Excessive Alcohol Consumption in Greece and Worldwide

Thirty three percent of young adults in the country, aged between 13 and 19, report to drinking alcoholic beverages at least twice a week. These teenagers prefer drinking wine and "hard" drinks, such as vodka and whiskey, over beer and other soft "alco-pop" drinks at a rate of about 3 to 1.

The study was researching alcohol's effect on mortality rates, and found that approximately 3.3 million deaths yearly are caused by the harmful use of alcohol. Most often a result of alcohol-related diseases, such as liver cirrhosis and certain cancers, the number of deaths caused by the consumption of alcohol has increased in the past few years.

The study recorded that about 16% of drinkers worldwide participate in "binge drinking," or the consumption of an excessive amount of alcohol in a short period of time; this form of drinking, in which the goal is to get intoxicated as quickly as possible, is most harmful to health.

"More needs to be done to protect populations from the negative health consequences of alcohol consumption," says Dr Oleg Chestnov, WHO Assistant Director-General for Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health. "The report clearly shows that there is no room for complacency when it comes to reducing the harmful use of alcohol."

The World Health Organization urges people to drink responsibly, with the hope that more moderated drinking will reduce the risks posed by drinking excessively.