australian advertising law prevents showing changes in "atmosphere or fun times ' on commercials showing alcohol.

Changes in people , smiling, communicating, similarly outlawed.

Certainly not the case here in Japan, a drinkers paradise if you consider access and price.

The Japanese government literally ran a national contest in 2022 to encourage young people to drink more, because declining alcohol consumption was hurting tax revenue.

Name of campaign: 「サケビバ！(Sake Viva!)」

Organizer: National Tax Agency (国税庁, Kokuzeichō)

Launch: 2022

Target: Young adults aged 20 to 39

Stated objective: Encourage ideas to make drinking alcohol more appealing to young people, including marketing, branding, online promotion, and business models for alcohol products.

But JGovt want young people to drink more alcohol, for economy.

What about health, well being and addiction? Doesn't matter.

https://www.timeout.com/news/japan-is-asking-its-young-people-to-drink-more-booze-081822

Unfortunately, this is a rising problem worldwide. For the first time in history, women are drinking more than men. It's a coping mechanism. Women are trying to balance it all. A career, child rearing, financial worries, social expectations, the list is endless. It's a quick fix that can easily get out of hand. Definitely an issue that does need to be addressed.

@Claire

Unfortunately, this is a rising problem worldwide. For the first time in history, women are drinking more than men. It's a coping mechanism. Women are trying to balance it all. A career, child rearing, financial worries, social expectations, the list is endless. It's a quick fix that can easily get out of hand. Definitely an issue that does need to be addressed.

From your statement it seems only problem from women that have family and job, so it won't happen to childless single female?

The “issue that needs to be addressed” is the J-gov actively encouraging it and profiting from it.

Simple,

1- Stop going with friends to snack bars or Izakayas and go to family or non alcohol serving places to entertain yourself.

2- Surround yourself with non alcoholics.

3- Keep busy pick up a hobby or a sport with a group even taking long walks in parks helps.

4- Turn down all invitations to go for an event were alcohol is served.

5- Watch Vid. on YouTube and see what damages Alcohol does to your Brains, Livers, and overall functions of you systems you will be shocked to learn that Alcohol is a POISEN.

Best of luck

And it's time to get rid of all forms of alcohol advertising (most of it seems to feature beautiful young women).

""Liquor Tax:

Beer: The tax rate on beer is being reduced in stages, with the goal of unifying it with other beverages like "happoshu" and "new genre" at 157 yen/liter by 2026. 

Happoshu and "New Genre": These beverages had a higher tax rate but are being reduced in stages to align with the new beer tax rate. 

Sake: The liquor tax for sake is 252.90 yen per liter. 

Shochu: Shochu (Groups A and B) has a tax rate of 446.58 yen per liter. 

Spirits (Whisky, Brandy): The rate is 370,000 yen/kl plus 10,000 yen/kl for each percentage point above 37% ABV. 

Wine: The tax rate for wine is being increased in two phases to match the reduced tax rate for sake (100 yen/liter). 

Other Beverages: Rates vary based on alcohol content and type, with details available from Japan Customs. 

Consumption Tax:

A 10% consumption tax is applied to all alcoholic beverages, in addition to the liquor tax."" 

This the source of the problem.

The Japanese government encourages and gives subsidies with tax free periods to new brewery's, alcohol is a major TAX revenues and the general public are the victims.

Yes, Japan really is a drinkers paradise. Advertisers have increasingly been targeting women in recent years and making those cocktail and chu-hi containers very tasty looking. One might even say they are targeting children. In Canada, its hard to find a bottle of wine for under $20, while in Japan, I can buy some Chilean Chardonnay for 400 Yen. Or, I can buy some StrongZero 9% Grapefruit (my go-to drink) for under 200 Yen. I have tried to cut back my alcohol intake recently, but much support here for gaijin.

2- Surround yourself with non alcoholics.

I’ve gradually cut back on alcohol consumption the to point where I never drink at home. But all of my friends and coworkers drink, so it’s hard to avoid it. Even when I go to events for my kids, their friends’ parents all drink so I feel I need to as well.

