MORE than 10,000 Brits died from drinking too much alcohol in 2022, official data shows.
The record figure was up 4.2 per cent in a year and nearly a third from pre-pandemic numbers in 2019, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Experts said people who were already boozing too much before Covid were most likely to increase their levels during lockdowns.
David Mais, of the ONS, said: “Alcohol-specific deaths rose sharply with the onset of the pandemic, and today’s results show a continuation of that trend.
“Research has suggested that people who were already drinking at high levels before the pandemic were the most likely to have increased their drinking during this period.
“Alcoholic liver disease was the leading cause of these deaths, and as with previous years, rates are much higher among men.”
The NHS recommends Brits don’t drink more than 14 units of alcohol — the equivalent of six pints of beer — a week, spread across three days or more.
Drinking more than this can increase the risk of a range of deadly illnesses, including fatty liver disease, heart disease and cancer.
The ONS figures showed deaths caused by alcohol were around twice as high in men as they were in women in 2022.
Scotland and Northern Ireland had higher rates — 22.6 and 19.5 per 100,000 respectively — than Wales and England.
The North East had the highest rate in England at 21.8 per 100,000, while the East of England had the lowest — 11 per 100,000.
Dr Richard Piper, of Alcohol Change UK, said: “Each one of those deaths is a tragedy — we send our deepest sympathies to all those families and friends who have lost a loved one.
“Years of inaction on alcohol harm has led to this, and the heartbreaking thing is these deaths were totally avoidable.
“Our government has the responsibility and the power to put preventative measures in place, including proper regulation of alcohol marketing, clearer labelling, and a minimum price.”
‘ALCOHOL EMERGENCY’
Clare Taylor, chief operating officer at Turning Point, said: “It is saddening to see the figures released by ONS, behind every number is a person, and our thoughts go out to anyone who has lost someone from alcohol use.
“Increasing awareness of safe drinking levels and the long-term harms of alcohol use has a key role to play in reducing further harm from alcohol.”
Alison Douglas, chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland, said: “These new figures confirm that despite the lifesaving impact of minimum unit pricing, Scotland remains in the grip of an alcohol emergency.
“Changes to drinking patterns during the Covid-19 pandemic have sadly become embedded and represent a ticking time bomb of alcohol-related illness and deaths for our already overstretched NHS.
“Every life lost due to alcohol is a preventable tragedy for individuals, families, friends and communities.”
Long-term effects of alcohol misuse
Drinking large amounts of alcohol for many years will take its toll on many of the body’s organs and may cause organ damage.
Some of these include:
Source: NHS