戒药和戒酒市场值得关注 / A Market Worth Watching: Drug and Alcohol Abuse

戒药和戒酒市场值得关注

最近我在博客中谈到中国未来对戒烟产品和戒烟服务存在的潜在需求。虽然中国政府在抑制烟草消费上已经展开了初步的工作，但中国仍是全球排名第一的烟草消费大户。戒烟产品和戒烟服务在许多国家已经形成了规模化市场，有朝一日在中国肯定也会大有作为。

根据美国的经验判断，中国未来还有一个潜力巨大的市场，即酒精依赖和药物滥用的治疗市场。

近期美国乐坛巨星惠特妮•休斯顿的意外离世清楚地提醒我们，这种致命的病态行为在美国已经上升到了流行病学的高度。

2010年的一项估计显示，美国共有2,210万人存在着物质滥用和依赖的问题，占到成年人口总数的8.7%。他们当中有1,500万人是酒精依赖，420万人是药物依赖，还有290万人是双重依赖。这里所说的药物滥用既包括服用违禁药品，也包括超量服用成瘾性处方药物。

美国有3,800万成年人被认定患有狂饮症，即每月会有四次饮酒达到8杯。

根据美国卫生及公共服务部（the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services）的统计，目前共有2,000万美国人正处于物质滥用的康复期。

所有重要预计都显示，很大一部分美国人都在这种病态行为中苦苦挣扎。我敢肯定其中每个人身边都有一些亲友和同事正在深受其苦。

美国专业的戒酒、戒药门诊和住院部共有17,000多家，很多是私立或私人经营的医院。它们收费不菲，且不在普通医保范围内。每天前去门诊和住院部就诊的人数平均有700,000人。

按照美国的数据推断中国物质滥用现状肯定是十分愚蠢的，但更愚蠢的是假装中国不存在这个问题，或者忽视它正在蔓延的事实。

获取中国物质滥用情况的数据不像在美国那样简单，但我们完全可以假设，这个问题已经日趋严重、并且已经引起卫生、交通、执法部门以及家属、配偶、父母和企业界的重视。

我对美国这个问题严重程度的认识都拜吉姆•莫埃德所赐，他是位年轻的美国媒体人，一年前创建了一本这方面的专门杂志。（透露一下，吉姆是我堂弟，但我和他没有商业往来。）

吉姆具备专业的出版业背景，本人也有克服药物和酒精依赖的亲身经历。他深知精心设计、编辑满足戒断期人士需求的杂志、网站和手机应用软件应该大有可为。出于自身的经历，他对这项使命以及相关的商业计划充满了热情。

他筹集了70万美元的投资，创办了《新生》（RENEW）杂志和网站（www.reneweveryday.com），并以治疗中心作为主要的受众和发行渠道。由于接受治疗的患者大部分都是富人，所以杂志和网站也吸引了包括手表、汽车等各类厂家投放广告。

其他编辑也和吉姆一样，都曾有过物质滥用的经历并成功脱瘾。一些名人也乐于分享他们的经历，治疗和卫生团体的反响也都很积极。编辑们的使命之一就是要打消参与康复治疗的羞耻感和尴尬，提供正面的鼓励和支持。

A Market Worth Watching: Drug and Alcohol Abuse

Recently I wrote about the potential future demand for quit smoking products and services in China, the world's largest consumer of tobacco, despite superficial government efforts to curtail consumption. Smoking cessation products and services have become big business in many other markets, and could become very big in China one day.

Judging by the American experience, another potentially huge future market in China may be specialized services to treat alcohol and drug abusers.

The recent untimely death of American music superstar Whitney Houston is a stark reminder that this deadly illness has reached epidemic proportions in the U.S.

One 2010 estimate puts the number of Americans with a substance abuse or dependence problem at 22.1 million people, or 8.7% of the adult population. Of these, 15 million are dependent on alcohol but not drugs; 4.2 million on drugs but not alcohol; and 2.9 million on both. Drug abuse in this context includes both illegal drugs as well as habit-forming prescription drugs which are taken in excess.

Some 38 million American adults are defined as binge drinkers, which means they consume 8 drinks in a session four or more times a month.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services puts the number of Americans currently in recovery from substance abuse at 20 million.

All of the leading estimates point to a very substantial number of Americans who are struggling with this illness. For every one of them you can be sure there are a handful of family members, friends and colleagues who are also badly affected.

There are more than 17,000 specialized inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol treatment centers in the U.S., many of which are privately owned and operated, charging premium fees often not covered by typical health care insurance. On average, 700,000 Americans are in treatment -- inpatient or outpatient -- on any given day.

It would be foolish to try to extrapolate the extent of China's current substance abuse problem on the basis of American statistics; but it would be even more foolish to pretend the problem does not exist, or that it is not growing, in China.

Statistics on the extent of the problem in China are not as easy to come by as they are for the U.S., but it's a safe assumption that it is a large and growing concern for health, transport, and law enforcement authorities, as well as families, spouses, parents, and companies.

I've been educated on the extent of this problem in the U.S. by a young American media entrepreneur, Jim Moorhead, who started a magazine to serve this niche about one year ago. (Full disclosure: Jim is my cousin, although I have no commercial interest in his venture.)

With a professional background in publishing and a personal story of overcoming drug and alcohol abuse, he knew there was an opportunity for a well designed and edited magazine, website and mobile app to address the needs of people in the process of recovery. Given his own experience, he was passionate about the mission as well as the business plan.

He raised US$700,000 from investors and started RENEW Magazine, along with the website www.reneweveryday.com. Treatment centers are a focal point of his audience and distribution network. Because many of those in treatment are relatively affluent consumers, the print and online versions have attracted advertising from a variety of sectors including watches, autos, etc.

The editorial team, like Jim, have direct personal experience with substance abuse and the process of successful recovery. A number of celebrities have been willing to share their stories, and the reaction from the treatment and medical communities has been very positive. Part of the editorial mission is to take away the shame and embarrassment of being in recovery, offering positive encouragement and support.

《新生》将自己定位为唯一的康复生活类杂志，让人眼前一亮。除了提供道义上的支持和鼓励外，杂志还会提供一些实用信息，例如哪里可以找到治疗师，酒精和麻醉药滥用者互助协会什么时间会在哪里开会，出现问题的未成年人应该向哪里求助等等。

《新生》是一个很有说服力的案例，证明对于政府无力独自解决的问题，企业家有时可以施以援手，同时将其开发成盈利性的产业。潜在的受众人数在2,000万以上，这显然是一个庞大的细分市场。

中国版《新生》的诞生时机可能尚未成熟，但它绝对是个值得关注的战略命题。

RENEW is a glossy magazine which bills itself as the only recovery lifestyle magazine. Apart from offering moral support and encouragement, contents include practical tips such as where to find a therapist, locations and timing of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous meetings, where to turn for help for a teenager in trouble, etc.

RENEW is a compelling example of how entrepreneurs can sometimes address problems which governments cannot solve entirely on their own, while creating a profitable enterprise in the process. A potential audience universe of 20-million plus is a substantial niche.

China is probably not ready for a Chinese edition of RENEW at this point in time, but it is definitely a subject matter and strategy worth paying attention to.