WHO Report: Alcohol and Drug Consumption Cause Millions of Deaths Annually

The report shows an estimated 400 million people globally live with alcohol and drug use disorders, with 209 million suffering from alcohol dependence.

A new report from the World Health Organization (WHO) reveals that 2.6 million deaths per year are attributable to alcohol consumption, accounting for 4.7% of all deaths, and 0.6 million deaths are due to psychoactive drug use. Notably, 2 million alcohol-related and 0.4 million drug-related deaths were among men.

The WHO's Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health and Treatment of Substance Use Disorders provides an update based on 2019 data on the public health impact of alcohol and drug use and the situation with alcohol consumption and treatment of substance use disorders worldwide. The report shows an estimated 400 million people globally live with alcohol and drug use disorders, with 209 million suffering from alcohol dependence.

"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. It places a heavy burden on families and communities, increasing exposure to accidents, injuries, and violence," said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. "To build a healthier, more equitable society, we must urgently commit to bold actions that reduce the negative health and social consequences of alcohol consumption and make treatment for substance use disorders accessible and affordable."

The report emphasizes the urgent need to accelerate global actions towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.5 by 2030 by reducing alcohol and drug consumption and improving access to quality treatment for substance use disorders.

Health Consequences of Alcohol Consumption

Despite some reduction in alcohol-related death rates since 2010, the overall number of deaths due to alcohol consumption remains high at 2.6 million in 2019, with the highest numbers in the European and African regions. The death rates due to alcohol consumption per litre are highest in low-income countries and lowest in high-income countries.

Of all alcohol-attributable deaths in 2019, an estimated 1.6 million were from noncommunicable diseases, including 474,000 from cardiovascular diseases and 401,000 from cancer. Approximately 724,000 deaths were due to injuries, such as those from traffic crashes, self-harm, and interpersonal violence. Another 284,000 deaths were linked to communicable diseases, with alcohol consumption increasing the risk of HIV transmission and TB infection.

The highest proportion (13%) of alcohol-attributable deaths in 2019 was among young people aged 20–39 years.

Alcohol Consumption Trends

Total alcohol per capita consumption worldwide slightly decreased from 5.7 litres in 2010 to 5.5 litres in 2019. The highest levels of per capita consumption in 2019 were observed in the WHO European Region (9.2 litres) and the Region of Americas (7.5 litres).

Among current drinkers, the average daily consumption was 27 grams of pure alcohol, equivalent to two glasses of wine, two bottles of beer, or two servings of spirits. In 2019, 38% of current drinkers engaged in heavy episodic drinking, consuming at least 60 grams of pure alcohol on one or more occasions in the preceding month.

Globally, 23.5% of all 15–19 year olds were current drinkers, with the highest rates among this age group in the European region (45.9%) and the Americas (43.9%).

Treatment Gap for Substance Use Disorders

Despite effective treatment options for substance use disorders, treatment coverage remains low. In 2019, the proportion of people in contact with substance use treatment services ranged from less than 1% to no more than 35% in countries providing data. Most of the 145 countries that reported data did not have a specific budget line or governmental expenditures for treatment of substance use disorders. Nearly half of responding countries reported not offering mutual help and peer support groups for substance use disorders.

Actions for Progress

To accelerate progress towards achieving SDG target 3.5 and reduce the health and social burden of substance use, governments and partners need to intensify actions in eight strategic areas:

1. Increase awareness through a coordinated global advocacy campaign.
2. Strengthen prevention and treatment capacity of health and social care systems.
3. Scale up training of health professionals.
4. Re-commit to the implementation of the Global Alcohol Action Plan 2022-2030 with a focus on the SAFER package.
5. Accelerate international efforts on capacity-building and knowledge transfer.
6. Engage civil society organizations, professional associations, and people with lived experience.
7. Improve multi-level monitoring systems and corresponding research capacity.
8. Scale up resource mobilization, allocation, and innovative funding mechanisms to strengthen the capacity of health and social systems.

The WHO report underscores the critical need for coordinated and sustained global action to address the significant public health challenges posed by alcohol and drug use, aiming to build a healthier and more equitable society.