'Alcohol Behind One In Four Early Deaths'

Alcohol is killing tens of thousands of teenagers and young adults and should be restricted to over 21s, according to a new report.

The Adolescent Health Study, published by The Lancet, revealed one-in-four deaths of 15 to 29-year-olds in the developed world is down to drink, a total of 82,000 dead per year.

The figure is dominated by men, who accounted for 70,000 of the deaths, meaning booze is responsible for one-in-three young men who die in the developing world, compared to one-in-eight women.

The figure is mainly made up of accidents when the victims are inebriated, such as drink driving deaths, and drunk drowned swimmers.

Doctors speaking at the launch of the study at the Institute for Child Health in central London called for the legal age for buying alcohol to be raised to 21.

Dr Russell Viner, a paediatrician at University College, London, said Britain had only just woken up to the alcohol problem, which is most prevalent in northern Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

He said: "We are recognising that binge drinking in young people is a serious problem. We thought it was a lot of fun, but we now realise that particularly amongst young people, not drinking much all week and splurging at the weekend is harmful."

He claimed the solution was to raise the legal limit for buying alcohol to that in American where the number of young people drinking has been falling for 20 years.

He continued: "I would like to see a European model where most young people drink with their family at a younger age, learning to drink in a social context.

"But it would be difficult to bolt this on to established Anglo-Saxon practise, so the best is probably what Americans do. We need a rethink of ages we licence young people to buy various products."

The report, a collection of several studies from around the world, claims brain development continues through adolescence and can be placed at risk by the use of alcohol.

It also claims: "The reduction in youth alcohol use in the USA began in the mid 1980s, encouraged by facts such as the 21 year age limit for legal drinking."

The report also claims zero tolerance approaches to alcohol prevention are ineffective, and says harm reduction strategies, such as random breath testing and early intervention from GPs advising youngsters on the risks of alcohol consumption, can be more effective.

The study says that, partly as a result of alcohol misuse, there is a danger of a substantial drop in life expectancy, with chronic diseases such as diabetes and early signs of cardiovascular disease appearing in teenagers and young adults.

Professor Glenn Bowes, head of the paediatric department at the University of Melbourne, said alcohol misuse was likely to cause further problems later in life.

Citing the statistic that 98 per cent of adult drinkers began drinking in their adolescence, he said: "Adults who have alcohol related health issues, often exhibit behaviour patterns that began in their teenage years.

"Preventative work needs to be done at the stage where the behaviour starts.

"The education in school is important, but we really have to look at what the health system is doing.

"Doctors need to be shown how to talk to adolescents, so that when they come in to a GP's surgery with a cold for example, to doctor can use it as an opportunity to ask them about their lifestyle and advise them on the health risks."

National News

Alcohol-free community wins Tesco booze battle

Residents of an historic “dry” community founded by Quakers were tonight celebrating after winning a battle to prevent Tesco selling alcohol near their homes.

Birmingham City Council rejected the supermarket’s application for a licence to sell alcohol at one of its “express” stores near the Bournville area of the city.

It has been completely free of pubs and off-licences since it was founded by Quaker chocolate baron George Cadbury in the 1890s.

The supermarket wanted to open an off-licence on the edge of the Bournville Village estate, but councillors decided this could make existing problems of anti-social behaviour and underage drinking worse.

Nigel Dawkins, the councillor for Bournville who has led opposition to the licence, said: “This is a fantastic result. This shows Tesco that they have to talk to communities and they cannot just walk over them.

“This has put a line in the sand – people like Tesco cannot come and sell alcohol without consulting the communities. It feels pretty good but the victory is a victory for Bournville.”

A spokesman for Tesco said: “We are disappointed by this decision and are considering our options.”

Tesco later ruled out an appeal against today’s decision but said the chain might re-apply in future.

A spokesman said: “We respect the decision that the licensing authority has made and will now move forward and open a great store for the community in Bournville.

“We will continue to talk to our customers and the community following the opening and may think again in the future about applying for a licence if our customers feel it is right.”

Mr Dawkins said he was confident the decision would not be overturned.

More than 1,000 residents signed a petition objecting to the proposed licence, and a coachload of protesters descended on Birmingham Council House for today’s hearing.

Refusing the application, councillor Penny Wagg, chair of the Birmingham City Council licensing sub-committee, said: “The committee was concerned about issues relating to anti-social behaviour, underage drinking and litter which were raised by interested parties.”

A sustained round of applause from residents greeted the decision.

The supermarket had applied for a licence to sell alcohol from 7.30am to 10.30pm at a new Tesco Express convenience store just 50 yards from the edge of the Bournville Village Estate.

The estate was designed by Cadbury as a utopian community for workers at his chocolate factory, without the temptation of alcohol – and strict regulations have made sure it has remained “dry” ever since.

Mr Dawkins said: “It’s not that we are opposed to drinking alcohol – this isn’t a moral or religious stand, but we would like it to be respected.

“Our primary objection was that the licence for Tesco would have exacerbated an existing problem of anti-social behaviour.”

He said the proposed Tesco Express was in the middle of three hotspots for anti-social behaviour in Bournville.

Currently, young people buy alcohol outside Bournville and bring it in to drink in the area’s numerous parks, he said, and selling alcohol at the Tesco would have made this problem worse.

He said that selling alcohol would also have damaged the community’s unique historical identity, for which it was “famous around the world”.

Mr Dawkins complained that Tesco had refused to talk to residents to allay their concerns about the proposed development.

He said: “When I tried to talk to Tesco, they got their solicitor to ring me back, and he told me to put my questions in writing. This is not the way to deal with a mature community.”

Tesco licensing manager Greg Bartley told the hearing that it was company policy not to respond to residents’ concerns before licensing application hearings.

He said past experience had shown that contacting individual residents to address their worries could come across as “bullying”, and all objections were now heard at the licensing hearing.

Martin Sketchley, a Bournville resident with young children, said: “We moved to the area because we wanted to minimise our children’s exposure to anti-social behaviour.

“I just want a safe environment for my kids to grow up in, and I think the licence would have compromised that.”

Lynn Habermacher, another resident, said: “It’s wonderful, fantastic. We have a lot of problems with litter and broken bottles, and this would have made things worse.”

Irish Examiner

Children as young as 12 caught drinking

Once again drinking related disorder dominated the Chief Constable's Report to Scottish Borders Licensing Board at a meeting last Friday, with underage drinking giving particular cause for concern.

The report was presented to the board by Inspector Paula Clark of Lothian and Borders Police and was Chief Constable Paddy Tomkin's last before he officially left the Force.

He started by drawing attention to the fact that alcohol abuse in Scotland had been making headlines with the news that the country has the highest rate of alcohol-related deaths in the United Kingdom. Recent data has shown that Scots are twice as likely to die from alcohol related diseases than the average UK citizen.

For January to March 2007, the number of youngsters caught drinking in the Berwickshire stands at 30, over four times that of last year's figure of seven.

Fifteen and 16-year-olds are the worst offenders, with 11 and nine caught respectively in possession of or under the influence of alcohol in the past three months. Perhaps more worrying is the fact that a 12-year-old girl has been attended to by police in the region for the same problem.

Chief Constable Tomkins said: 'This increase is disappointing and almost certainly a result of the increased police patrols under the 'Safer Scotland' banner. My officers will not become complacent as there are still too many drunken children being admitted to the Borders General Hospital and also committing breaches of the peace. This is an on-going concern due to the risks of harm that go hand in hand with alcohol consumption by young people.'

Statistics show that under-age drinking is a much bigger issue in Berwickshire than in neighbouring Roxburgh, where 13 minors were caught by police, although this in itself is up on last year's figure of five.

Michelle Ballantyne, head of service at the Reiver Project, who have had someone as young as 10 referred to them for an alcohol-related problem, said that it's the way youngsters drink and what they are drinking that's at the heart of the problem.

'When they're drinking alcohol children don't think about the consequences they just knock it back to have fun. Alcohol will have a stronger affect on a young person as they are still developing and their bodies are smaller. Although most people don't see alcohol as a drug, it is and it's many youngsters' drug of choice.'

The youngsters caught with alcohol in Berwickshire between January and March have all been found outside and Michelle said that this came as no surprise as many think that alcohol will warm them up.

'It is a complete myth that alcohol can warm you up, if anything it leaves up more open to hypothermia as it makes you get colder quicker. Even after a couple of units of alcohol youngsters get misplaced confidence but at the same time their reactions are slower and their judgement is impaired- this increases the chance of them engaging in sexual activity and makes it more likely that it will be unprotected, which can have massive consequences.

'It is possible for youngsters to overdose on alcohol and in more extreme cases they can become comatosed or choke on their own vomit. Alcohol can poison your system and by binge drinking regularly from an early age damage can be done. Youngsters aren't paying the price at the time but they will in later life.

'Another myth is the belief that a couple of mugs of black coffee and a cold shower will help to gid rid of alcohol in your system. The only thing that can cure drunkeness is time.'

Only a few weeks ago Euan Robson MSP said that the closure or scaling down of youth facilities in the area, such as Duns Youth Centre and The Dry Dock in Eyemouth was leaving many youngsters with nothing to do on an evening.

Coldingham Community Council are starting their own youth club for children in the area after Easter, following a number of incidents involving under-age drinkers in the past month.

Youths had been gathering in the village square at night time and police were called out twice one Saturday evening and confiscated alcohol from the children involved. The community council felt that the closure of The Dry Dock was a contributing factor to the increase in disorder as youngsters were simply 'bored out of their brains'.

