The number of women dying from alcohol-related diseases has soared in recent years, new figures show, with experts blaming the rise on brands deliberately targeting their marketing at women.
The latest data reveals that the number of women who lost their lives in this way in the UK increased by 37 per cent in five years – surging from 2,399 to 3,293 between 2016 and 2021 and marking the highest level since records began.
While more men than women still die from alcohol-related diseases, the figures from the Office for National Statistics show that the number of deaths is rising substantially faster in women than in men – with the latter seeing a 29 per cent increase over the same period, from 4,928 to 6,348.
Debbie Shawcross, a professor of hepatology and chronic liver failure at King’s College London’s Institute of Liver Studies, said liver disease is a particular problem in female patients.
“Women tend to present with more severe liver disease, particularly alcohol-related hepatitis, and do so after a shorter period of excessive drinking and at a lower daily alcohol intake than men,” she said. “This can be accounted for by differences in body size and composition – less muscle mass.”
