Government strategy on alcohol: >Time to revise legislation and implement wider interventions

摘要

Few would disagree that the UK has a serious problem in relation to alcohol and alcohol-related illness.1 The last three decades have seen alcohol consumption rise by 50%, and currently, an estimated 7.5% of men and 2.1% of women are physically addicted to alcohol, among the highest rates in the European Union.2 With rising rates of liver cirrhosis and a huge social burden of violence, accidents, and family disruption, the annual cost to the economy is conservatively estimated at £30 billion.3 How many new hospitals could be built with this money?