Our group investigates work focussed on the commercial determinants of health, and in particular, the role of geography in improving our understanding of how retail environments are shaped and in turn contribute towards spatial and social inequalities in health-related behaviours. We explore various commercial determinants but is particularly focussed on alcohol and tobacco. We are members of the SPECTRUM research consortium. SPECTRUM is a multi-institute consortium that aims to generate new evidence to inform the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCD) caused by unhealthy commodities and to transform policy and practice to encourage the adoption of healthy environments and behaviours. Other ongoing work includes exploring changing spatial patterns of unhealthy commodities over time. We are working on a project in this area that assesses this change in Scotland and related health outcomes in place. The project is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). Our research has generated significant political and media attention and has received two Parliamentary commendations from the Scottish Parliament. Current projects SPECTRUM Professor Jamie Pearce and Professor Niamh Shortt are members of the SPECTRUM research consortium. Their research will generate new evidence to inform the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) caused by unhealthy commodities and to transform policy and practice to encourage the adoption of healthy environments and behaviours. With a principal focus on tobacco and alcohol, our work extends to food in key studies. We have eight integrated work packages and hope to apply these to other commodities. Along with an interdisciplinary research team, SPECTRUM’s work is co-created with research users from civil society organisations, companies, and the main public health agencies in Great Britain. The public will be involved through engagement panels, citizen’s juries, and qualitative research. Our partnership will ensure that research findings will benefit from an accelerated pathway to inform new policies and practices and provide valuable data to assess the extent and effectiveness of approaches to addressing NCDs in the UK and beyond. Visit the SPECTRUM website Change in alcohol and tobacco availability, population health, and the lived experience Professor Niamh Shortt, Professor Jamie Pearce, Dr Tom Clemens and Dr Peter Lekkas are working on a project which aims to measure a change in the availability of alcohol and tobacco in Scottish neighbourhoods over time and explore how this change relates to health outcomes and how residents experience alcohol and tobacco availability in their neighbourhoods. In Scotland, smoking causes one in every five deaths and one in twenty deaths is related to alcohol. This harm is not equally shared; those on the lowest incomes suffer the greatest and these illnesses and deaths are preventable. The World Health Organisation recommends that nations prioritise interventions that reduce the supply of alcohol and tobacco. More information on this project award can be found on *ERE * Edinburgh Research Explorer (ERE) is the University's research information system and is managed by Library and University Collections. This article was published on 2024-07-01
