joint strategic needs assessment foundation profile - JSNA

Interative Hull Atlas: www.hullpublichealth.org/Pages/hull_atlas.htm More information: www.jsnaonline.org and www.hullpublichealth.org
8.8 Alcohol Consumption
8.8.1 Alcohol as a Risk Factor
Alcohol is a risk factor for some cancers, particularly of the colon and breast (BBC
2009), and excessive alcohol consumption can lead to liver damage, stomach problems,
fatal alcohol poisoning, increased risk of cardiovascular disease, etc (NHS Choices
2009). There are also more short-term effects such as dizziness, falling over, being
sick, injuries resulting from accidents and violence, hangovers, impotence, memory loss,
etc. There is some evidence that people who drink moderately who do not binge drink
may have a lower risk for cardiovascular disease compared to people who never drink,
but people who drink excessively or binge drink increase their risk (BBC 2009).
However, this could be related to health status in that people who have poorer health
who may be more likely to have cardiovascular disease are more likely to never drink.
Therefore the association between alcohol and health is more complex, but it is clear
that excessive alcohol consumption and binge drinking are both risk factors for
cardiovascular disease, some cancers and liver disease.
8.8.2 National Recommendations for Alcohol Consumption and Definitions
There are two different national recommendations for alcohol consumption, both are
based on the quantity of alcohol units consumed. It is recommended that alcohol
consumption is limited over the week and for any particular day. For more information
on alcohol units and definitions see section 13.4.2 on page 807. Information on
exceeding the recommended daily units of alcohol was not collected as part of the 2003
local Health and Lifestyle Survey so it is not possible to examine binge drinking trends
over time. However, information on the frequency of alcohol consumption and weekly
consumption was collected so it is possible to examine some local trends over time with
regard to total weekly alcohol consumption.
8.8.2.1 Excessive Weekly Alcohol Consumption
Excessive total alcohol consumption over the week was defined as drinking more than 21
units for men and more than 14 units for women during the previous week.
8.8.2.2 Binge Drinking
Binge drinking was defined as drinking eight or more units for men and six or more units for
women on a single day at least once a week on average. That is twice the recommended
daily units.
Joint Strategic Needs Assessment Foundation Profile – Hull Health Profile: Release 3. March 2011. 342