Death by drinking is at highest ever level

drug misuse charity, Addaction, said: “It’s important to remember that excessive use of alcohol is usually a way for people to cope.

“Nobody sets out to become a problem drinker.

“Our own research found that people with an alcohol problem are 50 per cent more likely to have experienced anxiety or depression, and are twice as likely to have had an eating disorder.

“More than half of us know someone who’s had an alcohol problem. It’s something that touches almost every family in the UK.

“It’s really common and it’s definitely something we all need to talk about. Kirklees Council spends £70,000 on private rehab.

“The alcohol industry also needs to be held to account. We know that the big drivers in terms of behaviour change include limiting advertising and visibility and minimum unit pricing.

“We’re encouraging the government to include these measures in the forthcoming alcohol strategy.”

Nationally, 16,656 people across England drank themselves to death between 2015-17 – 5,853 of them in the last year alone.

That’s up from 5,507 deaths in 2016, and is again the highest number on record.

Elaine Hindal, chief executive of Drinkaware, said: “The more you drink, the greater the long-term risk to your health and these figures show a worrying increase in the number of alcohol specific deaths.

“From time to time, we are contacted by the families of people who have died as a result of alcohol and are only too aware of the heartbreak and utter sense of helplessness that people feel when trying to lead someone to seek help for alcohol misuse.

“We must all do more to address the stigma that people feel in reaching out for support.

“For many of us, there are simple and effective ways for people to cut back on alcohol.”

To reduce the risk of alcohol-related illness, the NHS recommends drinking fewer than 14 units a week, which equates to around seven pints of 4pc lager or medium glasses of wine.