“Habitual” drinkers, not alcoholics, account for most people with alcohol-related liver disease.
Experts are particularly concerned at the rise in the number of young people — up almost three-fold — and women with the potentially fatal disease.
One of the leading authorities said mortality rates were “probably a serious under-estimate” because of a culture of denial among families affected.
The Royal College of Physicians in Ireland (RCPI) yesterday issued a paper detailing the extent of the problem.
It is urging the Government to introduce minimum pricing for alcohol, restrictions on availability, and an end to sports sponsorship.
“We have all seen it in our practice, an increased number patients admitted to hospital, young people in particular and increasingly women, with complications, illness and death due to alcohol,” said Prof Frank Murray, the college chairman.
He said a lot of patients were not dependent, but were “habitual” drinkers, whose level and frequency of consumption was higher than recommended.
Source: Cormac O'Keeffe, Irish Examiner, 24/04/13
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