Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Ian and Eimear for their presentation this morning. When I proposed to the committee that it invite them after they won the Young Scientist of the Year Award I did not think it would be on the same day that the Minister came here. They can see how significant their research is for framing policy. This shows the influence their work can have. It deserves the recognition it is getting, because it is very comprehensive research. I also thank the staff of their school and their parents for their support, and everyone who took part in the survey, because without the participants they would not have been able to get the information.

While they were doing the survey, and in the time since then, did it come across that parents and young people were aware of the health risks associated with excessive drinking?

One of the figures included in the research was that 47% had normal a BMI and a breakdown was given between men and women. I am open to correction on my figures, but it appears that 67.9% of men did not have a normal BMI. Outside of the alcohol issue, other issues were identified in the health survey that we have overlooked. This is an issue. Do Mr. O'Sullivan and Ms Murphy think people were aware of the risks associated with excessive drinking, particularly young people? They have the experience of conducting all of this research. What do they consider would have the effect of getting the message across to people that excessive drinking damages health? I referred to Dr. Orla Crosbie's paper last week in which she identified that young women were coming to her attention with serious liver problems, cirrhosis, which she did not see 20 years ago. How do we get the message across to young people and parents?