On a more positive note, recently published figures suggest that in the first three months of the year, alcohol-related incidents in licensed premises have decreased to 13, substantially down on last year's figure of 24 for the same period.
The figure is also down on the number of incidents which took place in licensed premises from October to January (31) although the busy festive period will have had a bareing on this high number. However, on the other side of the coin, late night drunken incidents in public places are on the up and this is giving cause for concern.

The peak time for alcohol-related disorder is between midnight-1am, with police being called to 28 incidents during this time so far this year. Another problem time is between 2-3am where police have attended to 26 alcohol related disturbances in the first three months of 2007.

Berwickshire Today

Early Spirituality Deters Alcohol Abuse

Teens who have an active spiritual life are half as likely to become alcoholics or drug addicts or even try illegal drugs that those who have no religious beliefs or training, a new study reports.

Previous studies have indicated that being spiritual or religious may help persons recovering from substance abuse overcome their addictions later in life, but this new study suggests that adolescents are much less likely to ever develop those problems, if they have a spiritual foundation when they are young.

"Alcoholism, in addition to being a biological disorder, is a spiritual disorder," lead author Dr. Lisa Miller told Reuters Health. "Adolescents who claim to have a personal relationship with the Divine are only half as likely to become alcoholics or drug addicts, or for that matter even to try contraband drugs (marijuana and cocaine). This is particularly important because onset of alcoholism and drug addiction usually occurs in adolescents."

To determine the relationship between their religiosity and substance use of 676 adolescents aged 15 to 19, Miller and colleagues at Columbia University conducted a study using survey data. This is the first study to show that personal spirituality strongly protects against ever developing alcoholism or drug abuse.

The study shows that teens with a higher degree of personal devotion, personal conservatism, and institutional conservatism were less likely to engage in alcohol consumption and less likely to engage in marijuana or cocaine use.

Spiritual, Not Religious

"The findings show that a personal sense of spirituality helps adolescents avoid alcohol and drug use and abuse," Miller told Reuters. "Unlike adults in (Alcoholics Anonymous), adolescents in this study were shown not to be helped by a rigid or forced adherence to religion."

In other words, "religion" forced upon adolescents by their parents or others has little effect, but if teens have made a personal choice to pursue a spiritual life, they are much less likely to drunk and drug.

"Spirituality, whether within or without of religion, is the most central baring in an adolescent's life," Miller emphasized. "It cannot be ignored by parents, or the adolescent will go 'shopping' for meaning, communion and transcendence," she said.

The study authors concluded that adolescents at high risk might be protected from substance dependence or abuse if they engage with a Higher Power or become involved in a religious community.

The survey question teens about their personal devotion, personal conservatism, and institutional conservatism defined as "representing an active personal relationship with the Divine, representing a personal choice to teach and adhere closely to creed, in some cases initiated through a 'born-again' experience, and as the degree of fundamentalism in a religious denomination."

About Alcoholism & Substance Abuse

Anonymous for quite some time now, they peg down faces of alcoholism

Class and gender’s no bar when it comes to hitting the bottle and getting addicted to it: This is what a group of around 50 former alcoholics pointed out during Sunday’s Public Information Meeting (PIM) organised in Karelibaug by the Vadodara chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA).

“Alcoholism is not limited to people from lower classes. Many a billionaire has turned to alcohol and gotten addicted to it,” said an AA member. “Alcoholism is rampant amongst city women, too,” said a 30-year-old drinker who left alcohol six years ago after joining AA. “While in metros like Delhi or Mumbai, women still come out in the open and talk about alcohol dependence, women from Vadodara do not attend PIMs. A reason could be the social stigma that goes with the habit,” said another member. In case a woman does call in, AA refers her to women members in other cities.

Although the Vadodara chapter of the AA began around 18 years ago, it did not have enough members to form PIMs till three years ago. “Now that we have met the requirement of 50 members, PIMs have been conducted since the last three years,” said an AA member. At PIMs, 50 former alcoholics outline 12 steps to get rid of the habit.

“In Gujarat, AA began from Vadodara. More than 1,000 members have been recorded in Gujarat circle (including Surat, Ahmedabad) but consistency has not been maintained,’’ said an AA member. There are almost 200 AA members in Surat, there are 50 in Ahmedabad, he added. “Within two years of joining AA, I managed to kick off my 25-year-old addiction to desi daaru (countrymade liquor),” said a 49-year-old worker adding that it was mostly his family who could perceive his deviations from normal behaviour.

Ahmedabad News

Tobacco and alcohol 'are more dangerous than LSD'

Alcohol and tobacco are more harmful than many illegal drugs including the hallucinogen LSD and the dance drug ecstasy, according to a new scale for assessing the dangers posed by recreational substances.

Drug specialists say the current system for ranking drugs - class A for the most dangerous to class C for the least dangerous, as set out in the Misuse of Drugs Act - is irrational, arbitrary and "lacking in transparency".

Scientific evidence shows that heroin and cocaine are correctly ranked as class A drugs as they do cause the most harm. But LSD and ecstasy come close to bottom of the league in terms of harm caused, yet they are also labelled as class A.

Alcohol is legal and widely used but comes fifth in the "harm" table, ahead of amphetamines and cannabis, which are ranked as class B and class C respectively. Tobacco is also ranked as more harmful than cannabis.

The league table of 20 drugs drawn up by drugs specialists is intended to provide a scientifically based model for policy makers of the harm they cause. It shows that the dangers they pose bear little relationship to the official classification, on which the penalties for drug use are based. The eight drugs ranked as most dangerous include two that are unclassified while the eight judged least dangerous include two class A drugs.

The report comes a fortnight after an independent commission called for a radical overhaul of Britain's drug laws which it said were driven by a "moral panic". The commission, set up by the Royal Society of Arts, said the aim of public policy should be to reduce the harm drugs cause, not send people to jail. It proposed reclassifying drugs - legal and illegal - according to the harm they do.

Professor David Nutt, who works in addiction psychiatry at the University of Bristol and who led the latest research, said: "The current drug classification system is arbitrary in the way it assesses harms. It is not fit for purpose. We have tried to come up with a better system by looking at the factors that contribute to drug use and the harms they cause. We should review the penalties for drug use in the light of the harms they cause and have a more proportionate response."

Professor Colin Blakemore, chief executive of the Medical Research Council and co-author of the study, said: "The object was to bring a dispassionate approach to a very passionate issue. Some conclusions might appear to be liberal in stance, but that was not our starting position. We intended to reach conclusions that were evidence-based."

"Alcohol and tobacco are way up there in the league table, not far behind heroin and cocaine and street methadone. Society has not only come to terms with alcohol and tobacco but is well aware of the harms associated with them so we felt it was useful to include them as calibration points for other drugs."

All drugs were marked on the physical harm they caused to the individual user, their tendency to cause dependence and their social harm, including their effect on families, communities and society [such as crime and NHS costs]. Each was given an overall harm score by two separate groups of experts which yielded roughly similar results.

There was little evidence that ecstasy caused extensive harm, despite its widespread use by young people in clubs and pubs at weekends. Cannabis has been cited as a cause of schizophrenia but the authors said a causal relationship had not been established. If it were, evidence showed no more than 7 per cent of cases could be attributed to use of the drug.

Professor Leslie Iversen, of the University of Oxford, said there was a widespread myth that skunk, from the tips of the cannabis plant, was 20 to 30 times more powerful than that available 30 years ago. "It is simply not true," he said. "The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs looked at this carefully. Cannabis resin [hash] has changed little and is about 5 per cent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Skunk has 10-15 per cent THC. That makes it two to three times more powerful, not 20 to 30 times."

The study, which took five years to complete, is published today in The Lancet. Professor Blakemore said: "We hope that policy makers will take note of the fact that the resulting ranking of drugs differs substantially from their classification in the Misuse of Drugs Act and that alcohol and tobacco are judged more harmful than many illegal substances."

Independent

Warning after increase in booze deaths

Health officials voiced concern today about the ticking time-bomb of alcohol abuse after it emerged that the number of booze-related deaths in Norfolk had risen sharply.

Latest government statistics show that, since 1997, the number of deaths in the county in which alcohol has been a primary cause has increased from 50 a year to 81.

Norfolk had more alcohol-related deaths than Suffolk, where deaths have risen from 37 to 56, and Cambridgeshire, where they have increased from 32 to 48.

Some of the main causes include alcoholic psychoses, liver disease, chronic hepatitis, pancreatitis, alcohol poisoning and degeneration of the nervous system because of alcohol.

The alarming figures come amid evidence of rising alcohol sales and booze-related admissions to hospitals. Health officials say the relevant agencies must do far more to highlight the very real dangers posed by drinking too much.

Peter Brambleby, former head of Norfolk Primary Care Trust and a Norwich-based public health consultant, said: “I think, as the figures would show, this has become a huge problem, not just in terms of law and order but in general. It is an increasing public health issue, and the different agencies are going to have to pull together and look at how they can tackle this.

“All the figures are pointing to a rising tide, and unless something is done this will only continue.”

Dr Martin Phillips, a gastroenterologist and liver consultant at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, said the lack of money for dedicated services in the county was contributing to the rise in alcohol-related illnesses and diseases.

He said: “People with liver disease are getting younger, and there are more cases each year, but we haven't got the funding to support them. I am seeing people as young as 27 with cirrhosis caused by excessive drinking. We can treat patients who come in, but there needs to be ongoing care.”

Last week, Ian Gilmore, head of the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), said too much attention was being placed on young drinkers and not enough on the older ones.