Certainly not the case here in Japan, a drinkers paradise if you consider access and price.

Paradise? It has some good points but the beer is almost all the same generic rice lager.

If the cheapest bottle of wine or happoshu costs less than an apple or 2 oranges, no wonder people drink so much here. Besides, for government it is good because they get the tax and it is easy control population which is so much dependent on alcohol.

Personally, I haven't drunk alcohol for many years and do not miss it at all. I've been through the stigma of Japanese salarymen treating me like a lepper for turning down their drinks and toasting with coke. People are always boasting how drinking is part of a culture. I say it's a cultural weakness. Head into Ueno Park during the first week of April to see the cherry blossoms and you'll see the culture that drinking creates. If you are regularly drinking alcohol more than 2-3 times a week you have a drinking problem.

RE: but the beer is almost all the same generic rice lager.

Japanese "beer" is not made from rice.

Maybe you are mistaking Beer from Happoshu.

"Japanese happoshu, also known as low-malt beer, is primarily made from a blend of malt, hops, yeast, and water, with the defining characteristic being a malt content of less than 67%. Unlike regular beer, happoshu can also include other ingredients such as rice, corn, sorghum, potatoes, starch, or sugar."

Alcoholics are habitual problem drinkers and alcohol dependency is like the final stage of alcoholism and the only way to safely get sober is inpatient medical intervention. Shakes, hallucinations, not being able to walk, DT’s, scary stuff. I’m speaking from experience and most of the inpatients were women. They should really ban the sale of Strong Zero. Nothing like getting in the habit of drinking 8 large cans a day after a divorce, because it’s cheaper than beer, to put you halfway in the grave.

As others mentioned - drinking commercials are still the daily norm here.

Young people - mostly - enjoying life having fun, while drinking.

The one kind of CM that actually disturbs me is the young beautiful woman, alone (maybe after a hard day's work) chugging on an alcoholic drink with a smiling face of contention.

Weird stuff.

In general, as people experience more stress, the higher the alcohol consumption rate is. This is a sign and warning of Japanese society today. It's become much more unhealthy and unbalanced.

Japanese "beer" is not made from rice.

Asahi, Sapporo and Kirin all use rice in their beers. Have a look at the can next time you drink one.

Maybe you are mistaking Beer from Happoshu.

The lable "happoshu" is used for tax as "beer" is taxed on its malt content in Japan. Many of the so called beers in the US and Europe would also qualify as "happoshu" due to their low malt content.

The story is likely nothing new and more a recognition of something people have previously not recognized. There are likely to be female related aspects to female alcoholism, possibly including extra shame driving women to hide it, which female focused groups will likely understand better than anyone.

Some alcoholics are high functioning, so can continue for years with few if any external signs.

There is one positive point about beer in Japan and that is drunks here seldom think they can fight the world after a few glasses. Unlike the UK and some other places.

@Mr Kipling

Asahi, Sapporo and Kirin all use rice in their beers. Have a look at the can next time you drink one.

I think one of the Kirin ones does not (一番搾り). But it's pretty rare, almost all the other ones do. I taste tested it alongside a freshly made home brew, and the Kirin one had an aftertaste of water, compared to the prolonged aftertaste of the homebrew. But it's OK in a pinch.

What utterly freaks me out is the FOUR LITRE plastic bottles of whiskey and shochu that are sold at my local supermarket. And amazingly some people actually buy that (yes they do). This is insane.

Go on YouTube any night and you can watch many Japanese women live streaming getting drunk or drunk.

Garlic eaterToday  03:03 pm JST

What utterly freaks me out is the FOUR LITRE plastic bottles of whiskey and shochu that are sold at my local supermarket. And amazingly some people actually buy that (yes they do). This is insane.

Agree on that.

Liters of strong alcohol for US$10 ~ $15!!!

Certainly crazee - and from my long term observations usually middle-aged+ men are the buyers.

Just can't begin to imagine consuming that stuff let alone volumes of it.

Alcohol paradise.

