Australia has a problem with excessive drinking and most people believe alcohol is linked to domestic violence, a national poll shows.
The Annual alcohol poll of 2017 commissioned by the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) also found one-third of Australians have been affected by alcohol-related violence.
FARE chief executive Michael Thorn told AAP one in five Australian children, or about a million each year, are harmed as a result of someone else's drinking.
"It's a damning indictment of this country's toxic relationship with alcohol when we have more than a third of Australians affected by alcohol-related violence," he said.
"These troubling findings are really a reflection of the extent of alcohol harm in Australia; the 15 lives lost and 430 hospitalisations caused by alcohol every single day."
But the alcohol industry has rejected the figures, labelling the poll a "sensationalist dud".
Alcohol Beverages Australia Executive Director Fergus Taylor said FARE's claims lack evidence.
"This poll is all spin and no substance," he said.
The poll shows 78%, of Australians believe excess drinking is a problem, and 92%, say alcohol is linked to domestic violence.
Mr Thorn says it's time governments stop ignoring alcohol's contribution to family violence, which is what they have been doing by making access to alcohol easier, with more outlets and lower prices.
"Government's have deliberately turned a deaf ear to this aspect of the family violence crisis we have in the nation," he says.
But Mr Fergus says the vast majority of Australians use alcohol responsibly and in moderation.
He says Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data shows binge drinking has been in steady decline for more than a decade.
"And violence is also significantly trending downwards Australia-wide," Mr Taylor said in a statement on Thursday.
KEY FINDINGS OF THE ALCOHOL POLL
- 35% of Australians have been affected by alcohol-related violence
- 21% of parents of children under the age of 18 years report their child has been harmed or put at risk of harm because of someone else's drinking
- 44% consume alcohol to get drunk
- 92% think there's a link between alcohol and domestic violence
- 78% believe Australia has a problem with excess drinking
- 81% believe more needs to be done to reduce alcohol-related harm
- 68% support a ban on alcohol advertising on TV before 8.30pm.