Evening News 24

As Alcoholics Recover, Spirituality Increases

For decades, recovering alcoholics and those who treat them have incorporated spirituality into the recovery process - whether or not it's religious in nature. But few research studies have documented if and how spirituality changes during recovery, nor how those changes might influence a person's chance of succeeding in the quest for sobriety.

Now, a new study from researchers at the University of Michigan Addiction Research Center sheds light on this phenomenon. In the March issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, they show that many measures of spirituality tend to increase during alcohol recovery. They also demonstrate that those who experience increases in day-to-day spiritual experiences and their sense of purpose in life are most likely to be free of heavy drinking episodes six months later.

"While people's actual beliefs don't seem to change during recovery, the extent they have spiritual experiences, and are open to spirituality in their lives, does change," says lead researcher Elizabeth A.R. Robinson, Ph.D., a research assistant professor in the U-M Medical School's Department of Psychiatry and member of UMARC.. "This effect was also independent of their participation in Alcoholics Anonymous which has a strong spiritual aspect."

The researchers report data from 154 adults with a diagnosis of alcohol dependence or alcohol abuse who entered an outpatient treatment program.

At the beginning of the study, and again six months later, the researchers assessed 10 different measures of the participants' spirituality and religiousness using standard research questionnaires. These included their views of God, religious practices such as prayer or church attendance, forgiveness, spiritual experiences, using religion or spirituality to cope, and existential meaning. The researchers also assessed participants' alcohol use, and problems related to their alcohol use, before the study began and after six months. All of these responses were combined with information about gender and AA participation, and analyzed using statistical techniques.

In all, the study shows, half of the measures of spirituality changed significantly in the six month period, including daily spiritual experiences, the use of religious practices, forgiveness, positive use of religion for coping, and feelings of purpose in life. But the measures that assessed individuals' core beliefs and values about God or religion didn't change. At the same time, use of alcohol decreased significantly, and 72 percent of participants did not relapse to heavy drinking.

The researchers then looked at how changes in spirituality related to the likelihood that a person had relapsed to heavy drinking. Those who had experienced an increase in their daily spiritual experiences were less likely to participate in any heavy drinking, as were those who had experienced an increase in their feeling that there was a purpose to their lives. Changes in the other measures of spirituality were not statistically associated with the likelihood of sobriety.

Robinson and her colleagues write that their results suggest that "proactive and experiential" dimensions of spirituality, rather than cognitive ones, were contributing to the recovery and decrease in drinking in the first six months.

They note that this pattern is consistent with two AA slogans: "Bring your body, your mind will follow," and "Fake it 'til you make it."

In other words, changes in core beliefs and values don't have to occur in order for someone to be more open to spiritual experiences or to take part in more spiritual activities.

These findings suggest that including spirituality of all kinds into the delivery of recovery services for alcoholism may indeed help. Many individual faiths or religious institutions have offered recovery services, and some advocates have suggested that faith-based recovery is most effective for all. But Robinson notes that the spirituality seen in the study was not necessarily a matter of believing in one interpretation of God, or even belief in a God of any kind.

Each individual's own spirituality, and the ability to experience growth in that spirituality, appears to be paramount, the authors suggest. So, each individual alcoholic might do best by searching for a recovery program that best matches his or her existing belief system.

One program that has been shown conclusively to aid alcoholics in achieving and maintaining sobriety is AA, which has spiritual components including invocation of a higher power. The new study, however, shows that the relationship between spirituality and likelihood of recovery was unrelated to whether a person took part in AA or not.

Some alcoholics may derive help from the spiritual aspects of AA, but others may not, says Robinson. "There's more than one way to feed your spiritual self," she notes.

The U-M research team has begun a new phase of research involving people who are taking part in three different alcohol treatment programs, and alcoholics not currently in treatment. This study will follow more than 360 people over three years.

They are also analyzing the data from this 154-person group more in-depth, including looking at how the individuals defined and described their own religious and spiritual preferences and practices.

University of Michigan

Alcohol nearly as harmful as heroin, warn top scientists

Alcohol is ranked almost as harmful as heroin and cocaine in a new drug classification system proposed by a team of leading scientists.

The class A drug ecstasy, possession of which can result in a seven-year prison sentence, is placed near the bottom of a league table published today in The Lancet medical journal, which lists "harm scores" for 20 different substances.

LSD, another class A drug, is also considered relatively safe despite its powerful hallucinogenic properties.

The classification comes as licensing industry leaders in Glasgow join forces with the city's licensing board in an unprecedented move to appeal for a drinks pricing system amid concern Scotland's largest city is "awash" with cut-price alcohol and the authorities are powerless to prevent it.

James Mortimer is one of a handful in the Glasgow licensed trade credited with helping turn the city's night-time image around. He said: "Surely a country which has done almost the impossible and banned smoking in public places can set a minimum price of around £1.50 a drink.

"Don't they realise binge drinking eats up police, hospital and court time and the huge costs with this? You don't go to Dublin's Temple Bar and get 69p vodkas."

As the law stands, options available to the authorities to impose a minimum price are practically non-existent.

Glasgow attempted to rid itself of "happy hours" three years ago but the leeway of allowing discounts, provided they last for a full day or more, has been abused by some licensees buying in bulk and discounting for weeks on end.

There are also concerns it is not clear at this stage if a new act, due to come into effect in September 2009, will contain anything to suggest minimum pricing is even an option.

However, some experts believe the licensing objectives, which underpin the new act, could allow a minimum pricing system to promote health.

Former Scottish Executive adviser Jack Cummins said the option was open to the legislators. He said: "It has to be kept in view that there are five licensing objectives' central to the new act, one of which is protecting and improving public health'. Curbs on deep discounting which may lead to excessive alcohol consumption could presumably be justified as furthering that objective."

An executive spokeswoman said: "Decisions in relation to taxation are made on a UK- wide basis by the Treasury but we want to be involved in this debate.

"We are also keen to discuss voluntary moves by retailers around price, in the context of our recently announced partnership agreement with the alcohol industry in Scotland."

The "harm" table was drawn up by scientists led by Professor David Nutt, from the University of Bristol, and Professor Colin Blakemore, chief executive of the Medical Research Council.

It is intended to be a model for policy makers which is more scientifically based than the current Misuse of Drugs Act system that attaches "A, B, and C" labels to illegal drugs.

Cannabis, recently downgraded to class C, occupies a middle position. It is rated more dangerous than ecstasy and LSD but considered less harmful than tobacco.

The inclusion of alcohol in the table was welcomed by the Scottish Executive and Scotland's national charity for alcohol issues but one expert on drugs misuse described it as a "misguided . . . attempt to muddy the distinction between illegal and legal drugs".

The Herald

Can Some Problem Drinkers Keep Drinking?

A New Movement Says Moderation Is the Key For Some People Rather Abstinence

For decades, the conventional wisdom has dictated that problem drinkers must quit drinking altogether in order to be successful.

But what if you don't want to stop?

In Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12-step programs, abstinence from alcohol is key. But another movement says quitting isn't absolutely necessary. It is through this alternative that former problem drinker "Katie" found a workable solution.

"It ate me up. I really didn't like who I was. I really didn't like this — this person I was turning into, and I was terrified I was gonna turn out like my father," Katie told The Saturday Early Show co-anchor Tracy Smith.

Katie, a young wife and mother, was terrified because drinking took her father's life and she worried that her two or three glasses of wine a night might turn into something that could eventually take hers.

"Is this my destiny?" She said. "When — when am I going to become, you know, this fall-down alcoholic that my father was? When is all this going to happen to me? And it was a very scary time. And I really — I hated myself."

Katie, who agreed to speak with The Early Show if her last name and where she lived wasn't revealed, tried Alcoholics Anonymous, which meant abstinence.

"Total abstinence. That's right," Katie said. "And admission that you were powerless over alcohol. And that you could never drink again and if you keep slipping it's because you haven't hit your bottom. It absolutely worked for me for a long period of time. Well, I started questioning and obsessing over whether or not I was truly an alcoholic."

Katie wondered if she could drink socially again. She found others who felt the same way on the Internet and then contacted Drink Wise, whose basic philosophy is that some problem drinkers can moderate their drinking habits and do not have to completely abstain. Through Drink Wise, Katie found Moderation Management or MM. MM began in the late '90s to help people who don't want to quit drinking altogether.

Though primarily an online support group, MM has meetings in certain cities, such as New York. A woman named Anna ran the meeting that Smith observed, but almost everyone else preferred their identities remain hidden.

Like Katie, the people at this meeting don't see themselves as alcoholics, but they do recognize they have a problem.

"I try to plan my drinking," a group member named Carl said, "and that's been working well for me."

Anna said MM works because not everyone has to stop drinking all together.

"Because most of us don't have that degree of problem, and we don't want to give up having champagne at weddings or a glass of wine with dinner," she said.

Moderation Management has specific steps to help problem drinkers get in control, including a 30-day period of abstinence. You also plan in advance how many drinks you'll have each week, and then count each and every cocktail and the maximum per day and per week should never be exceeded.

"If you're unable to modify your use, if you're not able to stick to your limits, that might mean you're more dependent than you think, and abstinence may well be the best way to go," Dr. Mark Willenbring said.

Dr. Willenbring says studies show that only 5 percent to 10 percent of people who are truly addicted to alcohol can successfully moderate their drinking. That means more than 90 percent fail, including one very public failure. Audrey Kishline, the woman who founded Moderation Management in 1994 was sentenced to prison six years later for killing two people in a drunken driving accident.

"For some people who become addicted, there are changes in the brain that are permanent," Dr. Willenbring said. "And they can never go back to being a moderate drinker."

