A recent study by La Trobe University, published in the Health Promotion Journal of Australia, has found significant support for a browser plug-in that blocks online alcohol-related imagery as a way of reducing consumption across younger demographics.

The study aims to protect young people from being influenced to start drinking alcohol or drinking excessively. Lead researcher, Maree Patsouras, from La Trobe's Centre for Alcohol Policy Research, highlighted the commonality of alcohol depictions online and the clear relationship between alcohol exposure and alcohol use.

"A large portion of the people we interviewed in this study believed that viewing online alcohol imagery could cause temptation and cravings to drink alcohol," said Patsouras. Participants in the study expressed belief that viewing online alcohol imagery could lead to temptation and cravings to drink alcohol.

"If you see it, you think about it...it just triggers the thought in your brain and then you start craving it," one participant explained.

The majority of participants saw the browser plug-in as an easy intervention tool for parents and people experiencing alcohol-related problems or trying to reduce their drinking.

Participants reported being exposed to alcohol-related advertising online, even when they were not actively searching for it. The study found online alcohol exposure served as a reminder to drink and brought alcohol to the forefront of participants' minds. Participants expressed concern that online alcohol exposure taught minors that drinking was socially acceptable, fun, or exciting, potentially leading to earlier alcohol consumption.

Participants supported the development of an alcohol imagery blocking browser plug-in, alongside stricter governmental regulation, and restrictions for alcohol-related marketing and exposure.

"I'm sad that [the plug-in] is necessary," one participant said. "I really think that this should be legislated at the government level, and restricted that way."