Britain is no country for larger and larger numbers of old men, drinking more and more, to ill result

First the bad news. You old men in Britain have :

* had more admissions to hospitals in England for alcohol-related injuries and illness than the young 16 to 24 year olds and have entered in larger numbers, with a 62% increase in the last five years.

* those of you in the 55-74 age group, died in the largest numbers from alcohol-related deaths.

* had Dr Sarah Wadd, Programme Director for 'Substance Misuse and Ageing' research at the Institute of Applied Social Research at the University of Bedfordshire say of you that :
 "Evidence suggests that Britain may be facing an epidemic of alcohol-related harm among older people. An estimated 1.4 million people aged 65 and over currently exceed recommended drinking limits and the large numbers born in the post-Second World War economic boom period, the so-called 'baby-boomers', are moving into old age drinking relatively high levels of alcohol compared with previous generations."
 
* have had Dr Tony Rao, a Consultant Old-Age Psychiatrist at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, find that between 2002 and 2012 hospital admissions among you 60-74 year olds for 'mental and behavioural disorders 'due to the use of alcohol rose by 150%. from 3,247 to 8,120.

* had experts advise you to refrain from drink on at least two days a week, yet more of you are drinking for six or seven days a week than any other age group.

* have had a recent report by the Royal College of Psychiatrists say that you should drink less than other age groups, a maximum of 1.5 units of alcohol a day, because you are less able to process alcohol and the drink might also interact with medication you may be taking.

* a tendency, when you drink, to lose your sense of balance and are probably unaware that your liver is becoming less efficient at breaking down alcohol.
 
* one in five of you are drinking enough to harm yourselves, a rise of 40% in the past 20 years.

* possibly got reasons for your alcohol abuse in either your bereavement, loneliness, pain, ill health, disability or depression.

Now a little bit of good news for you baby boomer old men and women who drink too much, you have a friend in the 'Big Lottery Fund', which has announced an investment of £25million in the 'Rethink Good Health Programme', to tackle your late-onset alcohol misuse and It is looking for a partner to manage the project, which would set up 15 to 20 help centres across the country.

Peter Ainsworth, the Big Lottery Fund Chairman said :
"Most older people drink moderately and nobody is suggesting for a moment that older people should be discouraged from enjoying a well-earned pint or a glass of wine relaxing with family or friends. But while it is young people who are often stigmatised for their drinking habits, a silent story is evolving among older people as they experience life-changing events such as retirement, redundancy or bereavement. Today's Big Lottery Fund £25m investment will help call time on this trend by supporting evidence-based preventive approaches to alcohol misuse among older people."

My earlier post :
Tuesday, 11 September 2012

Britain is a country where more and more old men drink more and more in their old age

http://britainisnocountryforoldmen.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/britain-is-country-where-more-and-more.html