But Dr. Willenbring recommends that everyone should keep track of their drinking, and if a problem develops, seek help.

"The important thing is for people to engage in treatment of some kind, so I would encourage people to be persistent, look on the web, ask around," he said. "There are other options out there absolutely."

Today, using the principals of Moderation Management, Katie has successfully limited her drinking to a couple glasses of wine, a few nights a week.

"Last time I had a glass of wine was about five days ago," Katie said.

She said she only feels temptation to pour herself a second and third glass of wine when she has had two drinking days in a row. When the urge comes up, she said she abstains and doesn't worry that she will become an alcoholic like her father.

"Alcohol is a very small part of my life," she said. "It's something that I can truly take or leave."

CBS News

Alcohol related liver disease doubles in young adults

The number of cases of alcohol related cirrhosis of the liver has more than doubled amongst young people aged 25-34 over the last decade, according to figures obtained by the Liberal Democrats.

The new figures from parliamentary answers provide a breakdown by age group of the total number of cases of alcohol related cirrhosis of the liver, which has also soared nearly threefold.

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson, Sandra Gidley MP said: “The UK has one of the worst binge drinking problems in Europe. Ministers should have woken up to this issue and taken action years ago.

“It is especially worrying to think how early these young people must have started drinking to get so ill.

“These tragic cases are symptomatic of the serious and growing problem of underage drinking.

“Health professionals have repeatedly warned ministers about the increasing danger of binge drinking amongst our young people, but too little has been done.

“The Government’s obsession with hospital waiting times means it has ignored prevention. The root causes of ill-health must be understood and the balance shifted towards prevention rather than cure.”

24 dash

Drinking campaigns needed for older groups, doctors say

Sensible drinking campaigns focus too heavily upon teenagers and neglect older groups drinking at home, according to some of the UK's top doctors.

The Royal College of Physicians argues that government drives to promote sensible drinking are too focussed on under-age drinkers and young people as a large section of older groups drink heavily, albeit in the privacy of their own homes.

Speaking to the BBC, Professor Ian Gilmore warned of the health problems associated with drinking.

'Quite large sections of the population are drinking quite heavily on a regular basis,' the head of the college said.

He added: 'One of the great sadnesses is that patients often don't get a warning before serious liver damage sets in.'

However health minister Lord Hunt told the BBC that sensible drinking advice is for all of society, not just the young.

'We're doing everything we can and I know that the colleagues I work with in this area want to get these sensible drinking messages out and, wherever you drink, it is important that you take note of that,' he commented.

Recent research has shown that 77.4 per cent of Britons consume alcohol in their homes compared to only 44.5 per cent of Spaniards.

However the research by Mintel also showed that Britons drink more at home than residents in the wine-producing nations of France and Germany where around two-thirds enjoy a drink in their own home.

M & C

Young drinkers warned over safety

Young men and women admit to putting themselves at risk from serious injury by drinking too much on a night out, according to a new survey.

People in the 18-24 age group are ignoring serious consequences of too much alcohol, according to a YouGov survey of more than 4,500 people.

One in four (26%) 18-24-year-old women feel they have put their own safety at risk by walking home on their own in the dark after a night out.

For men, the risk of injury from not knowing their limits is evident - one in five (21%) 18-24-year-old males say they have injured themselves by acting recklessly after drinking.

Government statistics reveal that eight out of 10 pedestrian deaths on Friday and Saturday nights are drink-related.

The survey also reveals that one in five 18-24-year-olds admit they have cheated on their partner in the last year when under the influence of alcohol.

Suzie Hayman, counsellor and agony aunt, said: "After a few drinks on a night out you can feel like you're totally indestructible and invincible.

"But actually, you're putting yourself at all kinds of risk. Alcohol messes with your senses, leaving you more vulnerable to having an accident or being attacked.

"Nobody wants to end up in A&E, so take it a little easier and you won't ruin your night, or your life."

Further findings from the survey showed that nearly half (45%) of the 18-24-year-old men confess they have been unable to remember all of their actions the morning after the night before.

PA News

Center offers sober St. Patrick's party

No alcohol allowed. Recovery Revolution to provide fun and education about addiction.

For Jana Morris, St. Patrick's Day is about food and family, tradition and celebrations. But there's one element noticeably missing from her planned celebration: beer or alcohol of any kind.

As the president of Recovery Revolution Inc., a nonprofit drug and alcohol outpatient treatment center, Morris said she knows how difficult it can be to keep alcohol out of the party. On Saturday, she hopes to provide an alternative for anyone in the area looking for a break from the typical brew fest.

"It seems like the norm is for everyone to go out and get trashed," Morris said. "The staff here thought it was the perfect time to do a fundraiser, but also bring awareness to the disease of addiction."

Starting at noon, the center will host 11 speakers who will talk about addiction, some from the point of view of being a reformed drug and alcohol abuser and others from the perspective of living and coping with a loved one's addiction.

Morris said the center is not publishing the list of speakers because many are involved in anonymous treatment programs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous and Al-Anon, a program for family members and friends of people dealing with addiction.

"They'll be talking every hour on the hour," she said. "We want to educate the community, but we also want people to enjoy themselves, so we're having raffles and food throughout the day."

Prizes include U.S. savings bonds, gift baskets, recovery books, gift certificates, luggage, tool kits and Dorney Park Water Park day passes. All prizes were donated by local businesses.

"Everything's free and completely open to the public," Morris said. "We want people to come out, have fun, and learn some new information about addiction."

NJ com

Maltese unaware of drink-drive limits

Maltese citizens are totally unaware of the permitted alcohol levels in blood while driving, a Eurobarometer survey has shown.

No fewer than 96 per cent of Maltese respondents said they do not know the legal alcohol level during driving, by far the highest in the EU. Out of the remaining four per cent, half gave a higher consumption level than that allowed by Maltese law and the rest chose a level lower than the legal limit.

The wide-ranging report, which probes European attitudes to alcohol, concludes that the vast majority of EU citizens consume alcoholic beverages.

Binge drinking continues to be a problem in Ireland, the UK, Finland and Denmark, with the poll, conducted in October and November, finding that almost one in five people between the ages of 15 and 24 reported drinking five or more alcoholic beverages in one session.

The survey does not, however, classify Malta as a nation of drinkers though there are concerns about the rate of binge drinking.

A third of Maltese people said they had abstained from alcohol over the previous 12 months, five per cent higher than the EU average. And, just over half of local respondents (52 per cent), admitted to drinking alcohol in the previous 30 days, below the EU average of 66 per cent. On the other hand, 84 per cent of Danes could not steer away from alcohol in the previous month.

Of the Maltese that did drink, 38 per cent said they consumed alcohol once a week, the second highest in the EU. A total of 14 per cent said they drank alcohol daily, one per cent above the EU average.

A total of four per cent of Maltese citizens said they had consumed five or more drinks on one occasion "several times a week." One in 10 Europeans said they usually have five or more drinks in one sitting.

Increasing alcohol prices would not do much to thwart drinking. Asked if they would buy less alcohol if prices should increase by 25 per cent, only a third of Maltese respondents said they would.

The poll found that 34 per cent of the Irish people questioned said they "usually" binge drink, followed by Finland, where 27 per cent of respondents said they did so. The same study also shows 93 per cent of Maltese agree that alcoholic drink bottles should have health warning labels similar to those on tobacco products, making it the country that most supports such preventive measures. The vast majority of Maltese (88 per cent) agree that selling and serving alcohol to those under 18 should be banned across the EU.

Seventy-six per cent were in favour of a ban on alcohol adverts that target young people and 73 per cent backed lower blood-alcohol level limits for young drivers. More than 90 per cent of Maltese respondents agree with random police checks to catch drunk drivers. More than a fourth of traffic accident deaths on EU roads are caused by drunk-driving.

Sedqa, the anti-alcohol agency, said it was worried about the lack of awareness with regard to the legal alcohol limits, but even more so, about the laissez-faire attitude of drivers who knowingly drive under the influence of alcohol.

When contacted, a spokesman for Sedqa said legal limits should be incorporated as part of the driving test and that candidates should not be given a pass mark if they fail to translate the legal limit into real units of alcohol.

Sedqa had in 2000 recommended, among other things, lowering the blood alcohol content from 0.80 to 0.50 g/l and allowing total police discretion for random breathalyser testing.

The agency says its efforts to curb excessive alcohol consumption needs to be complemented by law enforcement and the collaboration of parents and civic society.

The Eurobarometer survey proves once again that binge drinking is fast becoming a trend in Malta and, therefore, a threat to public health, especially to young people, the Sedqa spokesman said.

These conclusions were also drawn from other studies such as the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs, whereby 25 per cent of the respondents admitted to binge drinking.

Times of Malta

Woman Admits Drinking, Responsibility for Baby's Drowning in Bathtub

A Bentonville woman arrested Wednesday in the bathtub drowning of her baby daughter admitted to police she drank wine, rum and beer before climbing in the bathtub with the 7-month-old child, and described the death as "all her fault."

In Little Rock, chairmen of two Senate committes said a special joint meeting on child care issues in the wake of two Benton County incidents is possible.

Melanie Cummings, 30, is charged with manslaughter and appeared for a bond hearing Thursday afternoon before District Judge Jeff Conner, who granted Prosecutor Van Stone's request for a $100,000 bond. Arraignment is planned April 23 before Benton County Circuit Judge David Clinger.

Cummings appeared Thursday in a green suicide watch vest and was tearful.

She admitted having an alcohol problem, said she "drinks to get drunk," and has passed out before while alone with her child, according to a probable cause affidavit by Investigator Jeremy Felton of the Benton County Sheriff's Office.

