Alcohol bingeing "cause of liver disease epidemic"

In an unprecedented move, 34 consultants have called on the Government to introduce new curbs on alcohol advertising to protect young people.

The move was prompted by figures that show the number of hospital admissions for people in their early 30s with alcoholic liver disease has increased by more than 400 per cent in the North-East.

The national increase is 61 per cent.

The consultants, mostly liver specialists and gastroenterologists, make their plea in an open letter.

They say that a decade ago it was unusual for a liver specialist to treat anyone for alcoholic cirrhosis who had not reached their 50s.

“Alarmingly, this is no longer the case. In the North- East we are in the middle of an epidemic,” they add.

The consultants say this is due to the fact that people are drinking at much earlier ages and in much greater quantities than before – just under 11 litres of pure alcohol each year, more than double the levels recorded in the Fifties.

They blame “an excessively pro-alcohol culture” which is selling booze for pocketmoney prices, promoting it widely and making it available 24 hours a day.

“It is clear we need to halt this epidemic in its tracks, otherwise we will soon be treating young men and women in their 20s on a regular basis for a disease that is 100 per cent preventable,” they add.

The consultants are supporting a campaign by Balance, the North-East Alcohol Office, calling on the Government to stop the alcohol industry recruiting young people as the next generation of problem drinkers.

Colin Shevills, director at Balance, wants a ban on alcohol advertising on television and non-18 certificate films in the cinema, as well as a halt to the sponsoring of sports and cultural events.

He said: “Our region is drinking too much from an early age, driven by alcohol which is too affordable, too available and too heavily promoted.

It is particularly concerning as here in the North- East we have the highest rate of 11-to-15-year-olds who drink in England and the highest rate of under-18s admitted to hospital because of alcohol.”

Research carried out by Balance reveals that North-East hospitals recorded 189 admissions for 30 to 34-year-olds with the disease last year, compared with 37 in 2002.

In total, there were 778 admissions for 30 to 34-yearolds with alcohol liver disease between 2002 and last year, costing the NHS about £1.8m.

There were a further 482 admissions for under-30s, with some people admitted under the age of 20.

In all, in the past eight years there have been 21,798 alcoholic liver disease admissions across the region, costing the NHS £51.7m. Anjan Dhar, consultant gastroenterologist at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, said: “With the economic conditions becoming more difficult, and gainful employment opportunities becoming tougher, teenagers without jobs are resorting to drinking more heavily. By doing so they are putting themselves at risk of faster progression of liver damage, which will have a serious impact, not only on their health but also stretch the limited health resources that are going to be available in the future.”

Death rates linked to alcoholic liver disease have risen by 69 per cent in the past 30 years.

Mr Shevills added: “We have created a society where alcohol plays too central a role in our lives. This needs to change.”

A spokesman for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport said: “It is imperative that we have robust, evidence- based alcohol advertising rules in place to ensure appropriate levels of consumer protection, especially for children and young people. We will continue to monitor the effectiveness of the UK’s regulatory regimes to ensure that there is sufficient protection for the public.”

To avoid health problems, adult drinkers are advised to stick to the recommended limits.

Balance has a petition at balancenortheast.co.uk to restrict alcohol advertising.

The Letter

Dear editor

When it comes to alcohol and the liver, the general rule is that the volume and duration of consumption determines whether someone will have a problem.

As recently as a decade ago, it was unusual for a liver specialist to treat anyone for alcoholic cirrhosis who had not reached their fifties.

Alarmingly, this is no longer the case. In the North East we are in the middle of an epidemic. We have witnessed a 400% increase in the number of 30-34 year olds being admitted into our hospitals with alcoholic liver disease since 2002.

This early onset is due to the fact that people are drinking at much earlier ages and in much greater quantities than ever before. The average adult now consumes just under 11 litres of pure alcohol each year, more than double the levels recorded in the 1950s.

