Russia among countries that consume highest amounts of alcohol, reports WHO

GENEVA, May 15 — Russia and neighbouring countries like the Ukraine and Poland consume the highest amounts of alcohol per capita in the world, according to a wide sweeping report released by the World Health Organization this week.

After combining the recorded per capita alcohol consumption and the estimated unrecorded consumption rates per person a year, analysts at the WHO have charted a map that provides a revealing look at drinking patterns around the world.

According to the map, part of the “Global status report on alcohol and health 2014,” Russians tip back more than double the global average, consuming more than 12.5 litres per person a year.

Given that less than half the world population (38 per cent) drinks alcohol, however, the global average of 6.2 litres per capita could also be recalculated to spike to an average of 17 litres among those who do drink, authors say.

Interestingly, the only other country to buck the Russian and Eastern European trend is Portugal, where consumers also drink more than 12.5 litres a year — the same as Poland, Romania, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia.

According to the chart, the French, British, Spanish and Germans share similar consumption patterns to Canadians and Aussies (10 to 12.4 litres) and outdrink consumers in the US, Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Peru.

Americans and their counterparts in South America drink an average of 7.5 to 9.9 litres a year.

Predictably, countries that drink the least are predominantly Muslim countries in Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

The report also points out noteworthy gender divides when it comes to alcohol abuse: Nearly double the number of men die from alcohol-related causes compared to women (8 per cent versus 4 per cent).

Authors note, however, that alcohol consumption is rising steadily — and worryingly — among women.

Most consumed alcoholic beverages

Globally, the report found that the most popular alcohol comes in the form of spirits (50 per cent), the tipple of choice for consumers in Southeast Asia and Western Pacific regions.

The second most consumed beverage is beer — particularly in the Americas. Overall, beer accounts for about 35 per cent of all recorded alcohol consumed in the world.

And though wine represents a quarter of the total alcohol consumption in Europe, on a worldwide scale vino accounts for just eight per cent of total recorded alcohol. — AFP-Relaxnews