Cummings said she took a bath after dinner Tuesday night with her two children -- Brooklynn and 3-year-old son, Christian. Her son climbed out after about 10 minutes. Throughout the evening she drank several beers, a glass of wine and rum and cola, and thinks she fell asleep, she told police.

Her husband, Joseph, was on the telephone that evening for about an hour, talking to his wife's sister, who was with Melanie earlier and bought rum and beer with her.

Joseph Cummings checked on his wife through the bathroom door after 8 p.m., while still on the phone, he later told police. All was fine. About 15 minutes later, after hanging up, he checked again and there was no response.

Because the bathroom door doesn't open from the outside when shut, Joseph Cummings got the door open with a butter knife and found his wife asleep. His daughter was floating face down in the water, he told police. He called 911 and the dispatcher explained how to perform infant CPR.

Melanie Cummings got out of the tub but was incoherent and didn't respond when her husband told her to unlock the front door for the ambulance, he told police. She dressed after paramedics arrived.

Sen. Steve Faris, D-Malvern, is chairman of the Senate State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee. He said Thursday he is considering asking for a joint meeting with the Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee before the current legislative session is over.

Senate President Pro Tempore Jack Critcher, D-Batesville, said later Thursday that he would "absolutely" favor such a meeting.

Faris disclosed his plan to call a meeting while asked about Brooklynn's death.

Cummings told police she recently went through alcohol treatment and remembered two occasions last year when she passed out drunk while alone with Christian. When she woke, Christian was in front of the television.

Court records also show Joseph Cummings, 35, got a protection order against Melanie Cummings three years ago in Benton County Circuit Court. He said she passed out from drinking alcohol and left Christian, then 3 months, unattended. Later that month, he asked to drop the order of protection, saying he felt comfortable with her seeing their child as long as she was in counseling and not drinking.

Melanie Cummings had a positive drug screen after Brooklynn's birth because she was taking "mini-thins," he told police. She would also sneak alcohol, received outpatient treatment from Decision Point and attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

A dependency and neglect case was opened against Melanie Cummings, but was closed after she "achieved the goals in her case," said Julie Munsell, spokeswoman for the state Department of Health and Human Services, earlier this week.

A family member told The Morning News on Wednesday she and family friends made repeated calls to the department, both before and after Brooklynn's birth, seeking help for the children because of Cummings' substance abuse problems.

Brooklynn was dead when she arrived at Northwest Medical Center-Bentonville. Cummings smelled of alcohol and agreed to give blood and urine samples, but Felton said Thursday those hadn't yet been tested.

After police interviewed the parents, they arrested Melanie Cummings on suspicion of manslaughter.

She told police that earlier in the day she went for a drive with her sister, Misty Pruitt, and took Brooklynn. They ate lunch at a pizza parlor in Pineville, Mo., and went to Wal-Mart, where Pruitt bought beer and Melanie bought a bottle of rum. After picking up Pruitt's children in Gravette, they went to Pruitt's house in Hiwasse and Melanie Cummings drank two beers, the affidavit states.

After arriving home, she cooked dinner, drank the wine and rum, and ate with her family. Then she took the bath.

Cummings was also charged with misdemeanor domestic battery, driving while intoxicated and endangering the welfare of their child in 2004, but was found not guilty after witnesses didn't appear, court records show.

She told police she takes antidepressants and suffers from depression, court documents state.

Stone said his office hopes the Department of Health and Human Services will take up the dependency and neglect case again. The judge ordered Cummings not have contact with her son if she posts bond.

She told the judge she's trying to hire a private attorney.

Brooklynn died a week after Benton County authorities arrested a foster parent for sexual assault involving a foster child. Although Brooklyn was never admitted to foster care, lawmakers would like to know more about the case, Faris said.

"My hope is that these incidents happening at the same time are a fluke, by my knowledge of the foster parent situation tells me it's probably not," Faris said. "There are many good foster parents, but too many things have happened for us to think there are bad ones."

Sen. Kim Hendren, R-Gravette, whose district includes the Cummings' home, said he was deeply saddened to hear of the death but had to ask if the problems leading to the death weren't deeper than "what-ifs" about whether a state agency should have intervened. "Families don't even know their neighbors any more," he said.

The Morning News

Ireland heads alcohol binge drinking ranking in Europe

Binge drinking across Europe remains a problem in Ireland, the UK, Finland and Denmark, according to a European Union survey on alcohol consumption that was published on Wednesday.

The survey that was carried out in October and November 2006, found that almost one in five people between the ages of 15 and 24 drink five or more alcoholic beverages in one session, or 19% of those asked across the EU27, in addition to Croatia and northern Cyprus.

EU spokesman Philip Tod said the EU poll, which questioned 28,584 people, defined binge drinking as when more than five alcoholic drinks are consumed in one sitting.

The poll found that 34% of Irish people questioned saying they "usually" binge drink, followed by Finland, where 27% of respondents said they did the same. Britain was third with 24% and Denmark fourth with 23%.

Much lower levels of alcohol were consumed in Italy and Greece, where only 2% of those asked said they binge drink. Tod said the survey found that the average of binge drinking was around the same level as the last similar survey conducted in 2003 on alcohol consumption.

"Although 59% of Europeans drink moderately, one or two drinks at a time, 10% of Europeans usually drink five or more drinks at time," Tod said. "This figure is particularly high amongst the 15 to 24 age group."

EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou said he was "deeply concerned" over the data showing the high binge drinking rate among young people.

Tod said the European Commission, which commissioned the survey, is calling for better public education as to the dangers of drinking too much, especially for pregnant women, drivers and young people.

The survey also found that 77% of those asked would agree on a clamp down on how alcohol is sold, including putting warning labels on alcohol bottles and adverts to warn vulnerable groups of the dangers of drinking too much.

A further 76% are in favour of ban in alcohol ads which target young people and 73% back lower blood alcohol level limits for young and novice drivers of 0.2 grams per litre, compared to an average limit of 0.5 which is in place in a majority of EU states.

The survey also found strong support, 80% backing, for random alcohol testing by police of drivers.

The Commission has said that about 55 million adults, or more than 10% of the population, are estimated to drink at harmful levels in the EU. Alcohol is the third biggest cause of illness and early death, killing 195,000 people a year and more than one fourth of traffic accident deaths on EU roads are caused by drink-driving.

Europe remains the biggest consumers of alcohol in the world, with the average adult consuming 11 litres of pure alcohol annually, or the equivalent of the alcohol content in 1,400 small beers, according to figures provided by the Commission.

The survey had a margin of error up to plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

Finfacts

When booze comes before family & job

Gordie just couldn't stop drinking. Not even when he was behind the wheel.

A recovering alcoholic, he once earned a six-figure salary as a sales representative.

But his drinking cost him his job and a couple of years later he was making just $15,000 a year as a courier.

Gordie, 55, had been drinking hard for about 20 years and would start imbibing as soon as he woke up. Even when his job required him to drive a truck around the streets of Winnipeg all day, he didn't miss a beat.

He somehow managed to avoid causing an accident or getting arrested despite drinking whisky or vodka out a soda bottle all day.

"I was confident that I was a good driver and I wouldn't have problems. I just didn't think I was going to get caught, and I didn't," he said.

"I could have killed somebody. I could have been killed."

After a third intervention in a short period of time, Gordie decided to turn his life around. He's been sober for eight years and speaks at schools and businesses on behalf of Alcoholics Anonymous.

"They can't believe what they hear," he said. "They can't believe a person would knowingly do that -- drink and screw up their career and then drive around in a truck drinking."

Like Gordie, JoAnn is a recovering alcoholic involved in AA. While Gordie drank every day, JoAnn would party all weekend and show up hungover at work each Monday.

While working, she avoided having even a single drink with lunch because she couldn't control herself.

"I knew in the depths of me that once I got started I would want more," she said.

JoAnn, 43, preferred beer over liquor because she was able to drink more before blacking out.

"I told myself that I could handle beer," she said. "I knew I couldn't handle the hard liquor."

Five years ago her teenage son, tired of her drinking, moved out. She hasn't touched alcohol since.

RELATIONSHIP

"I realized after a couple of months that he was serious and I didn't want my relationship with him to end," said JoAnn. "I knew there was only one way to repair it and that was to get sober."

Her son turned out to be a well-adjusted young man but JoAnn said she would often drink in front of him.

"I would take him to different restaurants under the guise of experiencing different cultures, but I just wanted to drink," she said.

JoAnn also used drugs from time to time. She's been completely sober for 2 1/2 years but started using crack cocaine before she quit drinking.

Laura Goossen, Winnipeg director of the Addictions Foundation of Manitoba (AFM), said alcohol is still the most widely used drug among adult clients.

But many of the people they treat are now using drugs as well, said Goossen.

Youths are even more likely to use other drugs in addition to alcohol, she said. In fact, most of AFM's teenage clients say marijuana is their drug of choice.

In 2005-06, 62.6% of the 242 youths treated through AFM identified marijuana as their primary drug of choice, compared with 27% who said alcohol.

"Most kids who are coming in, you can almost guarantee they're using alcohol and they're using marijuana," said Goossen.

