- One Scot every six hours dies from drink, Government figures have revealed. Alcohol-related deaths have more than doubled in the last 15 years. In 2005, it rocketed to 1513. The news on hard drugs was little better. Heroin deaths have soared by 35per cent since 1999 and hit 225 in 2004. In 1996, the total was just 84. The worrying rise in alcohol and drug-related deaths emerged in a reply to SNP MSP Stewart Stevenson's parliamentary questions. Greater Glasgow is the area worst affected by drink-related deaths, with 376 last year. Lothian health board area was the second worst with 221 cases, Argyll & Clyde health board had 177, Lanarkshire 184 and Fife 76. The Daily Record
- Children of parents who smoke are more likely to binge drink, experiment with drugs, skip school, steal, vandalise and have under-age sex, a study showed today. The findings prompted Professor Colin Pritchard to call for warnings about the social and psychological impact of smoking as well as the standard physical health warnings on cigarette packets. More than 830 teenagers aged between 14 and 15 completed anonymous questionnaires during class at 14 secondary schools on the south coast last September and October. They were questioned about their attitudes to school, public health issues, HIV, drugs, drink driving and asked if they had vandalised, stolen, had sex, taken drugs or binge drunk in the past week. 24dash.com
- One in eight women in the East of England drank more than the recommended amount of alcohol while pregnant, new research has found. A total of 11.9% of the mums-to-be surveyed in the region drank in excess of one to two units of alcohol per week - the highest level in the UK. The figure is far higher than the national average of 4.7%, prompting health bosses to warn of the dangers. The study of 1,100 expecting women also showed that 12% in the East continued to smoke during pregnancy, compared to the UK average of 8.5%. But last night, the stop smoking services in Suffolk and Essex said their statistics showed the true figure was around 16%. EADT24
- Autumn's Health Statistics Quarterly has been published by ONS, featuring a summary of the latest alcohol deaths statistics and of the newly revised definition of 'alcohol-related' for gathering these statistics.
The alcohol-related death rate in the UK increased from 6.9 per 100,000 population in 1991 to 13.0 in 2004. The number of alcohol-related deaths has more than doubled from 4,144 in 1991 to 8,380 in 2004. Death rates are much higher for males than females and in recent years the gap between the sexes has widened. In 2004 the male death rate, at 17.7 deaths per 100,000 population, was twice the rate for females (8.5 deaths per 100,000) and males accounted for over two thirds of the total number of deaths.
- Drug use, smoking and drinking among young people in England in 2005 has been published by The Information Centre.
There was no change from 2004 in the proportion of pupils who had drunk alcohol in the last week (22% in 2005, compared with 23% in 2004).
In 2005, boys and girls were equally likely to have drunk alcohol in the last week (22% of boys and 23% of girls); this was the pattern in 2004 as well, but in previous years boys were more likely to drink than girls.
The proportion of pupils who had drunk alcohol in the last week increased with age from 3% of 11 year olds to 46% of 15 year olds. Seventeen percent of pupils reported that they usually drink alcohol at least once a week, the same figure as in 2004.
One percent of both boys and girls reported drinking alcohol almost every day, a figure which has remained constant since 1999.
The mean alcohol consumption of pupils who had drunk in the last seven days has remained at similar levels since 1998 and in 2005 was 10.5 units. This has increased since 1990, when it was 5.3 units. Average weekly consumption continues to be higher among boys (11.5 units) than girls (9.5 units), and to increase with age (from 8.2 units for 11 to 13 year olds, to 11.8 units for 15 year olds). A quarter of all pupils who had drunk in the last week had consumed 14 or more units.
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