UK SEES RECORD NUMBER OF ALCOHOL-RELATED DEATHS IN 2021 -ONS

Fri 09 December 2022:

The British statistics body ONS said on Thursday that there were more deaths in the United Kingdom in 2021 as a result of excessive alcohol use than ever before.

The Covid-19 pandemic, which saw heavy drinkers consume more more alcohol than in previous years, is likely to blame for this, according to the authorities.

The deaths of 9,641 people in the United Kingdom could be directly linked to alcohol. That was over a quarter more than in 2019, the last full year before the pandemic.

After the death figures had been stable for years, they rose significantly in 2020 and again by around 7.4% in 2021.

Researchers had expected the trend. In the summer, a study by the University of Sheffield had shown that especially people who already consumed risky amounts before drank more during the period of lockdowns and contact restrictions.

“These statistics are absolutely devastating, each number masking an individual family tragedy,” Karen Tyrell of the charity Drinkaware told the BBC.

“It is unacceptable that in one of the richest countries in the world, the rate of alcohol-related deaths was four times higher among men in the poorest areas compared to the most affluent.”

Campaigners are calling for, among other things, a significant increase in alcohol duty.

In Scotland, where there were 22.4 alcohol-related deaths per 100,000 persons, the highest number of fatalities occurred. England, which makes up the majority of the nation, had the fewest, with just 13.9.

The leading cause of death was by far liver illness. Men died from alcohol-related causes twice as frequently as women do.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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