SIGNS YOU MIGHT HAVE A DRINKING PROBLEM

- Relationships with family and friends affected by drinking, hanging around with people who drink more than your old friends

- Missing time from work or school due to drinking, decreased efficiency, financial difficulties caused by drinking

- Drinking alone, drinking to escape problems or worries, drinking to overcome shyness or build confidence

- Feeling guilty or depressed after drinking, feeling irritable when not drinking

- Inability to control drinking, needing more and more alcohol to feel an effect, experiencing blackouts

- Craving a drink at a particular time of day, wanting a drink as soon as you wake up

- Getting arrested or thrown out of an establishment due to drunken behaviour, getting treated by a doctor for alcohol-related problems

- Trouble sleeping as a result of drinking, losing interest in eating

Winnipeg Sun

Brussels says Europeans back anti-alcohol moves

Slightly more Europeans drink alcohol but in less amounts compared to 2003, according to a fresh survey by Eurobarometer, published on Wednesday (14 March).

Europe records the highest alcohol consumption in the world, with three quarters of respondents claiming to have drunk alcohol over the previous year while most Luxemburgers, Italians, Danes and Spaniards drank in the month prior to the survey.

Unlike three years ago, more people tend to have one to two, rather than more drinks in one sitting but the so-called binge drinking, defined in this case as five or more drinks - is practised by every fifth European youngster.

In terms of national differences, binge drinking is most common in Ireland (34%), Finland (24%), the UK (24%) and Denmark (23%), and least so in Italy (2%), Greece (2%) and Portugal (4%).

The survey also shows that most citizens (77%) agree with warnings on bottles for pregnant women and drivers, while 76 percent would like to see alcohol ads targeting young people banned.

Moreover, 73 percent of respondents approve of the introduction of a lower alcohol threshold for young and novice drivers and 80 percent think random alcohol testing would help in reducing cases of driving under the influence.

The European Commission is interpreting these findings as a sign of support for possible protective steps.

"It is evident from this survey that EU citizens support measures crafted to protect specific groups in society, such as pregnant women, drivers and young people from the harmful effects of alcohol abuse and misuse," said EU health commissioner Markos Kyprianou.

However, when asked directly who should be responsible for protecting people from alcohol-related harm, respondents who think it should be individual citizens themselves (52%) outnumber those who argue it should be up to public authorities (44%).

Slovaks (75%), Czechs (70%) and Croats (70%) are the strongest supporters of the "individual responsibility" attitude, while Hungarians, Italians and Spaniards favour a more interventionist approach of the state for taking care of citizens' health.

Brussels forced to take it slowly on alcohol
The survey showing Europeans' attitudes on alcohol comes just months after the EU executive adopted its strategy on how to tackle alcohol-related harm which kills around 195,000 people a year in the EU.

Originally, it had planned to suggest more radical steps as found in some EU countries - such as a special tax or compulsory labelling for alcohol products popular among youngsters - as in Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland and Luxembourg.

Other examples that Brussels highlighted and considered were special labels to protect pregnant women, imposing a minimum age of 18-years for being served alcohol, or possibly even a common limit for permitted levels of alcohol in the blood stream of drivers and stringent punishment for drivers under the influence.

However, following a loud outcry by the alcohol industry, the draft document was watered down with the commission leaving it up to national governments to decide which good examples in the EU to follow, while stating it would consult industry on "responsible" advertising and sale of alcohol.

EUobserver

Survey finds Irish are the worst bingers in Europe

The Irish have been revealed as the worst binge drinkers in Europe, just days before the country toasts Saint Patrick.

More than one third of Irish people confirmed that they regularly binge drink, while all their European neighbours fell below this figure in a survey released today.

While around one quarter of respondents in Finland, Denmark and the UK said they regularly binge drink - defined as having five or more alcoholic drinks -only a tiny minority in Italy, Greece and Portugal matched these boozing levels.

The findings come as Irish people at home and abroad prepare to celebrate St Patrick`s Day on Saturday.

The feast day of the country`s patron saint is regularly seen as a green light for heavy drinking, but earlier this year Ireland`s Catholic bishops warned that alcohol abuse was damaging Irish society.

The survey also shows that almost eight out of 10 Europeans (77%) agree with putting warnings on alcohol bottles and adverts to alert pregnant women and drivers of the dangers of drinking alcohol.

And almost three quarters of Europeans (73%) would agree to a lower blood alcohol limit for young and learner drivers.

"It is clear from this survey that EU citizens support measures to protect specific groups in society, such as pregnant women, drivers and young people from the harmful effects of alcohol abuse and misuse," EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou said.

"I am deeply concerned about the data showing that one in five young Europeans regularly binge drink."

It is estimated that alcohol abuse and misuse kills 195,000 people a year in the EU. Harmful alcohol consumption is responsible for one in four deaths among young men aged 15-29.

In the Eurobarometer survey out today, 34% of Irish respondents say they regularly binge drink.

This compares to about one in four respondents from Finland (27%), the UK (24%) and Denmark (23%).

On the other hand, only 2% of respondents in Italy and Greece and 4% in Portugal usually binge drink.

Overall across the EU, binge drinking is highest among the 15 to 24 age group (overall 19%) though with sharp national differences.

The survey also indicated that while increasing the price of alcohol by as much as 25% would not deter the majority of drinkers, it did indicate that a price hike would encourage many younger people to drink less.

A total of 44% of the youngest respondents believed they would buy less alcohol if it became substantially more expensive, but the majority of people doubted if the increased cost would be enough to deter most young people, or heavy drinkers in general.

Last year, the European Commission adopted an EU strategy to support member states in reducing alcohol-related harm.

Its priorities include protecting young people and children, reducing injuries and deaths from alcohol-related road accidents, preventing harm among adults and reducing the negative impact on the economy.

It also emphasises the need to raise awareness of the impact on health of harmful alcohol consumption and help gather reliable statistics.

u.tv

What's your poison?

Britian's drinking culture puts pressure on teenagers to pick up a pint and join in.

Our schools have a tough time fitting in alcohol education into a busy academic curriculum, but in a world where teenagers are starting drinking at an increasingly young age, it is necessary to furnish them with the facts.

Fresh Knowledge is a Yorkshire-based alcohol management and counselling service working with schools in the area to educate young people about the dangers of alcohol abuse.

Underage drinking is escalating among young people.

Today 11 to 15 year-olds drink twice as much as children in the same age bracket did ten years ago and 16 to 24 year-olds are the heaviest drinkers in the UK.

Alcohol is also a factor in accidents, suicides and violence involving 16 to 25-year-olds.

At Joseph Rowntree School, in York, sixth formers are given a taste of what life is like in the world beyond school with staff taking a practical approach to help youngsters cope with the world outside school.

Part of this pastoral care includes cookery lessons for teenagers living away from home for the first time in their lives and also a talk on the dangers of alcohol abuse given by the head of Fresh Knowledge, Sue Stone.

The school's head of sixth form, Sarah Billinge, said: "This is the second year we have run this talk because of the positive feedback we had from last year's students.

"For us, the aim of such events is preparing students for their lives after school and the world of university or jobs. Drinking is part of a student's life at university and some of these young people are 18 and legally able to go out and have a drink.

"This is about them getting the knowledge to go out there and stay safe."

Part of the message Ms Stone brings with her talk is that alcohol is especially harmful to teenagers, as their organs have not developed enough to its combat the harmful effects.

Binge drinking can become literally deadly dangerous, and teenagers today can be ignorant of the consequences of such irresponsible drinking.

Ms Stone said: "Yorkshire has one of the highest proportion of young drinkers in the country and it's hard to say why that is, really.

"We have quite a lot of large rural areas and I think there really isn't that much for them to do and there are issues of boredom."

At Joseph Rowntree School Ms Stone discussed problems the youngsters may encounter out in pubs and clubs, such as drink spiking and ways to prevent this.

She also tried to dispel some of the myths surrounding drinking and it's after-affects, including why lining your stomach before you go out may not always prevent a hangover and why it's too late to drink lots of water or coffee to sober up after a night out.

The 20 youngsters were also given advice on their health and how continually drinking to excess at a young age can lead to health problems in later life, including cirrhosis of the liver.

Ms Stone said: "It's about raising youngsters' awareness of the dangers they are putting themselves into out on the streets. You have to drink responsibly, otherwise there are consequences."

York Press

Shocking toll of drink in Ipswich

One in seven people in Ipswich are harming themselves by drinking too much booze, The Evening Star can reveal today.

Shocking new figures show that across the town there are 15,359 regular drinkers whose habit is considered “harmful” or “hazardous” to their health.

And, in a worrying confirmation of the extent of the problems, experts say there are also a massive 2,389 alcoholics in the town.

Meanwhile it has emerged that booze-related problems such as crime, health issues and lost work hours cost Ipswich a staggering £40million a year.

The study, collated by Ipswich Borough Council, found that as a result of binge-drinking the town has higher levels of alcohol-related crime than the UK average.

Meanwhile around 40 people a week get so intoxicated they need hospital treatment.

The council is looking to team up with partner agencies, such as police and health bodies, to find ways of tackling the issues in a long-term bid to address the problems.

Across the UK the cost of booze-related issues comes to a staggering £20billion a year which equates to a cost of £41.6million for a town with the population of Ipswich.

Tibbs Pinter, substance misuse officer at Ipswich Borough Council, said: “It is quite a dramatic figure and highlights why we need to look at it and take a methodical and strategic approach.

“We have never had a basis from which to work but this report gives us some evidence and figures which show the problem in relation to Ipswich and we want to do something about it.

“A lot of people drink and enjoy the amount they drink and it doesn't cause any health or community problems.

“We don't want to penalise that or come out as though it is not an economic asset.

“Pubs and clubs do a fantastic job in the town and in general are good at preventing alcohol-related disorder.

“But some figures show we do have a problem.”

The findings of the study coincide with councillors pushing ahead with plans for a booze ban throughout the entire borough of Ipswich in an attempt to combat street drinkers.

