Twice as many Scots die from drink than in rest of the UK

As a resident of Aberdeenshire I might feel better about these results than some others in Scotland. Apparently:

Fifteen of the 20 local authority areas with the highest alcohol-related male death rates were in Scotland, with Glasgow top of the league with 83.7 deaths per 100,000.
The figures also revealed wide variations across Scotland, with Aberdeenshire reporting a death rate only a sixth of that in Glasgow.

But it is a Scottish disease that is killing nearly 2400 people a year here. To put this number in context it is is about 8 times the number killed in road accidents, which is much more widely reported on. Drinking too much is often joked upon in Scotland but the truth behind the jokes is appalling.

Don't forget this disease has no respect for wealth, creed or colour.

The stark statistics above are the most visible part of the damage that drinking can create - but behind the figures are real lives that have been destroyed and grieving families devastated.

The Scotsman - Twice as many Scots die from drink than in rest of the UK