People are consuming in this way because we’ve created an excessively pro-alcohol culture by selling alcohol for pocket money prices, promoting it heavily and widely and making it available 24 hours a day.

It’s clear we need to halt this epidemic in its tracks, otherwise we’ll soon be treating young men and women in their twenties on a regular basis for a disease that is 100% preventable.

That’s why we’re supporting en-masse a campaign which has been launched in our region by Balance, the North East Alcohol Office. It calls for Government to stop the alcohol industry recruiting our children and young people as the next generation of problem drinkers.

By preventing the alcohol industry from reaching children and young people through TV, social networking sites, under 18 films in the cinema and sponsorship of sporting and youth events, we begin to make drinking early and in large quantities less normal and less acceptable. We begin to change the excessively pro-alcohol culture which the alcohol industry spends an estimated £800m a year on marketing to sustain.

We need everyone who is concerned about the lives and futures of our children and young people to back this campaign and sign the petition at www.balancenortheast.co.uk

Yours sincerely,

• Chris Record, Consultant Physician and liver specialist at Newcastle University and Newcastle Hospitals
• James Crosby, Consultant Gastroenterologist, City Hospitals Sunderland
• Andrew Douglass , Consultant Gastroenterologist, South Tees NHS Trust
• Jane Metcalf, Honorary Senior Lecturer and Consultant Physician, North Tees and
Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust
• Simon Cowlam, Consultant Gastroenterologist, City Hospitals Sunderland
• Stuart McPherson, Consultant Hepatologist Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne
• Emma Johns, Consultant Gastroenterologist, Gateshead
• Elizabeth Phillips, Consultant Gastroenterologist and Honorary Senior Lecturer, Northumbria Healthcare NHS
• Colin Rees, Consultant Gastroenterologist, South Tyneside NHS Foundation Trust
• Christopher Wells, Consultant Gastroenterologist, University Hospital of North Tees
• Anthoor Jayaprakash, Consultant Physician & Gastroenterologist, Wansbeck Hospital
• Deepak Dwarakanath, Consultant Physician, University Hospital of North Durham
• Zahid Mahmood, Physician and Lead Gastrologist, North Cumbria University Hospitals
• S. Zafar Abbas, Consultant Gastroenterologist, Hexham General Hospital
• Dr Macklon, Consultant Physician & Gastroenterologist, University Hospital of North Durham
• Jitendra Singh, Consultant Gastroenterologist and General Physician, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Gateshead
• Peter Trewby, Consultant Physician, County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust
• Phil Matthews, Consultant Gastroenterologist, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• Diamond Joy, Consultant Gastroenterologist, The James Cook University Hospital
• Harriet Mitchison, Consultant Endoscopy, City Hospitals Sunderland
• Paul Cann, Consultant Gastroenterologist, The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough
• David Hobday, Consultant Gastroenterologist, City Hospitals Sunderland
• Anjan Dhar, Consultant Gastroenterologist, University Hospital of North Durham
• Christopher Haigh, Consultant Gastroenterologist, Wansbeck Hospital
• Richard Thomas ,Consultant Physician, North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust
• Matt Rutter Consultant Gastroenterologist University Hospital of North Tees
• Mumtaz Hayat, Consultant Gastroenterologist and Physician, Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
• Margaret Bessendine, Professor of Hepatology at Newcastle University and Hon. Consultant Hepatologist Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne
• David Oliver, Consultant Gastroenterologist, The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough
• Arvind Ramadas, Consultant Gastroenterologist, The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough
• Jo Topping, Consultant Gastroenterologist, South Tyneside District Hospital
• Anand Reddy, Consultant Physician and Gastroenterologist, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Gateshead
• Babur Javaid, Consultant Gastroenterologist, North Cumbria University Hospitals
• Anil Bhagwat, Consultant, Hexham General Hospital
• Saksena Sushma, Consultant Physician and Hepatologist, University Hospital North Durham