At a meeting of Ipswich Borough Council's executive committee last night it was agreed to put the idea out to public consultation.

If police, businesses, health organisations and the public agree with the concept of a ban it could come into place as early as this summer.

The council is looking at further short-term “fixes” that can be put in place to address issues around alcohol, but is also looking to put long-term plans in place to deal with underlying reasons for alcohol abuse among the town's population.

Earlier this week The Evening Star reported that admissions to hospital with an alcohol-related diagnosis have shot up by 58 per cent since 1997/98 across the whole of Suffolk.

In 2005/06 there were 974 admissions compared to 616 in 1997/98.

Alcohol in Ipswich - the stark facts:

* A “harmful” drinker is a man drinking more than 50 units a week (25 pints of beer) or a woman drinking more than 35 units a week (six bottles of wine)

* A “hazardous” drinker is a man drinking between 35 and 50 units a week or a woman drinking between 14 and 21 units a week.

* An estimated 17pc of over 16s in Ipswich drink double the recommended daily maximum or more in a single binge session.

* In a single four-month period between September and December 2005 a total of 599 emergency calls were made to the ambulance service in Ipswich due to intoxication - close to 40 a week.

* Alcohol was the direct reason for 72 per cent of these calls with 13pc a result of drug use and 15pc a combination of both.

* People in Ipswich who visit pubs and bars three or more times a week are twice as likely to be victims of violence compared to those who rarely visit pubs or bars.

Evening Star

Booze-related hospital admissions soar

Alcohol related hospital admissions at one Suffolk emergency unit have shot up by 126% in the last ten years, it has been revealed.

The shocking figures for West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds - taken since 1997 - compare to an average 84% increase across the Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire area.

David Ruffley, MP for Bury, who has obtained the figures, said the general increase was bad enough but he was appalled by the local rise, which he insisted strengthened the case for retaining the accident and emergency department at the hospital.

Mr Ruffley said: “These new House of Commons figures on alcohol-related admissions to hospital are truly shocking.

“Admissions in the West Suffolk area have increased by 126%since 1997/98 - that's a colossal increase and something we in Suffolk need to take a much closer look at.

“This staggering increase underlines the importance of the campaign to save the accident and emergency department at the West Suffolk Hospital, which is persistently being referred to as under threat by the regional Strategic Health Authority's review of acute services.

“I will be tabling further questions in the House of Commons to look into these figures more closely and I have written to Carole Taylor-Brown, Chief Executive of Suffolk Primary Care Trust (PCT), asking exactly what is being done to combat alcohol abuse in Suffolk because it is clear to me that a lot more work is required.

“There has also been an increase of 84% in alcohol-related admissions since 1997/98 across the whole of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.

“This figure is worrying in itself but the fact that the increase in West Suffolk is 42% higher over the same period is simply staggering.

“Alcohol abuse is something we must work incredibly hard to combat. In the UK, binge drinking accounts for 40% of all drinking sessions by men and 22% by women.”

Between 2004/05 and 2005/06 - the latest year for which figures are available - alcohol related hospital visits in West Suffolk, Norfolk, East Suffolk and Cambridgeshire increased by 16 and 17%.

A spokesman for the West Suffolk Hospital NHS Trust said: “Alcohol is the primary factor in virtually all violence related admissions after 8pm.

“We would urge people to avoid binge-drinking, take care to prepare by eating before going out to drink and alternating water with alcoholic drinks.”

East Anglian Daily Times

It's time to get tough on under-age drinking

SNP proposals for tougher action to tackle under-age drinking were discussed when I met community police officers in Edinburgh last week.

I was joined by Shadow Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill MSP, and Shadow Health Minister Shona Robison MSP on a visit to Craigmillar police station to speak to community police officers about the impact of cheap alcohol on crime, health and anti-social behaviour – as well as positive measures to tackle the problem of under-age drinking.

We then accompanied those police officers on a tour of areas in the east of the city particularly blighted by the effects of anti-social behaviour.

A recent comparison of recorded crimes of vandalism, reckless damage and malicious mischief between the years of 1996-7 and 2005-6 reveals an increase of 18% in Aberdeenshire, which is bad enough – but in Edinburgh City that statistic rises to 71%. So much for a government that pledged to be 'tough on crime, and tough on the causes of crime'!

For many communities the biggest problems relate to excessive drinking on the streets and not the more regulated alcohol consumption in local bars and, like them, Craigmillar also suffers from the scourge of under-age gangs of youths roaming the streets and gathering for illicit drinking sessions at known meeting places.

Quite frequently, the areas around these places are easily identified by a plethora of vandalism and graffiti, and become recognized as regular 'hot-spots' of anti-social behaviour. In all, the Home Office estimates that 40% of violent crime, 78% of assaults and 88% of criminal damage offences were committed when the offender was under the influence of alcohol.

Such gatherings also act as a magnet for unscrupulous drug dealers. Very few youngsters would deliberately set out with the intention of becoming heroin addicts, but tragically, many will encounter drugs for the first time as a result of their participation in the culture of under-age drinking.

But if we are to brand the behaviour of these young people as 'irresponsible' we must also look at those who are responsible, and the SNP will hit hard on off-licences that sell to, and on adults who buy for, under-18s.

Too many parents also adopt a casual attitude toward the consumption of alco-pops, and in some cases have knowingly supplied them to their own children.

There are no acceptable excuses for the sale or supply of alcohol to young Scots. Under our proposals, the sale of alcohol to under-age Scots will result in the loss of a premises' licence – and buying alcohol for under-18s will lead to prosecution.

A recent analysis published by the Office for National Statistics shows that in Scotland the alcohol-related death rates for males and females were around double the rates for the UK as a whole in 2002-2004.

It is a national tragedy and I want to make it more difficult for under-age Scots to get access to this cheap drink. Irresponsible drinks promotions in pubs and clubs are to be outlawed via national licence conditions set by central government – yet no such action is being taken with regard to the off-licence trade, and, in particular, dealing with the deep discounting by supermarkets.

This anomaly will be rectified by the SNP using the powers granted to them to set new national licence conditions for the off trade – with the aim of clamping down on irresponsible sale of alcohol, and freeing Scottish communities from the blight of alcohol-fuelled crime and anti-social behaviour.

Once again, our local communities face their biggest challenges – not from the heightened threat of global terrorism which has preoccupied the Prime Minister since he embarked on his vain-glorious crusade in the Middle East – but here, in our own society. Concrete action is needed in this area if the damage alcohol does to our society is to be reversed.

That is why Scotland needs investment in more effective community policing – not wasted on the uncertain technology of high-tech ID cards.

It's time to tackle Scotland's binge drinking culture – which is why the SNP will fully support measures to extend the alcohol test-purchasing pilot to clamp down on under-age drinking, and will implement tougher measures to turn this distressing situation around.

Banffshire Journal

24-hour drinking blamed for surge in thuggish behaviour

A surge in thuggish behaviour has doubled in a year with many businesses blaming 24-hour drinking, it was revealed yesterday.

The bill for vandalism, broken windows and theft has shot up to £5,000 since Labour relaxed the licensing laws in November 2005.

In the year prior to thousands of bars, clubs and supermarkets being allowed to open through the night, the average bill for firms hit by loutish behaviour was only £2,300.

The research on yob behaviour was carried out by Critical Research Ltd in January this year. Some 502 firms were interviewed, with 100 suffering as a result of yobbish behaviour.

Of those hit, the average loss was £5,000. In the retail and consumer sector - which includes shops and pubs - the average loss was £9,100.

It confirms the worst fears of critics of the change, which was railroaded through despite opposition from the police, judges and the Daily Mail.

No official Government report has been published into the impact, but a picture is now emerging of increased chaos on the country's streets. Hospital admissions for teenagers are also rocketing.

Shopkeepers taking part in the survey, carried out by insurance firm Royal & SunAlliance, themselves blamed 24-hour drink laws.

One in four said longer drinking hours were directly responsible for the increase in late-night vandalism and graffiti. Customers are being scared away by yobs hanging around outside shops.

And theft is also on the increase, possibly to buy alcohol.

Tesh Patel, corporate development director at R&SA, said: "This is a huge burden on UK businesses, especially on smaller companies that will struggle to cope with the financial loss."

Shadow Culture Secretary Hugo Swire said: "Tessa Jowell claimed that the Licensing Act was supposed to reduce binge drinking and anti-social behaviour, but this research shows that for many firms, the exact opposite has happened.

"In many places yob behaviour has got worse and it has cost businesses more than twice as much to deal with, and it is local communities that are paying the price."

"There should have been a proper pilot of the new laws so that the effects could be monitored and steps taken to deal with the problems, but instead Ministers chose to ignore the concerns raised by many groups and press ahead with these changes."

Yesterday, it also emerged the number of teenagers receiving medical treatment after drinking binges increased by nearly 15 per cent in the year the new licensing laws were introduced.

It means hundreds more under-18s have suffered liver disease, blood poisoning and mental disorders, such as depression and psychosis, as a result of alcohol.

From April 2005 to April 2006, teenagers were admitted to hospital for treatment 8,582 times, an increase of nearly 1,000 more than in the previous year.

The figure, the first published following the changes, is the biggest rise in a decade.

Dr Christopher Record, consultant in liver disease at Newcastle NHS Trust, said: "There is no doubt that increased availability has led to more young people drinking. If you increase availability you increase consumption. The two go hand in hand.

"I'm sure the rise has been caused by 24-hour drinking legislation, when you can go into Asda and buy alcohol throughout the night."

