Exclusive by Marios Papaloizou
The number of young Manchester women being admitted to A&E due to alcohol related incidents has jumped by a jaw-dropping 88% over the last five years.
The figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request showed that, since 2008/9, the number of admissions for 18-34 year old women at Central Manchester University Hospitals (CMFT) had risen from 152 to 286 per year.
With such a staggering rise in hospital admissions experts are warning that women need to be fully aware of the risks involved in heavy drinking.
Consultant in Emergency Medicine Alistair Rennie at CMFT said: “While it is widely known that excess alcohol consumption affects everyone’s health, women have specific issues with drinking too much.
“Due to physiological differences between the sexes, women can become dependent on alcohol sooner than men, and with lower daily consumption rates.
“Excess alcohol also can reduce a woman’s fertility, as well as potentially harm unborn children. Studies have shown that it can increase risk of breast cancer.”
Medical expert Dr Carly Stewart, who was interviewd by GirlyNIghtOut.com, also warned excessive alcohol consumption can put women in dangerous situations and ruin relationships.
“Women have every right to go out and drink that much – but at what cost? Women need to understand what risk they’re putting themselves in by practicing such dangerous behavior,” she said.
“Drinking can be social and fun when enjoyed responsibly, but the power of alcohol needs to be recognized.
“Not only is it incredibly damaging to your long-term health when consumed in large quantities, heavy alcohol use can destroy relationships and encourage one to put themselves in dangerous situations.”
This huge increase in admissions is not unique to Manchester but follows a trend that has seen nationwide admissions for women of all ages more than doubled in the last decade.
Figures compiled by the North West Public Health Observatory show that in 2002 there were approximately 200,000 women admitted to NHS hospitals.
However, just eight years later in 2010 that figure had more than doubled to 437,000 – a 119% increase.
Dr James Nicholls, Research Manager at Alcohol Research UK, warned that urgent action needs to be taken in order to tackle further increases in alcohol abuse.
“These figures reveal worrying levels of alcohol-related hospital admissions in Manchester, and show much more needs to be done to tackle the harms that drunkenness can cause,” he said.
“These are real people who have been injured, sometimes very badly, so everyone involved in the sale of alcohol needs to take their responsibilities seriously.
“The culture of cut-price alcohol retailing is something that everyone needs to tackle, and if retailers refuse to address this problem then local authorities will continue to look at the option of minimum unit pricing.”
image courtesy of the Publik16, with thanks
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