Harm reduction (or
harm minimization) is a range of
public health policies designed to reduce the harmful consequences associated with various human behaviors, both legal and illegal. Harm reduction policies are used to manage behaviors such as
recreational drug use and
sexual activity in numerous settings that range from services through to geographical regions. Critics of harm reduction typically believe that tolerating risky or illegal behaviour sends a message to the community that such behaviours are acceptable and that some of the actions proposed by proponents of harm reduction do not reduce harm over the long term.