Three months ago, Cabinet Minister Hazel Blears admitted the licensing reforms had failed to curb the country's binge-drinking culture.

She said people still wanted to get drunk and "push the limits of danger".

The Labour Party Chairman conceded: "I don't know whether we'll ever get to be in a European drinking culture, where you go out and have a single glass of wine.

"Maybe it's our Anglo-Saxon mentality. We actually enjoy getting drunk. I think there is a bit about risk-taking people want to push the limits of danger. So as a politician I don't think there are any easy answers."

A spokeswoman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said: "It is against the law to sell alcohol to under-18s and we have put in force much tougher penalties.

"You can now be fined up to £5,000 for selling to underage drinkers and the police and local authorities are not shy in using their powers."

This is London

'How we're drinking' is now the message

A Campaign targeting binge drinking among young people was never going to have a big impact when the actual problem lay with New Zealand’s adults, an environmental health conference heard on Friday.

Alcohol Advisory Council of New Zealand (ALAC) deputy chief executive Sandra Kirby said you could not expect young people to change their drinking behaviour when every major turning point in a Kiwi’s adult life involved getting drunk.

Twenty-first birthdays, marriages and wins and losses in sport were all celebrated by getting intoxicated.

She said alcohol ranked as the fourth largest contributor to the global burden of disease in Western countries, which included the likes of New Zealand, Australia and the UK.

Four percent of New Zealand’s gross domestic product was spent on addressing problems associated with alcohol consumption.

Ms Kirby said while there was no doubt that alcohol production and manufacturing was big business in New Zealand, it came at a huge cost to the community.

While alcohol abuse had always been thought of as a health issue, she said it actually had a larger affect on other sectors — namely justice and industry.

Around 70 percent of crime dealt with by police was alcohol-related.

However, the biggest cost was the loss of production associated with people calling in sick due to a hangover or, worse still, turning up hung over and "stuffing up" their work.

While Kiwis drank less alcohol on average per day than other countries, ranking about 24th or 25th when it came to alcohol consumption — a huge binge drinking culture existed.

The majority of people drank in excess of seven drinks per session.

"If we could drop that by two drinks we could reduce the harm caused," she said.

However, she knew they had a battle on their hands as there was still the perception "that being drunk is fun".

"You are not going to take away people’s favourite pastime that easily."

However, the "It’s not the drinking, It’s how we’re drinking" campaign was starting to have an impact.

When the campaign first started, around two percent of Kiwis thought New Zealand had a problem with drinking. That figure was now up around 75 percent.

"We believe you can change New Zealand’s drinking culture," she said.

It was not about imposing other countries’ drinking culture on Kiwis, but creating a new drinking culture that was very New Zealand.

The Gisborne Herald

Alcohol-related illness in teens is up 15 per cent in wake of 24-hour drinking

The number of teenagers receiving medical treatment after drinking binges has risen by nearly 15 per cent in the year the new 24-hour licensing laws were introduced.

The shock increase, recorded just months after the law changed, means hundreds more under-18s have suffered liver disease, blood poisoning and mental disorders - including depression and psychosis - as a result of alcohol.

It delivers a crushing blow to Labour's flagship legislation, which Ministers promised would bring about a revolution in the UK's drinking culture.

Culture Minister Tessa Jowell insisted that longer opening hours would put an end to hurried bingeing and the violence at closing time when drinkers were all turfed out on to the streets simultaneously.

But the new figures - released by the Government in answer to a question in Parliament - give the lie to claims that staggered closing times would encourage a healthier, 'cafe culture' attitude.

From April 2005 to April 2006, teenagers were admitted to hospital for treatment 8,582 times, an increase of nearly 1,000 more than in the previous year. The figure, the first published following the introduction of the new laws in November 2005, is the biggest rise in a decade.

Doctors, horrified by the sudden increase, say it can only be explained by the longer opening hours.

Dr Christopher Record, consultant in liver disease at Newcastle NHS Trust, blames the constant availability of alcohol.

He said: 'There is no doubt that increased availability has led to more young people drinking. If you increase availability you increase consumption. The two go hand in hand.

'I'm sure the rise has been caused by 24-hour drinking legislation, when you can go into Asda and buy alcohol throughout the night.'

Dr Record was part of the Government consultation ahead of the new legislation. But he claims his pleas and those of other doctors who treat the results of binge drinking were ignored.

'The licensing laws were changed without any reference to what was happening in society,' he said.

'The Government wanted to introduce this Mediterranean cafe culture and it was complete pie in the sky.

'We are now drinking 50 per cent more alcohol than we did 30 years ago. But the Government doesn't take any notice. The alcohol lobby has tremendous influence.'

Sir Michael Marmot, a professor studying the effects of alcohol on society, said: 'This is a very worrying trend. UK teenagers are among the heaviest drinkers in Europe. The whole idea of encouraging a sensible drinking culture in this country simply isn't working.'

Studies by NHS statisticians at the Information Centre for Health and Social Care has shown that underage drinkers are more likely to buy alcohol to drink in secret than try to get served in a pub.

Yet more than half of the 3,000 extra-hours permits issued under the relaxed laws were given to corner shops, supermarkets and off-licences.

Campaigner Frank Soodeen, of charity Alcohol Concern, said: 'We have been monitoring hospital admissions due to drink among young people for some time and we have been concerned by the rising trend. But this figure is shocking.'

However, a spokeswoman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said: 'It is against the law to sell alcohol to under-18s and we have put in force much tougher penalties.

'You can now be fined up to £5,000 for selling to underage drinkers and the police and local authorities are not shy in using their powers.'

This is London

When vodka is your poison

Thousands of Russians may have been poisoned by bootleg alcohol containing medical disinfectant causing drinkers' skin to turn yellow before they fall dangerously ill or die.

Pskov is the end of the line. I got off the Moscow overnight express and the earth started to buckle in front of me.

On the Pskov express I had played chess with a couple of Russians, the vodka bottles had come out, and soon every move of a pawn was celebrated with a toast.

If you're interested, I was about to win when the Russian bloke nicked my queen - anyway, I had had enough to drink to kill a small horse.

There is something about the light - or the lack of it - that eats the soul in Russia, that makes you drink. The dark days in winter, the grimness of ordinary life. They say one in six Russians is an alcoholic.

That is why President Putin, the former KGB man, is something of a puritan - at least in public.

He has brought in a series of laws, tripling the price of vodka and threatening dire penalties if people drink black market moonshine, which they call samogon.

And that is, of course, what everybody who can't afford shop-bought vodka does.

Across Russia as a whole, officials have not counted, but some estimate 10,000 poison cases and 1,000 dead.

They called it the yellow death. It started in the summer when dozens of people turned up in casualty, a vile shade of yellow.

The dozens turned to hundreds, then a thousand. The better cases recovered, but will die long before their time.

The worst cases? Natasha is not yet 30, she's got a seven-year-old boy called Maxim and she has less than a year to live.

Her whole body has gone yellow - an instantly recognisable feature of toxic hepatitis.

Something has destroyed her liver and now all the natural toxins in the body are stacking up.

Her own body is poisoning her and there is nothing medicine - or at least nothing state medicine in Russia - can do about it.

Natasha and everyone else in the hospital corridors had bought samogon, moonshine, as usual - but something had been added to it.

Clear liquid

In Pskov, the authorities have tracked more than 1,000 poisonings with 120 dead.

Across Russia as a whole, officials have not counted, but some estimate 10,000 poison cases and 1,000 dead.

So who is responsible for this mass poisoning? I had gone to Pskov to try to get to the bottom of the yellow death.

We made friends with a gentlemanly Russian, Alexei, who was also an alcoholic, gave him a secret camera bag and sent him off to buy the samogon moonshine.

The plan was that we would then get it tested and analysed to see what the problem was. He bought the stuff for 20 roubles ($0.80, £0.40), a clear liquid in an old Coke bottle. I had a quick sniff.

The bouquet - rocket fuel with a touch of boot polish. And a quick gulp.

In the film Flash Gordon, the heroine is given a slug of bright green alcohol so that she can bear to sleep with Emperor Ming The Merciless. It tasted something like that.

We filmed the local cops going round busting all the little people, the street traders in samogon.

The local chief of police in Pskov, Gen Sergei Matveyev - a plump bureaucrat with a fatter gold watch - was not keen to tell me what was the most likely source of the poison.

Not many in authority give much of a damn about the nameless wretches of the earth: winos, moral degenerates.

The sense that many of the yellow people were ordinary Russians who had been poisoned through no great fault of their own seemed to be missing.

Medical disinfectant

A doctor told me that the most likely cause was something which had been added to the moonshine - polyhexamethylene biguanide hydrochloride.

And that stuff had got on the market as a medical disinfectant, Extrasept. It was 95% pure alcohol and tax exempt - making it cheaper than moonshine.

Dodgy traders had mixed the cheaper Extrasept with the home-made samogon - and made a killing.

It was only once I had learnt about polyhexo that I got seriously worried about the samogon I had drunk. It might have been contaminated too. Had I poisoned myself? Was I going to turn yellow, too?

We set off from Pskov to St Petersburg, to the Institute of Toxicology. They had been feeding Extrasept to rats. The results were inconclusive. I brought along a little bottle of the stuff I had drunk. They tested it and they found no polyhexo, so I was clean.

The Extrasept factory was a vast sprawling mess in Alexandrov - a town associated with Ivan the Terrible.

The technical director said there was nothing wrong with his product - and he even drank some to prove it. I asked him: "You're not afraid of turning yellow, are you?".

Later, when we got back to London, we had Extrasept tested on human liver cells - and it killed every single one.

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