A new report published today reveals as much as a quarter of all adults are consuming alcohol way over the levels recommended to avoid health related problems.
Men are more likely to be drinking too much with one in three putting their health at risk, but women are affected also with one in six drinking high levels that could result in significant damage to their liver or psychological side effects like depression. In addition, figures show that one in 10 men and one in 25 women could be considered alcohol dependent, which points to them eventually developing alcoholism.
The new figures, which were collated by the NHS information centre, reveal just how much the Brit’s taste for alcohol puts pressure on the NHS. In the five years leading up to 2007-08, the number of people being admitted into hospital with alcohol related illnesses went up by a whopping 70 per cent to 863,000. The number of people requiring drug prescriptions for alcohol addictions went up by 31 per cent. Currently the amount of money spent on the NHS in England on alcohol related illness is approximately £2.7 billion but is still rising.
Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians and an alcohol expert, feels the fact alcohol is so much cheaper and more available plays a significant contributory role, “The pivotal role of increasing affordability of alcohol over the last few decades as a key factor in increasing consumption and harm has been yet again confirmed,” he said.
