Alcohol Help

Do you enjoy a drink? Ninety percent of adults in the West Midlands region do - and for many of us it simply means a glass of wine with a meal or a pint with some friends in the pub. However for many others it means regularly drinking above the recommended daily limits, and this can and does lead to problems. Excessive drinking not only can have a negative impact your health, but also can affect the safety and well being of individuals and communities. These effects in turn seriously impact upon public services such as the police, hospitals, and society in general.

Local events starting 15th October in Birmingham will be taking place across the region ovear the next six-weeks. The aim of these events is to publicise the survey and raise awareness of how excessive drinking impacts negatively upon our society. For instance did you know that the West Midlands have the third highest alcohol related death rate in the country? In 2005, nearly 2,700 people died from medical conditions related to alcohol and that in the last year for every 1000 people living in the West Midlands there were ten crimes, committed attributable to the excessive consumption of alcohol.

Launching the debate, Regional Director of Public Health Dr Rashmi Shukla CBE said:

"We know that this region has a problematic relationship with alcohol and this is contributing towards some pretty scary statistics including rising numbers of people being admitted to hospital with an alcohol related illness and the numbers of people being involved in violent crimes related to excessive drinking.

The question is what we do to reduce the harmful impact that excessive drinking is having on this region? The West Midlands Big Drink Debate is an opportunity for you to tell us what should be done."

Department of Health