Bright Eye

Recently released figures show that the number of deaths caused by alcohol has risen dramatically in the past ten years. In fact it has almost doubled - from 4144 in ’91 to 8380 in ’04 (The UK Office for National Statistics Online).

The difference is even more profound among men than women. Oddly, the age range with the highest level of deaths caused by alcohol was men between the ages of 35 and 54, not the younger groups, as you might imagine.

But again, the rate of death for this age group in women too, has nearly doubled in the same time period from 9.3 to 17.9 per 100 000 of the population.

Alarming figures, as I’m sure you’ll agree. But a serious question which arises from this is, why? Are we really drinking that much more than we were ten years ago? Are our health services failing us?

Of course it is important to remember also that these figures are only for deaths directly attributable to alcohol. There will have been many more where alcohol was only an indirect cause (for instance someone killed in a car accident in which the other driver had been drinking).

There’s been a few articles around lately in which various people have suggested that Heroin should be made available on the NHS (that’s the free UK health service for non-UK readers). One of these is Dr Richard Simpson, the former Scottish drugs minister, BBC NEWS - Call to trial heroin on the NHS.

Cleveland Police Det Supt Tom Stoddart supports the idea, suggesting that it would help to get those most addicted off the drug without them engaging in crime to fund it. BBC NEWS - call to offer heroin on NHS.

Now what these people don’t seem to realise (maybe they should do a little research), is that heroin is already supplied on prescription through the NHS, and has been for many years. It’s rare for anyone to get it, and they usually have to demonstrate that the normal Methadone prescription isn’t helping them. But I myself have worked with a number of people being supplied pharmaceutical heroin on prescription. Its nothing new.

Does it actually help people get off the drug though? That’s arguable, for some people, yes. But for others, it just allows them to get on with their lives without having to raise vast sums of money (usually illegally) to fund an addiction which is seemingly beyond their control. Here’s one woman who’s been on a prescription for over two years - “I get my heroin on the NHS“

There is no commonly agreed definition of what binge drinking is, in terms of an actual amount of alcohol defined by the medical profession. But we all know what it means: drinking much more than you would normally drink in any one occasion.

This is not limited to alcoholics of course. However, binge drinkers don’t drink every day, and so they may not consider that they have an alcohol problem.

The effects of binge drinking on the individual, on those around them and on society generally are widespread. The health implications are serious, including alcohol poisoning and accidental death.

The social functioning and work performance of binge drinking individuals suffers markedly. Hangover related absenteeism and poor job performance was estimated to cost the US economy $148 billion in 1998.

Violence, accidents and crime rates soar on weekend nights as a result of heavy drinking – 80% of hospital emergency admissions at night are intoxicated by alcohol. Of course the biggest cause of accidents and death related to alcohol consumption is the motor car.

This problem is no longer restricted to men. Younger women particularly are now drinking until they are very drunk, at least as much as young men. The incidence of unwanted or unsafe sexual activity reported by young women increases dramatically when they and those around them have been drinking excessively. After binge drinking, one in seven 16 – 24 year olds have had unprotected sex, one in five have had sex they regretted later and one in ten have been unable to remember if they had sex the previous night (Health Education Authority (HEA/BMRB 1998b) Sexual health matters: Research survey).

Are you drinking too much?

The UK authorities suggest that the tolerable maximum weekly consumption of alcohol for men is 21 units (168g), and for women 14 units (112g). One unit of alcohol is defined as a half-pint of beer, a measure of spirits or a glass of wine. But how is anyone supposed to know how much these volumes are if they’re not in a bar?

These are often referred to as ‘safe drinking levels’, but of course no level of alcohol consumption is totally risk-free. The levels are officially described as “…the amounts below which it is unlikely that someone will develop significant illness or an early death”. Pretty vague, I’m sure you’ll agree. But it just illustrates that there is no real way to tell exactly how much you can safely drink. The more you drink, the worse the effects, that’s all you need to know.

There is some evidence to suggest that, in older people at least, there may be some health benefits from drinking in moderation - primarily from reductions in heart disease. But this should not be used as an excuse for drinking more.

More recently the government has advised that these weekly consumption guidelines should be spread out across the week into daily limits, to avoid the idea that it’s fine to not drink all week, then drink your entire alcohol ‘allowance’ at the weekend. So it now becomes 3-4 units per day for men, and 2-3 units per day for women.

Of course, these guidelines apply to healthy adults only, so the ‘safe’ levels for teenagers or adults with health problems is obviously much lower.

Are you drinking too much?

Neuro-Electric Therapy is a new method for easing the withdrawal from heroin or other opiates. The addict is required to apply electrodes behind the ear, which are then electrically stimulated daily for six to ten days using a control pack which the addict carries with them.

The electrical currents are said to stimulate nerve pathways (much like acupuncture), thus reducing any cravings for opiates and lessening the painful withdrawal symptoms. However the researchers are keen to point out that this treatment is not an alternative to counselling or rehabilitation, merely an effective method for dealing with the physicalities.

A trial of neuro electric therapy in Scotland has produced very promising results. This is expected to lead to much bigger trials of the treatment in the near future.