The Deadly Toll of Alcohol

SpAcEd OuT

Quote:
Football legend George Best has fought alcoholism for decades.

But the 59-year-old is just one of thousands of people who have suffered ill-health because of boozing.

Alcohol is up there as one of the biggest killers in the country. More than 6,500 people die each year in England and Wales because of alcohol though liver disease, cancer and alcohol poisoning.

But the impact of booze reaches much further than that. Another 30,000 deaths are linked to drinking and alcohol is estimated to cost the NHS £3bn.

The World Health Organization has identified it as the third highest risk to health in developed countries behind tobacco and raised blood pressure.

Colin Drummond, professor of addiction psychiatry at St George's Hospital Medical School in south London, said: "Alcohol is a major risk to public health. Smoking causes more deaths, but the number of smokers is on the decrease.


THE TOLL OF ALCOHOL
Deaths - Linked to nearly 40,000 deaths a year, including the direct cause of 6,500, mainly through liver disease
Cost - Estimated to cost the NHS £3bn in hospital services, according to the Royal College of Physicians
Disease - Alcohol can cause liver problems, such as cirrhosis and alcohol hepatitis, as well as a range of cancers, heart disease, stroke and brain disorders
Consumption - Some 8m people are hazardous drinkers - classed as having over the recommended daily limits - while 1.1m are said to be dependent on alcohol

"Drug taking only kills a few hundred in comparison, yet the government spends more on tackling that. Drinking, by comparison, is on the rise and too little is being done to help."

Consumption has been rising since the early 1990s, particularly among teenagers, as the price of drinks has fallen in relative terms.

Alcohol is the single biggest cause of liver disease - responsible for 80% of liver-related hospital admissions.

In the most severe cases, over consumption leads to liver cirrhosis, an irreversible condition which prevents the organ functioning and can lead to complete failure. One in 10 of these cases then go on to develop liver cancer.

Transplant

Alcohol-related liver disease accounts for about 5,000 deaths a year.

One option for people who develop liver problems is to have a liver transplant - as Mr Best did three years ago. One in 10 transplants are carried out because of alcohol abuse.

But alcohol can also help cause many other conditions, including heart disease, strokes, cancers of the breast, mouth and stomach, osteoporosis, brain disorders, such as dementia, and the stomach complaint gastritis.

Research has also found that alcohol affects the immune system which some have suggested can have an impact on the progress of HIV.

And that is without counting the problems many people suffer with a hangover such as blurred vision, memory loss and the shakes.

A spokeswoman for Alcohol Concern said: "The public is not aware enough of the damage alcohol can cause.

"Too many people think their drinking is not a problem, but you do not need to be dependent on alcohol for it to cause short and long-term problems."

The charity estimates there are 8m hazardous drinkers - that is to say people who drink more than the recommended daily amounts of alcohol.

For women that is between two and three units - the equivalent of a large glass of wine - and for men between three and four units - a pint-and-a-half of lager.

"We need to address this and quickly," she added.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4466750.stm

I serouisly think the government here should stop spending so much money on the ''war on drugs'' and start addressing a more serouis problem,alcohol. Most of the dangers with current illegal drugs pale in comparasion to the dangers with alcohol yet this seems to be overlooked by the general public,many people look down on others who smoke cannabis or take ecstasy for example yet go out every weekend and consume dangerous amounts of an extremly dangerous legal drug, I honestly cant understand the hypocrisy

J.R.HARTLEY

those figure aren't for this country, i'd like to discuss the issue alriht but how can we discuss the problem around us with facts from elsewhere.

missingtime

SpAcEd OuT wrote:

I serouisly think the government here should stop spending so much money on the ''war on drugs'' and start addressing a more serouis problem,alcohol. Most of the dangers with current illegal drugs pale in comparasion to the dangers with alcohol yet this seems to be overlooked by the general public,many people look down on others who smoke cannabis or take ecstasy for example yet go out every weekend and consume dangerous amounts of an extremly dangerous legal drug, I honestly cant understand the hypocrisy

Its been that way for years. A friend of mine wont go near hash but has no trouble getting wasted on beer. Not saying that he has a problem - he often gives up drink if he has a game the weekend or if he's driving.

The fact of the matter is that those drugs are illegal and thats why the government are trying to stop them coming into the country.

hullaballoo

Yeah, ok they're not from this country, but the demographics aren't going to be that different. If you want a better idea of what the problem's like here, just presume it's 3-5% worse. Or go to this site.

I agree that there's a major problem with alcohol though. George Best's death will hopefully highlight the issue where it's most needed--with the abusers.

The Government can write policy for this problem. It's impossible to legislate. It's a social problem that only society can tackle. Just like with smoking, over-use of alcohol is slowly becoming less acceptable and Besty's death will hopefully catalyse the effect that education is having. I notice that drink-driving is completely socially unacceptable with a lot of my generation whereas with my parent's generation, it's still rife.

Just a thought.

SpAcEd OuT

J.R.HARTLEY wrote:

those figure aren't for this country, i'd like to discuss the issue alriht but how can we discuss the problem around us with facts from elsewhere.

I am aware of that hence why i said in my post 'I really think the government here should be spending...' the problems are still the same though thats why I posted the article.

Bettyboop

not forgetting the impact drugs alcohol etc.
has upon a family.

lazylad

He got a liver, he didnt stop drinking. He got what was coming to him.
Other people who didn't have his money or fame, might have needed a liver more than him, but because they didn't have his money or social popularity whatever, he got it and ruined it.

I think people should realise that that liver might have gave a few extra years to someone who could have got his but didnt.

Mossy Monk

lazylad wrote:

I think people should realise that that liver might have gave a few extra years to someone who could have got his but didnt.

i think you should realise this thread isnt about George Best

TerrorFirmer

Mossy Monk wrote:

i think you should realise this thread isnt about George Best

Yeah seriously agreed there, mods should start banning idiots who blatantly and un-contributory ramble on about Best on other threads that aren't about him.

We know he was an alcoholic. But this thread is not about him. If you really want to slam him go onto one of the other various thread already running.

There's a difference between constructively weaving the recent passing of Best into a sensible argument and a ramble about best unrelated to the topic :mad:

AARRRGH

There is no doubt alcohol is terrible for us. But the world is full of people living in denial of all kinds of obvious things. It's just the way we are.

Rabies

Mossy Monk wrote:

i think you should realise this thread isnt about George Best

Do you need a map?
Come on, it is aimed at G. Best.