I think one of the Kirin ones does not (一番搾り). But it's pretty rare, almost all the other ones do.

Kirin Ichiban shibori is made with rice and maize. Suntory Malts is one of the few that have no rice. US Budweiser is also a rice beer and is also best left on the shelf.

"...FOUR LITRE plastic bottles of whiskey and shochu that are sold at my local supermarket."

This whisky is purchased by the owners of so-called 'bottle-keep' bars, who refill the customers' expensive bottles with the cheaper brand...

Whatever the cause of the increase, good news that the women (and/or men) are seeking help.

I drink, but not to excess. I quit drinking beer because the hops causes joint pain. I didn't believe it until I went 3 or 4 months without any. Joint pain gone. I was drinking no more than 2 beers per day and it caused joint pain.

After being around a lot of other men while drinking, I feel lucky enough to have more of an urge to stop than to keep going after a few beers. Alcohol losses it's appeal to me after I reach a modest buzz. And, I always want food when I drink. I guess that helps.

Garlic eaterToday  03:03 pm JST

What utterly freaks me out is the FOUR LITRE plastic bottles of whiskey and shochu that are sold at my local supermarket. And amazingly some people actually buy that (yes they do). This is insane.

Agree on that.

Liters of strong alcohol for US$10 ~ $15!!!

Certainly crazee - and from my long term observations usually middle-aged+ men are the buyers.

Just can't begin to imagine consuming that stuff let alone volumes of it.

Some if the whisky in those huge bottles is awful but some is half decent stuff. I remember seeing Suntory Kaku ( not bad ) bottled like that.

I remember a session with coworkers on cheap shochu. Vicious.

Anything in excess is going to give you issues but alcohol is one of the worst of the legal things you can do that can harm yourself and those around you.

In this article we are discussing women, well I recall the U.K. TV series Harry and Paul and they often had sketches about women and one said “ women know your limits”. Could be a good Advert here in the media to highlight this issue.

Alcohol has always been a social lubricant for many people and it's definitely been glamourized on media, leading people to drink without considering the consequences. It doesn't help that in Japan, going out for drinks has traditionally been a part of their work culture, though I heard that this is decreasing. Coming from a family with a history of alcoholism, I don't touch the stuff. I've seen how "a few drinks" can eventually lead to ruin.

Alcohol for the average drinker is a "slow burner "

The damage it does takes decades and is often irreversible.

From your little 'pinky toe' , where, being at the end of the body is also the end of the nerve lines which fail to receive supplements and you get peripheral nerve damage and start that "club foot walk " old sailors had....

to the mid section with all the gastro problems drinkers get...ulcers, diarrhea ,,organ pain

to the liver, that wellknown place of damage that can affect every part of you, including cognition,

the heart, not often thought of as linked , but arrythmia and widening of the heart muscle, reduction in pumping ability , less blood equals less oxygen equals less quality of life

the neck, where major arteries affected by arrythmia start jumping out of your right side all the way to

THE BRAIN.....then your stuffed....if you have brain damage through alcohol your cause is lost and your life is institutionalized

It has been said that if a drug company came up with a drug that provided all the benefits from not drinking or abstaining later in life, that drug would outsell all others and make the patent holder a billionaire.

Also said that alcohol, presented today for approval by Boards and Governments, would not be approved..

I've lost four friends to alcohol. Two by what used to be called 'misadventure', and two who slowly poisoned themselves to death. I cut out drinking completely forever. The advantages are far outweighed by the damage it causes. Some of the stories in the article about people wetting themselves or attempting to hide their problems from their loved ones are very sad indeed. This unfortuntely reminds me of the things we used to joke about concerning my friends who had drinking problems.

They were dead by 50.

Reminds of that character "Fun Bobby," from Friends. Without the booze, well... they're just mere mortals.

Alcohol is such a big part of the social fabric in Japan. People rarely socialize without alcohol and drinking every day is not uncommon. I am happy thought that the attitudes are starting to change and that more people perhaps are recognizing that their drinking habits are unhealthy.