Alcohol Kills One Every 10 Secs: WHO Report

A report released by the World Health Organization revealed that alcohol consumption kills 3.3 million people every year which was more than AIDS, tuberculosis and violence combined. The study says dangerous alcohol consumption leads not only to addiction but also higher risks of diseases and disorders related to the habit.

Including drink driving, alcohol induced violence and abuse and a multitude of diseases and disorders, alcohol causes one in 20 deaths globally every year, the UN health agency said.  “This actually translates into one death every 10 seconds,” Shekhar Saxena, head of the WHO’s Mental Health and Substance Abuse department, told reporters in Geneva, Global Post reports. 

According to the report, people aged fifteen and above drinks 6.2 liters of pure alcohol a year and that men were likely to experience alcohol related deaths when compared to women. Drinking among women was rising and low income communities were at greater risks for social and health complications related to alcohol, the report said.

It found that 16 percent of the drinkers were engaged in binge drinking, which is the most dangerous form of alcohol consumption. Europe has the highest alcohol consumption per capita and consumption levels have been stable in Africa and in the Americas. According to WHO, the consumption levels were increasing in Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific regions.

Drinking causes more than 200 health conditions, including liver cirrhosis and cancers. Alcohol abuse also makes people more susceptible to infectious diseases like tuberculosis, HIV and Pneumonia, the report found. “More needs to be done to protect populations from the negative health consequences of alcohol consumption”, Oleg Chestnov of the WHO’s Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health unit said in a statement launching a report on global alcohol consumption and its impact on public life.

interactive editor