Irish girls among the worst binge drinkers

Our female teens rank third highest on global list

IRISH adolescent girls have one of the highest levels of binge drinking in the world, according to new global study.

The study, published in The Lancet, tracked the bingedrinking rates of adolescents aged 15-19 worldwide, as well as looking at obesity rates and their smoking habits.

Ireland was one of the countries found to be near the top of the table when it came to binge drinking.

The countries with the highest levels of young women binge drinking – with a prevalence of over 55% of that demographic’s population – were Denmark, Finland, Ireland and New Zealand, in that order.

Denmark’s rate of adolescent binge drinking for females was 70% while the rate among Irish adolescent females was 61% and the rate for their Irish male counterparts was 58%.

In the UK, the female binge drinking rate for 15 to 19 years in 2016 was 48%, and 49% for young males.

The number of teenagers globally aged 15-19 who binge drink changed little from 1990 – it has gone from 41million boys and 26million girls in 1990 to 44million boys and 27million girls in 2016.

‘Despite having been a focus of policy attention in many highincome countries, the number of adolescents who binge drink has not shifted since 1990,’ said the authors. The report found that smoking has decreased globally with 136million adolescents smoking daily in 2016 – a decrease of 38million on 1990.

The report also found that in 2016, almost one in five, or 324million of the world’s 1.8billion adolescents, was overweight. This is a 120% increase in 16 years – the figure rose by 176million from the 147million adolescents who were overweight or obese in 1990.

The rate of Irish females aged between ten and 24 years who are overweight or obese was 23% in 2016, compared to a rate of 32% for their male counterparts in the same age group. The researchers tracked progress in 12 indicators of adolescent health in 195 countries, including risk factors such as smoking and obesity and binge drinking.

The alarming study also found the number of adolescents with anaemia increased by 20%.

In Ireland, just over 5% of females and just over 2% of adolescent males had anaemia.

The study titled Progress in Adolescent Health and Wellbeing: Tracking 12 Headline Indicators for 195 Countries And Territories, 1990–2016 has just been published in the Lancet.

The report said health risks associated with nutrition and substance use affect adolescent growth and development and ultimately health trajectories in later life.

‘Despite improvements in many settings, the adolescent health challenge is greater today than it was 25 years ago,’ said Professor George Patton. Comment – Page 12

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