Slight fall in alcohol-related deaths

Alcohol-related deaths in the UK have declined slightly since 2008 although they remain at an historically high level, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The figures relate only to those deaths regarded as being most directly due to alcohol consumption and do not include deaths in which alcohol was an underlying cause, such as some forms of cancer.

The ONS figures show:

In 2009 there were 8,664 alcohol-related deaths in the UK, 367 fewer than the number recorded in 2008 (9,031)

Males accounted for approximately two-thirds of the total number of alcohol-related deaths in 2009.

The number of alcohol-related deaths in the UK has increased since the early 1990s, rising from the lowest figure of 4,023 (6.7 per 100,000 population) in 1992 to the highest of 9,031 (13.6 per 100,000) in 2008. In 2009 the number of deaths fell to 8,664 (12.8 per 100,000).

There are more alcohol-related deaths in males than in females. Male rates more than doubled over the period from 9.0 per 100,000 in 1992 to 18.7 per 100,000 in 2008, although the rate was lower in 2009 at 17.4 per 100,000. There were steadier increases in female rates, rising from 4.6 per 100,000 in 1992 to 8.7 per 100,000 in 2007 and 2008. The rate decreased slightly in 2009 to 8.4 per 100,000. In 2009 males accounted for approximately two-thirds of the number of alcohol-related deaths. There were 5,690 in males and 2,974 in females.

Trends differ according to age. The highest alcohol-related death rate across the period was in men aged 55–74. In 2009 the rate for this group was 41.8 per 100,000. The lowest male rate was in those aged 15–34; the rate for this group in 2009 was 2.6 per 100,000. The only rate to increase among men from 2008 to 2009 was in those aged 75 years and over, rising from 23.4 to 25.6 per 100,000. The rate for men aged 35–54 in 2009 was 29.1 per 100,000.

Female rates have been consistently lower than male rates, but the figures demonstrate a largely similar pattern between age groups. Like men, women aged 55–74 had the highest alcohol-related death rates over the period. In 2009 the rate for this group was 20.1 per 100,000. Rates were lowest in women aged 15–34. The rate for this age group in 2009 was 1.5 per 100,000. In 2009 the rates for women aged 35–54 and 75 and over were 13.8 and 13.3 per 100,000 respectively.

Across the 2000–09 period, rates were highest amongst those aged 55–74.