UK worst for binge-drink sessions, says global survey

Experts warn of health risks as average Briton admits getting drunk almost every week

BRITAIN has topped a global study for binge drinking with more cases than any other nationality surveyed.

Britons reported getting drunk an average of 51.1 times over the course of a year – almost once a week – according to the Global Drug Survey.

While the US, Canada and Australia closely followed the UK at the higher end of the global rankings, participants from South American countries reported getting drunk on the fewest number of occasions.

The study, published in the group’s annual report, comes amid an overall downward trend of drinking levels in the UK, with abstention on the rise, particularly among young adults.

But Prof Adam Winstock, founder of the survey, which questioned 120,000 people in 36 countries, said while fewer people were drinking, many still drank to excess.

He said: “We get told too much is bad, and it is, but current guidelines fail to accept the pleasure of intoxication and give little guide on the difference between being a little drunk and a lot drunk, and doing it three to four times a year versus weekly. We need to have that conversation.

“In the UK, we don’t tend to do moderation, we end up getting drunk as the point of the evening.

“Until culture changes and we become more European and moderate in our drinking, we might have to bite the bullet and think about how to advise people to get drunk drinking less.”

NHS guidelines say there is no “safe” level of drinking and that men and women should not consume more than 14 units of alcohol a week – about six pints of beer. Britain was runner-up to Australia in the league table for the number of people who sought emergency treatment after a drinking session.

Meanwhile, just 18.5 per cent of British adults regretted getting drunk, compared with 20 per cent globally.

While the data showed that in general people “overwhelmingly like getting drunk”, it also revealed that more than a third of women who took part in the survey reported being taken advantage of sexually while intoxicated or high. The majority of the incidents

took place in a private home with 43 per cent of women failing to report the incident to the police because they felt partly responsible.

Karen Tyrell, of Addaction, said: “These findings show how deeply alcohol is ingrained in our culture.

“In the UK four out of five people with an alcohol problem aren’t receiving any sort of support. We need to do much more to help people get help earlier. Alcohol companies have controlled the terms of the debate for too long. We need better policy if we are serious about change.”

A spokesman for the Alcohol Information Partnership, an industry body, said: “The industry remains committed to tackling harmful drinking.”

However, she insisted the data contradicted World Health Organisation reports which showed Britons are actually drinking less than many of our European neighbours.