Alcohol Harm

On these pages we have bought together a number of guidance and data sources to assist with effective planning, commissioning and delivery of services to reduce alcohol-related harm.

• alcohol harm guidance
• alcohol harm data

The Costs of Alcohol

The following figures give an indication of the level of the problem (Source: DH Health Improvement Analytics, Feb 2010)

Alcohol Harm in England

• 84% of adults drink alcohol
• The DH lower-risk guidelines:
• Men: should not regularly exceed 3-4 units/day
• Women: should not regularly exceed 2-3 units/day
• BUT - 22% (over 9 million) of adults in England drink more than the Government's lower-risk guidelines
• AND - over 2 million adults drink at higher-risk levels
• 1.4 million men drink 50+ units/week
• 800,000 women drink more 35+ units/week.

Hospital Admissions

• Alcohol is responsible for 7% of all hospital admissions
  • 511,000 individuals admitted in 2002/03
  • 1.1 million individuals admitted in 2009/10
  • Rising by 12% (111,000) between 2008/09 and 2009/10
• Alcohol misuse contributes to 48 conditions
  • 13 conditions were wholly attributable to alcohol consumption
  • 35 conditions were partially attributable to alcohol consumption
• Areas of highest deprivation (compared to more affluent areas) have:
• 2 to 3 times higher loss of life
• 2 to 5 times more admissions to hospitals