Lancet: drinking's as bad as smoking

A team of international scientists have warned ­ in a report published in The Lancet medical journal ­ that drinking is as dangerous as smoking.

The report attributes 4% of the global burden of disease to alcohol, which accounts for almost as much death and disability as tobacco (4.1%) and high blood pressure (4.4%).

Alcohol is said to be a significant factor in more than 60 different diseases and disabilities ranging from cirrhosis of the liver to unintentional injuries.

The report estimates that a 10% increase in the price of alcohol could diminish on-trade consumption of beer by 4.8% and spirits by 13.1%. This would in turn lead to a drop in cirrhosis mortality by 7% in men and 8.3% in women.

Another solution put forward to diminish the harm done by alcohol is to restrict the number and type of outlets as well as the hours of trading.

Mark Jones, chief executive of Yates, said the report realised his worst fears that alcohol was fast becoming the new tobacco.

"This has been coming for some time," he said. "The to-bacco industry in the UK has been totally emasculated. The Government dictates their point of sale and they have to have health warnings on packaging.

"All the talk at present is about binge drinking and town-centre disorder and the trade is not putting up a strong enough case for the benefits of selling alcohol, such as the numbers we employ and the social benefits."