Drink deaths triple
Binge drinking is killing a soaring number of young people, figures show today.
The number of alcohol related deaths has tripled in the past two decades as youngsters fail to heed warnings about the dangers of drink.
Most of the deaths are from chronic liver diseases and cirrhosis, a direct result of alcohol abuse.
Critics blame health chiefs for failing to prioritise the problem, and highlight the gulf between funding for tackling drug abuse, which affects fewer people than alcohol, and cash for fighting Britain's drink problem.
The figures from the Office for National Statistics show that in 2001, alcohol accounted for seven per cent of deaths among young men, and six per cent of deaths among young women. Two decades ago, the figure was only two per cent.
Among young men in 1979, the death rate from alcohol stood at seven for every 100,000, rising to 21 by 2001. Among young women, the rate was 3.5 for every 100,000 in 1979, rising to 10 in 2001.
The sharpest increases were among people aged 40-44, although there was a steady rise in deaths among youngsters aged 15-19.
The figures come days after it emerged that the Government is considering a campaign to reduce binge drinking among young women by using hard-hitting adverts.
The campaign could see bottles of alcohol carrying warnings about the health risks associated with excessive drinking, and a ban on adverts which glamorise drink.
A spokesman for the social care charity Turning Point, which campaigns to reduce alcohol abuse, said: "We want to see a national strategy that sets out how to tackle alcohol problems, backed up by appropriate funding.
"At the moment, there are six times as many people with alcohol problems as with Class A drug problems, and yet there is around a sixth of the cash available."
The latest statistics, covering a range of health issues, show that Glasgow is the worst place in the UK to live in terms of life expectancy.
Men born in the city can expect an average 68.7 years, while the average woman lives to 76.
Elsewhere in the country, women born in West Somerset have the highest life expectancy, living to 83.4, while women born in Guildford and Kensington and Chelsea should make it to at least 83.
A Health Department spokeswoman said: "We recognise that alcohol related deaths are a key issue and this is something our strategy will aim to tackle."
