BOOZE KILLING MORE & MORE OLD DRINKERS
Years of abuse finally takes toll, says report
DEATH rates among middle-aged women and older men due to alcohol have soared, new figures showed yesterday.
Decades of boozing is taking its toll on the health of the over 60s – but drinking among the younger generation is falling.
Office for National Statistics figures revealed deaths among men aged between 70 and 74 due to alcohol rose from 18.7 per 100,000 population in 2001 to 28 per 100,000 last year.
And rates among 60 to 64-year-old females have jumped by 35% in the same period. Scotland is the worst place for alcohol deaths in older age groups. It comes as a report published today by the Children’s Society reveals the lives of around 700,000 teenagers are blighted by having parents with drink problems.
The charity said kids living with boozy or drug-using mums or dads can suffer mental health problems but Tory cuts to health and social care means they are often having to deal with the “huge” issues alone.
Chief executive Matthew Reed said: “The hundreds of thousands of kids whose parents have a drinking problem are just the tip of the iceberg of children in need of support.”
Shadow Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth, who has spoken of being brought up by an alcoholic dad, said: “This research highlights the serious health implications parental drinking can have on their teenage children.
“We know children growing up with an alcoholic parent can often go on to develop problems with alcohol or drugs or mental health.
“Yet our recent research showed that public health cuts has led to a £43 million reduction in alcohol and drug addiction treatment services.
“It’s time we, as a society, took these issues more seriously.”