Griffith Edwards

Griffith Edwards was born in India and received his M.D. from Oxford University, since which time he has focused on the study and treatment of alcohol and drug addiction.

He established the UK National Addiction Center in London and was its first chair. He has also served as Editor-in-Chief of the journal, Addiction and has received awards for his work.

Dr. Edwards argues that National Prohibition in the U.S. was a public health success and that its repeal was largely due to the "propaganda machine of the Association Against the Prohibition Amendment." He believes that our current views of Prohibition result from the success of that organization. "The world 'knows,' for instance, that Prohibition was 'a failure,' and that is a direct inheritance from the AAPA's propaganda." In turn, "the AAPA's rhetoric was a front for the distaste of the Du Ponts and others like them for paying high income tax" to compensate for the lost taxes on alcoholic beverages.

Dr. Edwards calls for much more stringent controls over alcohol advertising and distribution in order to lower the average per capita consumption of alcohol. He argues that this would necessarily result in a lower incidence of alcohol-related problems.

Griffith Edwards is a prolific writer, books he has written include Alcohol, The Worlds Favourite Drug, and Matters Of Substance: Drugs, And Why Eveyone is a User.

Source

 * Edwards, Griffith. Alcohol: The World's Favorite Drug. NY: St. Martin's Press, 2000.