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Alcohol Kills 2.6 Million Drinkers Annually, Says WHO

Published

1 year ago

June 25, 2024

Alcohol kills nearly three million people annually, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday, adding that while the death rate had dropped slightly in recent years it remained “unacceptably high”.

The United Nations health agency’s latest report on alcohol and health said alcohol causes nearly one in 20 deaths globally each year, through drunk driving, alcohol-induced violence and abuse, and a multitude of diseases and disorders.

The report said 2.6 million deaths were attributed to alcohol consumption in 2019 — the latest available statistics — accounting for 4.7 per cent of all deaths worldwide that year.

Nearly three-quarters of those deaths were in men, it said.

“Substance use severely harms individual health, increasing the risk of chronic diseases, mental health conditions, and tragically resulting in millions of preventable deaths every year,” WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

He pointed out that there had been “some reduction in alcohol consumption and related harm worldwide since 2010”.

“(But) the health and social burden due to alcohol use remains unacceptably high,” he continued, highlighting that younger people were disproportionately affected.

The highest proportion of alcohol-attributable deaths in 2019 — 13 per cent — were among people aged 20 to 39, the WHO said.

Drinking is linked to a slew of health conditions, including cirrhosis of the liver and some cancers.

Of all the fatalities it caused in 2019, the report found that an estimated 1.6 million were from noncommunicable diseases.

Of these, 474,000 were from cardiovascular diseases, 401,000 from cancer and a huge 724,000 from injuries, including traffic accidents and self-harm.

Alcohol abuse also makes people more susceptible to infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, HIV and pneumonia, the report found.

An estimated 209 million people lived with alcohol dependence in 2019 — 3.7 per cent of the global population.

Total per capita consumption worldwide decreased slightly to 5.5 litres of alcohol in 2019 from 5.7 litres nine years earlier, the report found.

However, alcohol consumption overall is unevenly distributed around the globe.

Well, over half of the world’s population over the age of 15 abstains completely.

Europe accounted by far for the highest levels of per capita drinking, at 9.2 litres, followed by the Americas at 7.5 litres.

The lowest consumption was in predominantly Muslim countries in Northern Africa, the Middle East and Asia, the report said.

Among people who drank alcohol in 2019, the report determined they consumed 27 grammes of pure alcohol per day on average.

That is roughly equivalent to two glasses of wine, two small bottles of beer or two shots of spirits.

“This level and frequency of drinking is associated with increased risks of numerous health conditions and associated mortality and disability,” the WHO warned.

In 2019, a full 38 per cent of current drinkers acknowledged having engaged in heavy episodic drinking, defined as consuming at least 60 grammes of pure alcohol on one or more occasions in the preceding month.

Globally, 23.5 per cent of 15- to 19-year-olds were considered current drinkers.

That jumped to more than 45 per cent for people in this age group living in Europe, and to nearly 44 per cent in the Americas.

The WHO said it was essential to improve access to quality treatment for substance use disorders.

In 2019, the proportion of people contacting such treatment services ranged from below one per cent to 35 per cent in countries providing this data.

“Stigma, discrimination and misconceptions about the efficacy of treatment contribute to these critical gaps in treatment provision,” Vladimir Poznyak, head of WHO’s unit for alcohol, drugs and addictive behaviours, told reporters.

AFP

Headline

Return Of Chinese Astronauts Delayed After Space Debris Hits Spacecraft

Published

12 hours ago

November 5, 2025

Editor

The return of three Chinese astronauts to Earth has been postponed indefinitely after their spacecraft was reportedly hit by a small piece of debris, according to Chinese state media.

The astronauts, who are part of the Shenzhou-20 mission, travelled to the Tiangong space station in April and were scheduled to return on Wednesday following a six-month stay. Their replacements, the Shenzhou-21 crew, had already arrived over the weekend.

“The Shenzhou-20 crewed spacecraft is suspected to have been struck by a small piece of orbital debris, and assessment of the impact and associated risks is currently under way,” the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said in a statement.

“To ensure the health and safety of the astronauts and the successful completion of the mission, it has been decided that the originally planned return of Shenzhou-20 on November 5 will be postponed.”

Officials did not specify when the debris incident occurred. Earlier in the week, state media reported that both crews had shared a meal of baked chicken prepared using the station’s first oven, delivered by the Shenzhou-21 team. On Tuesday, videos showed the two teams holding a handover ceremony.

