The complex nature of drug and alcohol addiction has meant that no sin
gle intervention measure, whether preventive or treatment, is singled
out as effective in preventing or reducing the harm associated with us
e and misuse at individual or community level. A comprehensive public
health approach based on many strands to tackle the diverse aspects of
use and misuse is more promising. This review examines the various el
ements of such an approach, pointing out the direction for future poli
cies. (C) 1998 Rapid Science Ltd.