John
01-17-2010, 09:57 AM
According to the findings, Scots are downing 25% more alcohol per head of population than the English and the Welsh.
The 50.5 million litres of pure alcohol sold in Scotland last year was enough for every drinker over the age of 18 to exceed the weekly consumption guidelines for men every week of the year, the research found.
The new figures come as the Scottish Government pushes for a minimum price for alcohol to tackle the country's drink-related problems.
The study is based on industry sales data analysed by NHS Health Scotland and looked in part at sales of pure alcohol per person, as opposed to total volumes of alcoholic drink.
According to the report, sales for the year to September 2009 averaged 12.2 litres of pure alcohol per person over the age of 18.
The Scottish Government said the figure, which remained virtually static since 2005, is equivalent to more than 46 bottles of vodka, 537 pints of beer or 130 bottles of wine.
In England and Wales, the total for the same period was 9.7 litres per person.
Average weekly sales for Scottish drinkers were 26.5 units per person over the age of 18, equivalent to around 11 pints of beer or three bottles of wine.
In England and Wales, the figure was 21.8, slightly higher than the recommended weekly maximum for a man.
Scotland Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said it was time for critics of minimum pricing to "wake up" to the scale of Scotland's drink problem and called for a minumum price for alcohol to be set.
She said: "We believe setting a minimum price for alcohol, while not the whole answer, is a key weapon in the battle against alcohol misuse."
But Labour health spokeswoman Jackie Baillie MSP said: "I believe that alcohol abuse is the most important public health issue we face in Scotland today.
"We need to consider radical measures to reduce the level of problem drinking but minimum unit pricing is not the answer."
A report out earlier in the week put the cost to Scots taxpayers of alcohol abuse at £3.56bn a year, thanks to the burden on police, the NHS, social services and the economy.
The 50.5 million litres of pure alcohol sold in Scotland last year was enough for every drinker over the age of 18 to exceed the weekly consumption guidelines for men every week of the year, the research found.
The new figures come as the Scottish Government pushes for a minimum price for alcohol to tackle the country's drink-related problems.
The study is based on industry sales data analysed by NHS Health Scotland and looked in part at sales of pure alcohol per person, as opposed to total volumes of alcoholic drink.
According to the report, sales for the year to September 2009 averaged 12.2 litres of pure alcohol per person over the age of 18.
The Scottish Government said the figure, which remained virtually static since 2005, is equivalent to more than 46 bottles of vodka, 537 pints of beer or 130 bottles of wine.
In England and Wales, the total for the same period was 9.7 litres per person.
Average weekly sales for Scottish drinkers were 26.5 units per person over the age of 18, equivalent to around 11 pints of beer or three bottles of wine.
In England and Wales, the figure was 21.8, slightly higher than the recommended weekly maximum for a man.
Scotland Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said it was time for critics of minimum pricing to "wake up" to the scale of Scotland's drink problem and called for a minumum price for alcohol to be set.
She said: "We believe setting a minimum price for alcohol, while not the whole answer, is a key weapon in the battle against alcohol misuse."
But Labour health spokeswoman Jackie Baillie MSP said: "I believe that alcohol abuse is the most important public health issue we face in Scotland today.
"We need to consider radical measures to reduce the level of problem drinking but minimum unit pricing is not the answer."
A report out earlier in the week put the cost to Scots taxpayers of alcohol abuse at £3.56bn a year, thanks to the burden on police, the NHS, social services and the economy.