Life Skills Education

Fewer children are abusing booze but deaths are rising as north-south drinks divide opens in England

Fewer schoolchildren are consuming alcohol but deaths from excessive drinking are rising steadily, according to the latest government statistics.

The figures, revealing a surge in prescriptions for medicines to treat alcoholism and a slight decrease in overall consumption, suggest that awareness of the health dangers and, possibly, the recession may be having some impact.

A cultural divide in drinking habits appears to be opening up between southern and northern England, with far less being drunk in London than elsewhere in the country.

Deaths from alcohol in England climbed to 6,769 in 2008; liver disease was the most common cause. Fatalities have risen by 24% since 2001.

If overall consumption is falling, death rates – which chiefly reflect long term physical damage – will take some time to reflect any change.

Prescriptions for medicines to treat alcoholism rose by 12% in 2009; more than 150,000 were written for the two main drugs used to treat withdrawal symptoms or induce sickness when alcohol is drunk.

Among the young, the news was encouraging. “The proportion of pupils [aged 11-15] who have never had an alcoholic drink has increased gradually in recent years,” the study by the Office of National Statistics and the NHS Information Centre said. “In 2008, 48% of pupils reported having never tried alcohol, compared with 39% in 2003.”

The number of school-age children who admitted to having drunk alcohol in the past week also fell from 26% in 2001 to 18% in 2008. Beer, followed by alcopops and wine were young teenagers’ favoured drinks. Pubs and off-licences are being used less often by underage drinkers, reflecting more vigorous enforcement of age laws by landlords and police. Youngs people increasingly say they are drinking at parties or friends’ homes. The proportion resorting to outdoor drinking in parks and streets has climbed from 21% in 1999 to 27% in 2008.

“Young people in London are much less likely to have drunk alcohol in the last week than those living in other regions,” the report notes. “In London 12% of 11- to 15-year-olds have drunk alcohol in the last week; elsewhere the proportion varies from 19% in the east Midlands and the South-east to 26% in the North-east.”

Among adults a similar geographical split emerges. In terms of exceeding daily drinking limits, the highest proportions were among men and women in Yorkshire and the North-west while the lowest were in London.

Binge drinking – defined as consuming more than double your daily unit guideline – was most frequent in northern England.

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