Do some French drinkers develop alcohol-related problems?
Yes, absolutely, even though most drinking moderately. It has been suggested by some in France, that people there have often turned a blind eye to problem drinking both at a policy and resource level. Craplet (2001) for example, points out that “a problem drinker is considered badly in France and that alcohol-related problems become taboos in families, work places and nations. ” Craplet goes on to note: “We can point to the example of Princess Diana’s death on the Paris streets: many observers were surprised that the driver of a royal princess could take the wheel while intoxicated. We can say now that this man had a chronic problem and that he was obviously drunk on the night of the accident, but nobody stopped him because of the taboo in French society, and particularly in the hospitality sector where he worked.” Craplet also says of alcohol policy in France: “We could truly say, to put it crudely, that the premature deaths of thousands of 50-year-old heavy drinkers, who had been goo