Yu Jun, a science communicator known online as Steed’s Scarf, said that if the spacecraft is deemed unsafe to return, authorities could activate a backup plan.

“Shenzhou-22 and the Long March 2F (launcher) were already on standby. This is our rolling backup mechanism. They are in ‘emergency duty’ mode and ready to bring our astronauts home safely if needed,” Yu told his more than five million followers on Weibo.

China has continued to expand its human spaceflight program, completing 37 flights and six crewed missions so far, with plans to land astronauts on the moon by 2030.

The Shenzhou-20 commander, Chen Dong, holds China’s record for the longest cumulative space time more than 380 days and the highest number of spacewalks, with six.

Chinese astronauts have not joined the International Space Station, a partnership between the US, Russia, Europe, Canada, and Japan, due to a US law preventing NASA from cooperating with China’s space program. Instead, China has said it welcomes international cooperation on its Tiangong space station.

(The Guardian Uk)

Headline

Man Grabs Mexico’s President While Meeting Citizens On The Street

Published

12 hours ago

November 5, 2025

Editor

Mexico’s President, Claudia Sheinbaum, while meeting citizens in Mexico City was grabbed by a man, prompting concern over presidential security and ongoing harassment faced by women in the country.

A video from Tuesday shows a man, appearing intoxicated, attempting to kiss the president on the neck and holding her from behind.

She quickly removed his hands and turned to face him before an official stepped in and blocked the man.

As he was led away, Sheinbaum was seen smiling slightly and saying, “Don’t worry.” State police later confirmed the man’s arrest.

Commentators said the episode shows that no woman, not even Mexico’s President, is immune to harassment.

“Even if you’re the president, any guy believes he has the right to touch you,” said Catalina Ruiz-Navarro, a journalist with feminist outlet Volcánicas. “When they ask what the patriarchy is, this is it.”

The incident also raised questions about Sheinbaum’s security. Her team was not clearly visible in the footage, and it took several seconds for anyone to react.

It comes days after Carlos Alberto Manzo Rodríguez, a popular mayor, was killed during Day of the Dead celebrations in Uruapan, Michoacán.

He was shot seven times at close range before the gunman was killed. Before his death, Manzo Rodríguez had publicly appealed to Mexico’s President for help against local criminal groups.

He is the latest in a series of officials killed in Mexico. During the 2024 election campaign, 37 candidates were murdered, and since Sheinbaum’s government began on 1 October, 10 municipal presidents have also been killed.

While local leaders are often targeted, high-level officials have also faced threats.

In 1994, presidential candidate Luis Donaldo Colosio Murrieta was assassinated at a rally in Tijuana. In 2020, the Jalisco cartel attempted to kill Omar García Harfuch, Sheinbaum’s current security minister, in a daylight attack in Mexico City.

Sheinbaum herself faced a scare last year during her campaign in Chiapas, when masked men stopped her vehicle to demand action against violence before letting her go.

Like her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexico’s President has preferred to keep close contact with the public and maintain lighter security. But the latest incident may prompt her to reconsider.

“Hopefully [the presidency will press charges], and the president will send a clear message: no man has the right to kiss or touch a woman without her consent,” wrote Alejandra Escobar, editorial director of Ectétera, on X. “May this also serve as an example for [her assistants]: it is not acceptable for her to be so exposed.”

(The Guardian UK)

Headline

Sweden To Charge 18-year-old Over IS Terror Plot

Published

2 days ago

November 4, 2025

Editor

The Swedish Prosecution Authority said Tuesday it intended to charge an 18-year-old man for planning a terrorist act in Stockholm on behalf of the Islamic State group.

According to prosecutors, the planning took place between August 2024 and February 2025.

“We believe the purpose of the preparations was to induce serious fear in the population, in the name of the Islamic State. The criminal act could have seriously harmed Sweden,” Deputy Chief Prosecutor Henrik Olin said in a statement.

Prosecutors did not provide details of the plan but said the man was also suspected of “preparation for serious crimes under the act on flammable and explosive goods and training for terrorism”.

Prosecutors said they planned to file the charges on Thursday and that a press conference would be held the same day.

The young man will also be charged alongside a 17-year-old boy with attempted murder in Germany in August 2024.

Both of them are also suspected of “participation in a terrorist organisation,” according to the statement.

The man was arrested in Stockholm on February 11 and has been in custody since then.

AFP